RESPONDING TO STUDENT WRITING

In her article, “Responding to Student Writing,” Nancy Sommers explains the student writing process, saying: “In the beginning of the process there was the writer, her words, and her desire to communicate her ideas. But after the comments of the teacher are imposed on the first or second draft, the student's attention dramatically shifts from “This is what I want to say," to '"This is what you the teacher are asking me to do’” (Sommers 150). This is absolutely what I want to avoid—this quote is the reason I chose to investigate the question of freedom versus structure in the first place. Sommers goes on to say that teachers often appropriate texts from students, as described above, when they comment on their papers with a confusing mixture of grammar and mechanic comments (“check spelling” or “choose a better word”) and vague content suggestions (“expand” or simply “?”). Sommers suggests that a way to solve this problem is to work with students specifically on ideas before worrying about any surface-level mistakes.

It’s very important for students to feel like they have to power to write their own ideas and say what they want to say. When teachers respond to student writing with an overwhelming focus on surface-level grammar and mechanics mistakes, students stop worrying about content and start worrying about “correctness.” The constant strive for grammatically-polished papers often paralyzes and confuses students. It distracts their attention away from what’s important—their thoughts—and places it instead on conventions.

In a seventh grade English class, students had to research an important world issue, explain the causes and effects, and propose a potential solution. I spent a day working with several struggling students who were very behind in the process. One student, let’s call him Mitch, reads at a much lower grade level than his peers. While I was working with him, Mitch did not want to write anything in front of me—he was so concerned about his spelling and grammar, he could barely focus on the content. When I asked Mitch questions about his assignment, his verbal responses showed me that he knew all of the information he needed. However, he was so nervous about translating the information to paper “correctly,” he froze up and refused to write anything.

This is a great example of what Peter Elbow calls, “the kind of play-it-safe defensive writing that students often produce when they are scared or anxious about writing-as-right-language—a medium where he has probably been corrected over and over for wrongness” (Elbow 4). Mitch knew the content the teacher asked of him, but couldn’t translate it to paper because he was so scared of being “wrong.” Here is a student that has “probably been corrected over and over,” and this pattern has paralyzed his confidence. As teachers, we need to create a safe space for students to write their ideas with a focus on content rather than form. When we respond to student writing, we must be encouraging and help students push their ideas, rather than scolding for misspelled words. Yes, form is important—this is where the balance between freedom and structure comes in. Students do need to work within certain parameters when writing, and it’s important for them to learn about grammar and mechanics. However, we need to allow them the freedom to develop their ideas first and foremost.