The Art of Written Thinking

In answering the question of what does composition means to me, I was surprised to see the sheer blandness of my first response to this question three months ago; Composition is the art of composing documents of any kind like technical reports, essays or stories. My second response argues that Composition is the art of written thinking. As teachers of composition, we are to teach students how to think. We are to teach current day students the power of the written word and how to persuade an audience of any beliefs or opinion. Written thinking is composing any type of document, however, it must have the power of language behind it.
Teaching students how, not what, to think is a challenge. We teach them how to think by attacking what they think, they think. For instance, we began this class by talking about Cannibalism and followed it up further with a Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift. We talked about how language sets us apart from animals and can give us the power of choice, “selfish gene theory holds that morality cannot be explained genetically.” It is language that proves or disproves morality, since, in contrast, Jonathan Swift argues for eating and using the bodies of children, “those who may be more thrifty may flay the carcass; the skin of which artificially dressed will make admirable gloves for ladies, and summer boots for fine gentlemen.” The written word can tell us that as humans, we have the choice to be moral, or, we can use this power to argue to have a child for dinner, which in most cultures is deemed as immoral. Taking this back to the practice of thinking, I want to ask my students what they think about this dichotomy of morals in essays that are equally persuasive. Persuading me that this idea is either right or wrong, as we discussed in our class, can show them that their thoughts matter. The very words they use whether it be saying how useful a child’s skin can be or claiming that humans can be cannibals and languages give us morality, matter. In Kelley Slack’s presentation, she discussed an article,” I Thought Composition Was About Commas and Quotes, Not Queers” arguing the need of teaching students to understand the ideas and thoughts behind language and going beyond learning simple grammar and punctuation aspects into a critical analysis of the language they use. Making students analyze the language they use everyday, such as phrases like, “that’s go gay”, can show them what they really are saying about their character and how language shapes who they are. It shapes their personal reality of who people presume they are based on the language they use.
Teaching thinking is to “argue for a version of reality” according to Lanham. We create our own reality, who we are, through what we think, which we communicate to others through language. Swift seemingly wanted a reality of eating children. Students need to realize the power they have through language to create their own reality. AJ Dickman used a quote in his presentation by David Bartholomy, an author and creative writing professor at a University in Kentucky, “If there’s no personality in your writing, it’s dead. If it’s not your personality, you’re dead. Bang,bang.” We can teach students that if their writing is not thinking, it has no point; words cannot have meaning unless they provoke a thought. In a sense, the art of writing is circular; it must begin with a thought and provoke a thought. I want my students to be lost in this circle.
Overall, while the theory of thinking as writing can de debated on for hours, it is how we put it in the classroom, the practicality of this thinking theory that matters. I’ll put it in the classroom by challenging my student’s thoughts by commenting on their essays as Meredith Cockrum talked about in her presentation on the article “The Genre of the End Comment: Conventions in Teacher Responses to Student Writing.” I’ll ask them what they think and with them argue for and against it. I’ll give them the Scarlet Letter and ask if they have ever been treated like that. I’ll make them write down their opinions on every issue and piece of writing I present and won’t offer them an umbrella for their brainstorms. I’ll make the classroom of community of ideas, and not just a group of students. Composition is the art of written thinking.

El Fin

This class has probably been one of my favorites in my entire time at Tech. I feel all of our readings and discussions have added a lot to my personal teaching philosophy. I've lost count on how many times I've talked about the different approaches to teaching as per Berlin's ideas, objective, subjective, and rhetorical, with my professors and peers alike. I am dead set against a single objective teaching approach in today's society of technical learners. This class has also made me even more opinionated than I already was and makes me honestly feel like I know what I'm talking about, with scholarly backup with the articles and discussions we’ve had in class.
It was also nice to know that some of my preliminary ideas prior to this class weren't just hogwash. (Teaching writing is about teaching students how to think) Had I of taken this class before my junior year, I probably would have switched my major to technical communication. This class has set my passion for teaching ablaze, that’s for sure.
It has also persuaded me to go for a graduate degree in instructional technology. (developing new curriculum using technology applications). I’m loving my research paper on computerizing composition and might use it for a foundation for work if I do manage to make it to graduate school. My favorite part of this class was talking about the future of composition. (Imagine that, right?) I looked up Lanham’s The Electronic Word and am loving it. (Thank you Google books). While Style: The Anti-Textbook was my least favorite part of the course, Lanham does have some other good ideas.
I think we well covered issues in composition. This was the type of class I was looking for as an English major. Part philosophy+part practicality=one of the best classes in the English Department.

Computerizing Composition in the Secondary Classroom

So, I can already hear some of you groaning at the title of my paper.

However, here's a very rough outline.


I-Why? Pros
A.Keeps students interest in a tech savvy society.
B.Integrates technology in a technological world (articles from class)

II-How would it work?
A. A MOO classroom
B. online writing blogs/places to write drafts/get critiques
C. webcams/webx/microsoft live meeting/skype
D. Interactive approach-using streaming video, etc.

III- Counter argument? Cons
A. Student vs. Instructor Perspective
B. Loss of traditional classroom?
C. Do you lose the true “meaning” or “process” of writing?
D Issues with TOPIC/ICON on the college level


Sources so far:
MOO-based Metacognition- Joel A. English
Reflection in the Electronic Classroom- L. Lennie Irvin
Interviewed students/current teachers about the idea/Lubbock-Cooper HS
Article about TOPIC/ICON
Databases and Collaborative Spaces for Composition- Lowe and Barton 2006
Interview with computer programmer about computer feasibility of process


I have read quite a bit about different approaches on how computerized composition has worked and not worked. I've also interviewed ten 9th graders about their opinion if they could have their English class online instead of sitting in a classroom. Surprisingly, most students were against it. They didn't want to lose their social life and interaction with the teacher. A few said they thought they would enjoy it since they could get their work done without dealing with classroom distractions. One said he didn't feel he was good enough at computers and wouldf find it even more boring than he currently does. I'm also planning on interviewing 10th graders next week, as well as a couple teachers to get an infield opinion. Interviewing two computer programmers as far as the feasibility of this idea is also an option. I'm trying to get ahold of Lanham's book, The Electronic Word, too.


My overall goal with this paper is to evaluate the theory and practicality of computerizing composition using theorists, programming knowledge, and teacher/student opinion, and the opinions from our class using the MOO transcript. It's pretty rough right now, and I'm still working on forming a concise thesis. I'm having a hard time narrowing it down. (As you can probably tell)

Any ideas?