What does our future look like if the hero’s journey is repeatedly being short-circuited by ever-... more What does our future look like if the hero’s journey is repeatedly being short-circuited by ever-present social networks? Who will persevere in the aloneness long enough to have scars to show and stories to tell, offering up something sublime out of the thick darkness?
Convinced that she has found one of the keys to memorable writing, author Heather Sellers require... more Convinced that she has found one of the keys to memorable writing, author Heather Sellers requires handwritten first drafts from her creative writing students. Recent research confirms her personal observations.
More than his or her colleagues, the writing teacher has the opportunity to empower students to s... more More than his or her colleagues, the writing teacher has the opportunity to empower students to stand on their own two feet, realize their rhetorical potential, and rewrite their stories. Many writing teachers, including me, believe the best place for students to start is writing about their own lives. After all, storytelling—relating one's personal experiences to another—is the primary method by which people construct meaning in their lives. As philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre has said, "the unity of a human life is the unity of a narrative quest."
Ironically, though the move toward online education is being advanced by some of the nation’s mos... more Ironically, though the move toward online education is being advanced by some of the nation’s most elite universities, in the end it will be the lower half of the student population that will be forced out of the traditional classroom, widening the gap between the haves and the have-nots.
Research has proven that the best way to develop student‘s writing abilities is through expressiv... more Research has proven that the best way to develop student‘s writing abilities is through expressive, personal writing.
At the beginning of every semester, I ask my students how many media they use while doing homewor... more At the beginning of every semester, I ask my students how many media they use while doing homework. Out of a class of twenty-five, usually only one or two still value shutting everything off and focusing completely on their work. Surely it is no coincidence that “U.S. fifteen-year-olds rank twenty-fourth out of twenty-nine developed countries on an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development test of problem-solving skills related to analytic reasoning” (Jackson 18). Numerous studies indicate a decreasing capability for critical thinking in today’s students. Apparently, the increased access to information and the growing number of tools for manipulating and processing that information is not adding up to smarter students. In fact, the opposite is occurring. Why? Because the best tool we have at our disposal is our own minds and the ability to bring them into sharp focus or deep thought and, unfortunately, those abilities are waning.
This article, which leans heavily on the work of Vincent Miller, addresses the changes occurring ... more This article, which leans heavily on the work of Vincent Miller, addresses the changes occurring with Phatic Communion, or small talk, due to the influence of digital media.
In this article, I explain my change of heart regarding peer groups in the writing classroom. Whe... more In this article, I explain my change of heart regarding peer groups in the writing classroom. Where I initially embraced the concept, I no longer do. My teaching practice now emphasizes solitary writing and classwide discussion under my direction.
There never has been -- nor will there ever be -- a more dynamic learning context than face-to-fa... more There never has been -- nor will there ever be -- a more dynamic learning context than face-to-face in close proximity. Everything possible should be done to protect that timeless environment from interruption and distraction
In the aftermath of Osama bin Laden's death, the Pentagon released a video of bin Laden watching ... more In the aftermath of Osama bin Laden's death, the Pentagon released a video of bin Laden watching himself on TV. The following is a reflection on that video clip.
Evidence indicates that literacy and critical thinking of high school and college graduates ... more Evidence indicates that literacy and critical thinking of high school and college graduates is in decline. This paper asserts that a primary cause of this decline is ubiquitous media technology. Students are exposed to a constant stream of entertainment, information and digital sociality, which tends to fill all the gaps of their lives. Historically, these gaps have provided opportunities for engaging in “meaning-making” activities like personal banter, storytelling, sitting down with a good book, or contemplating matters of personal importance. This thesis proposes two keys for getting literacy and critical thinking back on track through the first-year writing classroom: 1) emphasizing the recovery of fluency through students’ personal narratives presented in an oral, face-to-face context, and 2) sharpening students’ attentional skills by fostering the meditative pause in the classroom and equipping them for “desert island discourse,” which composition teacher and theorist Peter Elbow defines as “the ability to talk reflectively to ourselves.”
What does our future look like if the hero’s journey is repeatedly being short-circuited by ever-... more What does our future look like if the hero’s journey is repeatedly being short-circuited by ever-present social networks? Who will persevere in the aloneness long enough to have scars to show and stories to tell, offering up something sublime out of the thick darkness?
Convinced that she has found one of the keys to memorable writing, author Heather Sellers require... more Convinced that she has found one of the keys to memorable writing, author Heather Sellers requires handwritten first drafts from her creative writing students. Recent research confirms her personal observations.
More than his or her colleagues, the writing teacher has the opportunity to empower students to s... more More than his or her colleagues, the writing teacher has the opportunity to empower students to stand on their own two feet, realize their rhetorical potential, and rewrite their stories. Many writing teachers, including me, believe the best place for students to start is writing about their own lives. After all, storytelling—relating one's personal experiences to another—is the primary method by which people construct meaning in their lives. As philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre has said, "the unity of a human life is the unity of a narrative quest."
Ironically, though the move toward online education is being advanced by some of the nation’s mos... more Ironically, though the move toward online education is being advanced by some of the nation’s most elite universities, in the end it will be the lower half of the student population that will be forced out of the traditional classroom, widening the gap between the haves and the have-nots.
Research has proven that the best way to develop student‘s writing abilities is through expressiv... more Research has proven that the best way to develop student‘s writing abilities is through expressive, personal writing.
At the beginning of every semester, I ask my students how many media they use while doing homewor... more At the beginning of every semester, I ask my students how many media they use while doing homework. Out of a class of twenty-five, usually only one or two still value shutting everything off and focusing completely on their work. Surely it is no coincidence that “U.S. fifteen-year-olds rank twenty-fourth out of twenty-nine developed countries on an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development test of problem-solving skills related to analytic reasoning” (Jackson 18). Numerous studies indicate a decreasing capability for critical thinking in today’s students. Apparently, the increased access to information and the growing number of tools for manipulating and processing that information is not adding up to smarter students. In fact, the opposite is occurring. Why? Because the best tool we have at our disposal is our own minds and the ability to bring them into sharp focus or deep thought and, unfortunately, those abilities are waning.
This article, which leans heavily on the work of Vincent Miller, addresses the changes occurring ... more This article, which leans heavily on the work of Vincent Miller, addresses the changes occurring with Phatic Communion, or small talk, due to the influence of digital media.
In this article, I explain my change of heart regarding peer groups in the writing classroom. Whe... more In this article, I explain my change of heart regarding peer groups in the writing classroom. Where I initially embraced the concept, I no longer do. My teaching practice now emphasizes solitary writing and classwide discussion under my direction.
There never has been -- nor will there ever be -- a more dynamic learning context than face-to-fa... more There never has been -- nor will there ever be -- a more dynamic learning context than face-to-face in close proximity. Everything possible should be done to protect that timeless environment from interruption and distraction
In the aftermath of Osama bin Laden's death, the Pentagon released a video of bin Laden watching ... more In the aftermath of Osama bin Laden's death, the Pentagon released a video of bin Laden watching himself on TV. The following is a reflection on that video clip.
Evidence indicates that literacy and critical thinking of high school and college graduates ... more Evidence indicates that literacy and critical thinking of high school and college graduates is in decline. This paper asserts that a primary cause of this decline is ubiquitous media technology. Students are exposed to a constant stream of entertainment, information and digital sociality, which tends to fill all the gaps of their lives. Historically, these gaps have provided opportunities for engaging in “meaning-making” activities like personal banter, storytelling, sitting down with a good book, or contemplating matters of personal importance. This thesis proposes two keys for getting literacy and critical thinking back on track through the first-year writing classroom: 1) emphasizing the recovery of fluency through students’ personal narratives presented in an oral, face-to-face context, and 2) sharpening students’ attentional skills by fostering the meditative pause in the classroom and equipping them for “desert island discourse,” which composition teacher and theorist Peter Elbow defines as “the ability to talk reflectively to ourselves.”
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