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Responding to Student WritingThe English 101 Committee does not wish to tell individual instructors what the specific nature of their oral and written responses to students' compositions should be. The committee does, however, encourage instructors to consider the following guidelines as they respond to students' work. Responses should reflect the role of an interested reader who takes the writing seriously for what it is-or should be: the attempt of an author to reach and affect an audience through the communication of ideas, information, and experiences. Hence, the reader responds to the ideas, information, and experiences. Responses should reflect the role of a sympathetic critic who assesses the piece as a whole as well as each of its parts; who focuses on conceptual matters (e.g., content, logic, and organization) as well as editorial matters (e.g., paragraph and sentence patterns, grammar rules, and mechanics); and who, through questions and comments, encourages the writer to rethink and possibly rewrite parts or the whole. Responses should reflect the role of the supportive teacher who evaluates how successfully the demands of the assignment have been met and how well its purpose for a particular audience has been fulfilled, who encourages the writer by praising what has been done well, and who directs the writer by offering specific suggestions for improving present and subsequent writing. |
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