Personal Philosophy on the Teaching of Writing by Roselle Gordon

 Embarking on this journey of Teacher Education, I had no expectations. Most concerningly to me was the wealth of information that would have been imparted onto me, with the expectation of transferring what was learnt to the classroom. When it comes to writing I struggled between two opposites, the love for writing as a writer and the discomfort of the process of doing so. All my life I have always been enthused about putting pieces together, and had no trouble doing so, but like most of my students, hated the steps and time that it took to create an  excellent written piece. Taking into consideration my personal outlook on the matter I'd like to share the following with you.

1. How do I think students learn to write well?

I think that students learn to write through practice. I also appreciate the writing process exphasizing on not being afraid of draft write, revising and making adjustments as they go along. Additionally, I believe that encouraging students to share with their peers, their written pieces, encourages peer collaboration and leaves room for constructive criticism and shared ideas.

2. How can I help students in the writing process as a Teacher?

As a teacher, I plan to include writing in every core subject area being taught. This way, I am stretching the idea of writing in every learning opportunity in the classroom. I also plan on engaging them in meaningful writing by encouraging them to share their own ideas on how, why and what they want to write. In this instance you are making room for the most creative essays as the children write from and about what they know.

3. Why do I teach writing?

Jean Piaget was a constructivist who believed that children learn by manipulating, modifying, and otherwise working with concepts and I think that writing does just that. As a result, I teach writing so that my students can become contractors in the literary world and hopefully beyond. Writing helps with expression and for some students who may not be able  to verbally express themselves, writing can be their outlet. Writing also serves the purpose as a means of release of anger and other negative emotions and so I hope to use writing to generate calm and as an alternate way of managing emotions.

5. What specific actions, can I take to achieve and implement, to get students to write better?

• Everyday writing across the curriculum
• Daily journal writing
• Effective teacher modelling
• Public publishing of written pieces with space that allows for evaluation by peers
• Portfolio keeping of written pieces for tracking

The next step in the rest of the journey will not be an easy one, but I find comfort in what I have learnt, both from my lecturers and peers, that it will be a successful one. With this in mind, look forward to the road head of creating Great Authors!