𝕄𝕪 𝕍𝕚𝕖𝕨𝕤: ℕℂ𝕋𝔼 𝔹𝕖𝕝𝕚𝕖𝕗𝕤 𝔸𝕓𝕠𝕦𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕋𝕖𝕒𝕔𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕎𝕣𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘

Sample of Class Assignment where I responded to the NCTE Beliefs about the teaching of writing.

How could you summarize the NCTE Beliefs in order to explain them to a friend who is unfamiliar with writing pedagogy?

In simple terms, the NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) has developed a guideline that teachers of writing should follow in an effort to be effective and proficient educators. This guideline is known as the “NCTE Beliefs About the Teaching of Writing”. According to these principles, writing is not an abstract concept that only gifted persons can succeed at. However, everyone has the potential to write and improve their writing with the aid of quality instruction by skilled professionals. The NCTE also believe that writing is not only a product but also a process during which time students should be allowed to write often in order to learn “how” to write or improve upon their current writing abilities. Writing is also viewed as being directly connected to reading, where one cannot exist without the other. Giving students the opportunity to write for various purposes and audiences are believed to help students develop critical thinking skills as well as know how to select the most appropriate format and language for their select audience. NCTE believes that writing is interconnected with speaking, and students’ social experiences so it is the teachers’ responsibility to know the learners’ background and provide many opportunities for students to speak, before, during and after writing experiences. Writing through an individual expression of feelings and thoughts should still follow traditional conventions so that the general audience is able to understand and appreciate the writer’s final product. Therefore, teachers should be skilled and informed about the writing conventions in order to provide best practices during the assessment of student writing. Assessments should also allow for consideration of students’ abilities where teachers give appropriate feedback at vital points during the writing process. Finally, the NCTE believes that especially in this era of technology, teachers should provide students with the opportunity to compose using various modalities and technologies. Teachers are therefore encouraged to use technology to enhance the writing process and product.

 

Do any of these beliefs seem strange or counterintuitive (contrary to intuition or to common-sense expectation) to you? If so, which ones and why?

After reviewing the NCTE Beliefs, I do not view any of the principles as counterintuitive. They align with my personal and professional views of writing and the teaching of writing.

 

 

 

 Compare these beliefs to the writing instruction you had as a high school student. To what extent did your high school English teachers follow these beliefs and practices?

Generally, my high school English teachers seem to have explicitly or indirectly taught or practised most of these principles. I am of the belief that their strategies though different from some of the modern-day strategies still held true to the core principles of teaching writing. Therefore, I am of the belief that my English teachers to a large extent follow the practices and beliefs of the NCTE.   However, as a result of the technologies available during my high school years, there were few to no instances where composition took place using various modalities like technology. The writing experiences in high school were usually limited to traditional pen and paper.