Responding
to Student Writing by Sommers and On Reflection by Yancey
Sommers’ essay talked about comments
teachers write in students papers. One of the first things that caught my
attention about this essay was when it was stated: “we comment on student
writing because we believe that it is necessary for us to offer assistance to
student writers when they are in the process of composing a text, rather than
after the text has been completed.” When
I read this, I thought about classes I’ve taken and where the professor has actually
shared how it is hard for them to comment on unfinished drafts because they don’t
know how could they comment on something that is not yet finished. The
professor shared this with the purpose of letting us know that the comments we were
going to be reading from the professor were more to help us develop our drafts
rather than to make us change what we were trying to say. The professor knew
that what we were trying to say was still being developed. Therefore, the
professor encouraged us to develop our thoughts and ideas through the comments.
I feel like comments on student’s drafts, without a conversation or explanation,
could be confusing for a student because they won’t see the reasoning behind
the comments and could feel lost when reading them.
In this essay it was also stated that: “sometimes
the students do not understand the purpose behind their teachers’ comments and
take these comments very literally. At other times students understand the
comments but the teacher has misread the text and the comments, unfortunately,
are not applicable.” This made me think about the importance of having a
relationship with the students. I feel like when comments are dry on a paper
without further conversation about them, they leave a lot of room for
interpretation. It could never be clear what is the teacher trying to say with
the comments or what is the student trying to say in their draft.
Sommers later stated that students
admitted having great difficulty with the vague directives the teachers were
giving them in their comments. The students stated that when a teacher writes
in the margins or an end comment, “choose precise language,” or “think more
about your audience,” revising becomes a guessing game.” I find it ironic how the
teachers ask constantly for students to be specific about what they are saying yet
their comments are vague. I feel like this does not help the student develop
their writing or learn anything about it. Instead, it creates confusion and a
desire to write what the teacher wants if the student is able to figure it out rather
than to write something the student is content with.
Yancey’s essay is about many theories
that focused their study on reflection when composing. I started reading this
essay and started to just take in the information in very smoothly but when I read
“reflection has played but a small role in this history of composing.” I found
this statement very disappointing. As a writer, I value reflection. If I don’t reflect
on anything that has to do with what I am writing, then what’s the purpose of
me writing anything at all? In my experience as a writer, I’ve found that when I
reflect about what I am writing I am able to not only develop my pieces further
but I am able to learn more in the process. Whether I am learning about me as a
writer or about what I am writing, I am still learning and that is valuable. I valued
when it was stated: “When we reflect, we call upon the cognitive, the affective,
the intuitive, putting these into play with each other: to help us understand
how something completed looks later, how it compares with what has come before,
how it seems stated or implicit criteria, our own, those of other.”
Overall, both article stated important
topics when it came to writing. The comments that teachers write on students papers
form great part of the composing process as well as the importance in
reflection when composing.
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