KairaMiller

EvelynMeisenbacher

UniversityWriting1301

31thJanuary2017

Docendodiscimus

LatinproverbderivedfromSenecatheYounger(c.4BC65AD).

AnaphorismmeaningMenlearnwhiletheyteach.Perhapsthismottocancorrelatetothe

currenttopicofmethodology and teaching. Like that of Peter Elbow. Certain

processes while teaching take on new meaning these days when instructors

begin to educate their pupils on the cultural, and historical philosophies that

surround what is regarded as academic writing. The query is simple, what

practice is best for developing the abilities of students in academic writing?

What exercises, what resolutions can be utilized to help better prepare them

for the writing and academic world? As if to say that the current processes

are not sufficient enough. Traditional correctness, and recent techniques of

famed instructors are suddenly magnified on the roadmap to growing the

writing abilities of our students. A fierce debate follows this matter closely.

Our significance in the development and continuation of the scholarly

world is suggested as crucial. If this is sothen the question remains- how

can these young scholars learn to appropriately write? Particularly college

freshman. Conclusions are on the rise. As an example, one of the such

instructors has posted an article stating his opinion Peter Elbow inBeinga
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Writervs.BeinganAcademic:AConflictinGoals of College Composition and

Communication, published by National Council of Teachers of English, and

opposing-- Laurance Musgrove on The Real Reason Students Cant Write

from a post in the opinion section on Insidehighered.com.

Correspondingly,Elbowspiecefocusesonthestudentsaswriters.Developingtheir

exceptionalvoicewiththeuseofconsistentpractice.Aidingthemattainingtheirownthought

andmeaningthroughthepracticeofwriting.Disregardinganytraditionalmeanstomindthe

strictrulesofgrammarandpunctuation,oftenrestrictingstudentsofexpression.Indeed,wefind

thathisteachingmethodsallowstudentstoexpressthemselves,andoftentimesthosewho

instructthesecoursesholddifferentexpectationswhichisacauseforaccommodatingtoeach

teacher.Writingwhetheritbeacademicallyacceptable,orforonesselfclearlybecomesa

subjectiveexperience.

ComparativelyMusgrovespiecetakesthestanceoftheacademic.Itisapparentthathis

commitmenttoteachstudentsisempoweredbytheconstantprovingofhiscredibility,usinghis

careerasalegtokeephisargumentsteady.TherearepointswithinMusgrovespiecewherehe

comparesacademicwritingtodrivingyes,thatisright.Therulesoftheroad.Usingthis

analogytobothentertainandattempttorelatehisaudiencetohissuggestionsinorderto

influencethemtohisposition.Yetwhileitdoesactasasortofliaison,hisapproachisfarfrom

thatoftheothermentionedscholar.Intendingtointroduceanewsystemintoinstitutionssothat

studentswillbeforcedtowriteacademically,andifnotsufficientenoughthey,thestudents,

suffertheconsequence.Suchasplacingaholdontheirstudentrecords,andeffectingtheir

eligibilitytopasstheirrightinggeneralsuntilsaidstudentcanredeemthemselvesbymeansof

whateverinstitutioninstills.
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InthelightofElbowsperspective,Musgrovesattitudetowardacademicwritingnever

trulyalignswithhisown.TheinsensitivegeneralizationsLaurenceMusgrovemakesboth

authorsperspectivesdiffergreatlydespitetheiralignmentinregardstohavingpassionfor

teachingfirstyearsPerpetuallyreferencinghisownbackgroundastarifftowardhiscredibility

Musgrovesseveresolutions,whileElbowcanonlyexcusehimselfasbeingtooromantictotake

totheaggressiveanticsthatofMusgrove,leavingthembothindifferent.

InthebeginningofMusgrovespiecehebeginswiththeinsinuationofhowmost

instructorsthinkwhenitcomestothefieldofteachingfirstyearstudentstheimportanceof

academicwriting.

Ibelievemostfacultythinkthatwhentheyfindanerrorin

grammarorlogicorformat,itisbecausetheirstudentsdontknow

howtowrite.WhenIfindsignificanterrorsinstudentwriting,I

chalkituptooneofthreereasons:theydontcare,theydont

know,ortheydidntseeit.[Musgrove,2006,para.3]

Withthewaythisauthoraddresseshiscolleaguesandatwhichthecontextheplacehiswordsin

asifdenouncingtheirabilitiesasinstructors.Again,bringingupfellowprofessorsinparagraph4

ofhispostButletsnotjustblamethestudents.Mostcollegeprofessorswouldpreferto

complainaboutpoorwritingthansimplyrefusetoacceptit.[Musgrove,para.4]

However,whenthegreatMusgrovefindserrorshethinksitisbecauseitisoneof

threethings.Blunty,Studentseitherdonotcare,donotknowordonotseetheirerrorsintheir

writing.Thismeansheisgroupingstudentsintooneofthreeways,andthemajorityofwhich

eitherdonotcarenordonotsee.Suggestingthathisstudentsaresmarterthantheyleadon,and
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forwhatreason?Isitbecausetheyarelesspassionateaboutwhattheywrite?Isitbecauseitis

tooinconvenientforthemtoplacemoreeffort?Thefactthatmaybesaidstudentsarejuggling

morethanonecourse,whichmostexperiencedprofessorstendtofailtokeepinmind?Itcannot

beanalyzed?Why,becauseeverypersonisdifferent.Everyonehastheirreasoning,whetheritbe

anIEP,disabilityofsomesort,workingnights,takingtwicetheamountofcreditsthatare

recommended.Itdoesnotmatter,everyonehastheirreasoningandwhilesomemaycareabout

whattheywriteabout,othersjustwanttopasssothattheycanproceedwithearningtheirdegree.

Whateverreasonthesestudentshave,itisclearthatthereismorethanone,ortwothreereasons

andMr.Musgrovehereisgeneralizingastowhyhisstudentsarewritingthewaythattheyare,

whichtohimisunsatisfactory.

Yet,whenPeterElbowgoesoninhisarticleabouthisstudentsheaddresseshisown

personalselfasastrugglingwriteranacademic.Separatingthetitles,admittingthattheseare

conflictingwords,andevenforhimselfisagreatchallenge.However,Elbowgoesontodescribe

thatinhisclassheurgesthestudentstowrite.Notacademically,butjusttowrite.Forthe

evidenceofthisclaimiswithinthetitlealoneofPeterElbowspieceBeingWritervs.Beingan

Academic:AConflictinGoals.Elbowdescribes

thatawriterandanacademicaretwodifferentidentities

thatsometimesconflictandhavearelationshipintheworldoftext.

Wishingthathisstudentsfindthemselvesaswriterswhoget

satisfactionfromdiscoveringmeaning,emotionandexpressing

meaningandemotionwhetherhappyorsad;butalsofind

themselvesasacademics,readingknowledgeablebooks,wresting
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throughimportantissueswithothersandfiguringouthard

questions.[Elbow,1995,para.2]

Implyingthatifhecouldhelpaccomplishthesegoalswithhisstudents,thenheandthey

bothachievedsuccessoverall.Thisideafullyendsrightthereatthesecondparagraph,hooking

usinashisreaders.

Bythesametoken,Musgroveuseshiscareerasaplatformforcredibilityintheveryfirst

sentenceofhisentirepiece.Claimingtobeasignificantfigurefortheinstitutionthatheworks

for.Atmyuniversity,Ichairafacultycommitteechargedwithreviewingandrevisingour

generaleducationcurriculum.Overthepasttwoandahalfyears,wehaveexaminedprogramsat

similarcollegesandstudiedbestpracticesnationwide.[Musgrove,2006,para1]

Beforejumpingtothemainpoint,Musgrovestartsoffwiththisstatementinorderto

appearmorepersuasive.Thisstartsthereadersoffwithanideaofwhosworktheymaybe

reading,quicklycreatingafoundationinordertogainasenseofwhatstandpointtheauthoris

comingfrom,whichveryquicklysuggeststobeingdominant.Usingthehimselfasproof,and

claimingmystudentsorIthisandIthatmakesforahighlyopinionatedwork.

Continuingtodiscussthetroublesprofessorsalikefacewhenteachingfreshmenwriting

heofficiallystateshispositionanothertime,howeverthistimeismuchmoremodest.Asifa

reminder,allwhileexpressinghissympathieswithotherprofessorswhofacethedifficultiesof

instructingfirstyearacademicwritingcoursesIhavebeenteachingfirstyearwritingfor

manyyears,andIhavedirectedrhetoricandcompositionsprogramsattwouniversities.

[Musgrove,2006,para.4].Onecouldprobablylookupthisauthorsnameandfindallofhis

claimtobetrue,butwithoutspecificationswhilemakingclaimsonhiscareer.Onecangather
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thatthispersonisexcessiveinhisexperience,andwhatheissayinghereiswhatmatters,iswhat

isright.Musgrovedoeshisbesttoconvincetheaudiencebeforeannouncinghisproposalof

solutiontothisproblemwithstudents.Suggestingthattheirapathy,anddisregardfortheir

writingshouldbemetwithpenalties.

ThepenaltiesthatMusgrovegoesontoexplain,isstartedoffwithananalogy.

betweendrivingandwriting.Mostdriversaregooddrivers

becausetherulesoftheroadarepublicandshared,theyare

consistentlyenforced,andtheconsequencesofbaddrivingare

clear[Musgrove,2006,para.6]

UsingthisanalogyisacleverwayinordertorelatethereadertowhatMusgrovehastosayasfar

ashisplanstoimprovetheEnglishwritingcurriculumacrossthehigheducationboard.

Attemptingtocomparewritingtodrivingasifitisablackandwhitedisciplineinorderto

gaintheapprovalandunderstandingoftheaudiencesothattheyareinfluencedtoagree.A

drasticproposalnonethelessMusgrovestatesthatusinghismethodcouldimprovestudents

skillsinwriting,astheywouldbecomemoremotivatedintoputtingeffortintotheir

assignmentssotoendthefrustrationthatcurrentprofessorsfeelwhileskimmingthroughtheir

studentsassignments.

Allfacultymembersareherebyauthorizedtochallengetheir

studentswritingproficiency.Studentswhofailtodemonstratethe

generallyacceptedminimumstandardsofproficiencyinwriting

maybeissuedawritingticketbytheirinstructors.Writing

ticketsbecomepartofstudentsinstitutionalwritingrecords.
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Studentswhofailtohaveticketsremovedfromtheirrecords

willreceiveadditionalpenalties,suchasafailinggradeforthe

course,academicprobation,ortheinabilitytoregisterforclasses.

[Musgrove,2006,para.7]

Motivationinotherwords,threateningthegrades,recordsaswellasstudentsabilityto

registerforclassescouldresultinanumberofnegativeactions.Thisisclearlyjustanidea,but

withoutthoughttowhatitcouldmeanonapersonalleveltosomany.Ifanythingthiswould

causedreadforthosewhomustlearntowriteacademically,thelittleappreciationthatthereis

woulddissipate.Allinordertosatisfytheinstructorsneedformoreinterestingreadsinthe

classroom.

Ontheotherhand,PeterElbowcanonlyexcusehimselfasbeingtooromantictotaketothe

aggressiveanticslikethatofMusgrove.Hisonlyanalogyusedtodescribethoselearningtobe

writersandacademics,isthedescriptionofgoingupamountain.Bothofwhich,meaning,

academicsandwritersareseparatemountainstoclimb.Thereisconflict,andonemustmakea

choice.Whiletherearemaybeelementsofanacademicinawriterorawriterinanacademic,

Peterheresuggestsmorelightlythatonecannotfullybeboth.AndwhilePeterneverfullystates

hiscredibility,onlymentioningtheassignmenthegivesstudentsaboutpublishingtheirworkina

studentmagazine,asanimplicationthatheisaninstructorofsorts,thejournalthathispieceis

publishedin,statesveryclearlyinthefootnotesthehighlightsofanextensivecareeramong

variousinstitutionsasaprofessorandsoforth.
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Inthefinalanalysis,thefirstsentenceofElbowspiece,headdressesDavidBartholomae.

Askingforotherstopersuadehimonhisstance,howevernotsomuchachallengethatmightbe

comparabletoaboxingmatch.Nonetheless,thebeginningtohisentireessayisalessaggressive

approach.Askingforotherstocorrecthimiftheydeemhimwrong.Perhapsitisbecausehe

considershimselflikeinthebeginningofthisdiscussion,twothingsIamanacademicandI

amawriter[Elbow,72].Amanwholearnswhileheteaches.

Eitherway,itislikeadisclaimerandasoftindicationthatitisacatalysttoanalwaysopen

discussion.WhereaslookingoverMusgrovesbeginningstatementsheuseshisexperienceto

expressthatheorweimplyingthathe,representinghisinstitution,hasreviewedanumberof

programsnationwidecollegetocollege,andhasproposedanewcurriculumforthecoursesthat

addressthewritingabilitiesandpracticesofintroleveledstudents.Notoutright,butheavily

impliedthathebelievesthattheremustbeachange,andwherethereischange,thereisan

implicationthatsomethingisnotdoingwellorsomethingcanbedonebetter.

Tosumupmythoughtsfromapersonalstandpointthroughallofthis,asafellowwriter,I

canunderstandtheurgencyLaurenceMusgroveshares.However,hismethodsarefartoodrastic.

Togivewritingticketsoutliketraffictickersasifitisaformofacademicprobationmakes

collegethatmuchmorestressful.Asafirstyearstudent,thereissomethingtobesaidaboutthe

transitionfromhighschooltohighered.Inordertogetustocareaboutwearewriting,we

shouldbegivenmotivationthatwouldcompeltheyounggenerationtowriteinordertodevelop

theirownuniquerhetoricandmeaning.LikePeterElbow,thewritingworldcanaffordtobe

moreinclusiveofthosedifferentvoicesandstyles.Weareinanagewhereoriginalityis

profoundlyvalued.Tobroadenthespectrumandallowformoretogainthespotlight,theageof
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writingaswellasacademicswouldcometoriseandperhapsthosewhocurrentlydebatethe

futureofthiswouldseethatthereisahighregard.Inclusivity,andtheallowanceofdifferent

voiceswithoutrestrictionwouldchangetheacademicworldforthebetter.Why?Becausethen

wecanreachandconnecttoothersthroughouttheacademiccommunities,puttingasidethis

complexofelitism.
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WorksCited

Elbow,P.(1995).BeingaWritervs.BeinganAcademic:AConflictinGoals.College

CompositionandCommunication,46(1),72.doi:10.2307/358871

Musgrove,L.(2006,April28).TheRealReasonsStudentsCantWrite.RetrievedJan.&Feb.,

2017,fromhttps//www.insidehighered.com/views/2006/04/28/realreasonsstudentscant

write

Opiniontab