Monday, October 22, 2007
Freeland Article
Conferences are a new frontier for me. All through my undergrad in my teaching classes i was encourage to use conferences, and yet no one ever really said how to do them. I know the techniques and what i am supposed to do, but i can totally see myself freezing up and going into "teacher mode." Freeland discusses how this is how she first conducted conferences (teacher mode) and explained that way did not work. A third of the class was failing, and students got to sit next to their teacher while she tore their papers apart (in a nice way). I definetly find this daunting...trying to use a conference that would best help the student and allowing them to find their voice. Freeland explains that having the students write a response before they come to the conference helps give the conference an "agenda" and i think that is a great idea. I can see me becoming lost in what the heck we are supposed to be discussing and the student getting frustrated,soooo a pre-written response sounds like a great idea to me. Freeland suggests throughout the article that a teacher has to "stop teaching" and this sounds like it should be easy (what is better then giving up your duties??), but i know that it is not that simple. letting the students go and trusting them is not easy for us teachers to do. There is always the need to want to take control and fill their little minds with all of our knowledge (yes, i am being sarcastic, dont worry), but letting them do things themselves usually falls outside of what we think we should do. But, i think it is necessary. In writing conferences and in the classroom...we need to let the students talk more about their own writing, because they are the ones who wrote it and that makes them the experts. Yikes, i am not positive that all of this made sense, so i apologize now :)
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I think I will use conferences in my own classes. I can see how they could be daunting though. And, I think it is hard to make students feel comfortable in these types of situations. It is hard to make students see you as a "fellow writer" and not as an authority figure only. I want to give students ownership over their own work, not tear it apart and demand they make all the changes I suggest.
Reflections before and after conferences can definitely be beneficial. The reflections they write going into the meeting can help you as a teacher situate where they are in their writing. (We need to know what THEY think of their own writing.) Afterwards, there reflections can tell you what they REALLY learned, not just what we hoped they learned. It isn't an easy task, I tell you!
I also liked that these reflections were incorporated into the students’ portfolios. It almost forces them to take the workshops/conferences seriously, or at least be aware of what is going on enough to write about it! That sends the message that the writing, personal reflections, workshops, revisions, and post-draft reflections are a total package—all part of the writing process. So, writing is not only about a final composition, but rather an entire process that includes ideas, revision, and being an objective, critical reader and writer.
Keeping with “Awakening the Writer’s Identity through Conferences”:
I surprised that Kate Freeland said she would “lose or fail approximately one-third or more” of her basic writing students before switching to draft conferences, portfolios, and such. That seems so high to me—is that typical? I wonder what the average is here at Kent.
Later in the chapter she discusses her strategies for portfolios, but mentions that “some basic writers need the accountability that grades provide,” so she has students turn in a midsemester portfolio and warns students who are in danger of failing. A midterm “warning” is great, but I guess I’m wondering if more direction is needed. I mean, even as an experienced student I like to know what’s going on and where I fall on the grading scale. Portfolios seem like a great way to emphasize revision and help new students move past their preoccupation with grades. But I wonder if some clarity might help too: perhaps using some system of pluses, checks, and minuses, or maybe an “estimation” of a grade? Or does that counter the whole portfolio objective? I just think leaving students without any approximation or evaluation might leave them feeling a little abandoned and confused. But perhaps I'm a little grade-obsessed myself!
If you are in grad school, you are indeed a little grade obsessed. Just like me... ! haha
heehee... Yeah, I guess there are advantages to being a grade-obsessed perfectionist! This is my first semester in grad school, and never seeing a graded paper or graded anything is driving me mad! What I secretly want is a grade-school-type progress report…sad, isn’t it?! I keep trying to remind myself that I'm an adult now ;)
So I guess my perspectives on grades come from my own feelings and insecurities as a student. But I don’t think I’m the only one. I do like the idea of portfolios, I just wonder if some kind of evaluation—even just pluses or minuses—might be a good idea, along with written suggestions and all. Just as a pre-revision, pre-portfolio estimation. I think it might help avoid any “surprise” bad grades at the end of the term.
Becca, i totally agree with your need for grades..i am chomping at the bit, and i think that most of our future students will feel the same way. I think that having an end portfolio with a "grade, grade" will be great for the students, and some sort of check system would be helpful for them throughout the semester. I was talking to my office mate, and she explained that she uses "E-early, M-middle, and L-late" as a way to help her students know where they are on their drafts. i think this is a good idea too, but it will get a bit dicey whenever their papers dont fit into a perscribed spot, but i think it general it would work pretty well. And there are always conferences where the students can straight up ask how they are doing-if they feel so inclined.
Hmm… I haven’t seen that before: “E-early,” “M-middle,” “L-late”? I don’t really get it, though. “Middle” of what? The revision process, grading scale, or the due date? Maybe using a system like that could help students—if I understood it!—but it seems a bit ambiguous or unclear. And you’re right about conferences—those are certainly an option for any student who is concerned about a grade or needs some extra guidance. I just think some kind of evaluation—as preparation and information—might make my job easier!
oops...that's what i get for not proofreading this thingers...the EML is for early revision which means that it still needs lots of work and then it gets better as you go. My office mate also uses some pluses and minuses to help the students realize how close they are to the "late" stage...soooo, i hope that helps, sorry for my ambiguity.
becca,
i was also surprised by how many students freeland wasted before she switched to the conferencing method. i'm happy to see conferencing made such a difference, though let me just linger for a second on the topic of failing. in my own class now i have two students with solid Fs. as i'm beginning to figure out how much (ie, little) i can push them, i've also wondered what the norm is for failed 21011 students. i'm sure that stat, specific to ksu, exists somewhere.
i'm a big fan of conferences. where i completed grad school, it was required of all students to attend a conference with each of our instructors for one half-hour every other week. this time was incredibly precious, and afforded me knowledge that i wouldn't have acquired in the regular classroom setting. if nothing else, it forced me to speak about my writing, which is always a good thing.
on the teachers end, it sure kept them busy, but i think they enjoyed it. i just conferenced on friday with one of my students and now see her in a completely different light. it's odd what even just one conversation can do to teacher/student relationships!
i think face-to-face conferencing holds both student and teacher responsible like nothing else can. both parties are somewhat intimidated of the other, but when that ice is broken--it can be amazingly beneficial! not only can the hierarchy diminish, but knowledge is transmitted on both ends.
i think the inclusion of conferencing throughout the semester is more important than the other reading's message of anonymous workshopping. i believe this mode of communication--all names attached, full responsibility accepted, no escape in sight--is much more dangerous but much more helpful.
The point you made about conferencing being an ice-breaker interests me—it seems so obvious, but I never considered that particular aspect before. I know conferencing can help make that student-teacher connection, but—as you mentioned—it can also be a way to put them at ease. It may seem intimating for them at first, but there are long-term benefits. Maybe conferences do make teachers seem more approachable, and make the student feel more relaxed to ask questions, participate in class, and contribute in conferences and workshops.
This will be my first time teaching an actual course, and I do spend a great deal of time worrying about how to maintain some kind of “instructor” identity in class. Despite being in my mid-twenties, I’m short, pale, and look all of 15 yrs old—so I guess I worry more about seeming like a push-over and less about seeming approachable! Yeah, I’m still working on that…
Anyhow, I’m starting to like the idea of conferences more, if only to establish a personal atmosphere. But, I think I prefer a workshop with peers and the instructor for the majority of writing work.
I like the idea of conferencing being an icebreaker as well. I fondly remember my first collegiate conference with a professor, and after that i knew a teacher that i could go to. I am not sure if that is the point of conferencing,but in the social sphere i think it is at least an extra bonus.
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