My theory of writing relies more on one’s personal expressions than formal construction of composition. Employing the truest manifestation that is within a person and then beginning to craft the language and grammar from there is what is essential to not just teaching writing but also practicing it as well. This philosophy was reinforced in Chapter 5 on grading student essays by suggesting focusing more on finding patterns of error and working to correct those, rather than finding every flaw within the paper, to better encourage the student while being the most effective at educating them at the same time.
Coming into this semester, I thought content took precedent over grammar or other formalities of composition when it comes to teaching first-year college students. This is primarily based on my theory above – that personal experience and expression surpass the “rules.” Those conventions can be learned and memorized in a relatively short period of time, but conveying yourself clearly not only takes more time but also connects you more with the art of writing itself. While the basis of this theory still rings true to me, what has evolved for me is the idea of the audience I have the possibility of teaching, which I discussed in my Chapter 1 & 3 response. Being a former GED and nontraditional college student myself, I envisioned educating many students on the education spectrum, but what I did not contemplate were the students who may not have been exposed to other students coming from these various backgrounds. This has made me reassess how I would go about instructing those undergraduates, though admittedly I’m still gathering those concepts for myself.
Writing (and reading) has always been a source of survival for me. Because it played such an important role in my life for such a big part of it, that passion would have to be the biggest contributor to my theory of writing. What made me want to pursue writing (particularly creative writing) even more actively were specific teachers I had along my academic career; their fervor for the craft and dedication to my writing has been the biggest contribution to my theory on writing. These teachers enacted this by using many of the lessons used in Chapter 4 on creating writing assignments that a student can identify and connect with rather than something large and vague. To this point, also implementing the best practices of rubrics and theories like the “B” fallacy. Trying to incorporate a student’s personal interest and drive can be the very vehicle that can be used to help create and instill knowledge. Therefore, my theory of writing goes hand-in-hand with creating knowledge for the classroom.
This is a very personal and inexplicit theory, I know. And partly some of this might be because I am not currently an adjunct, but this theory is what pushed me in my first years of college to produce and want to learn. With the theory being rather flexible, it can be applied to any writing situation. It’s essential to exercising the truest expression within a person and then crafting the language and grammar from there.
