Andragogy: Teaching Adults

I was pre-school teacher for about two years, I eventually figured out some of the better ways to teach children.  Young children are most engaged when they are learning through tangible materials: play-dough, scissors, glue, rocks, sticks, etc.  Their learning is grounded in the things that are around them; they experience learning for the outside in.  After years of the world making impressions on them, students begin to see how they affect the world.  They see that choices have consequences, and actions have reactions.  Later they begin to think about why these consequences and reactions exist and how they function—rebellious teenagers.   Most of the students we will encounter as freshmen composition instructors are coming down off of their teenage angst and moving thinking in more worldly terms: why is composition (or any subject really) important and how does it affect them and those around them?

Teaching adults is very specialized.  They can no longer be held captive by glitter or bubbles (some favorites in my old classroom).  Students are no longer satisfied with aimlessly wondering the halls of their high school fulfilling arbitrary requirements.   They are adults, with a need to make a better life through education.  They are in college because they have chosen to be, and they have high expectations for us. They are counting on us to be a cog in their path to a successful life—a pretty daunting task.  I know that when I was in college, my biggest complaint for classes I did not like was I felt like I was wasting my time.  When I found myself thinking that the class content could be covered in an email, or the professor habitually ranted off topic, I got angry (very much in contrast to high school when I was thrilled the class was easy or the teacher wasted time talking about nothing).  All students need to feel respected; adult learners need to feel that their time is of value, that what they are doing in that moment matters or will matter eventually. 

Now that students are thinking about the bigger questions, they need to know that what they are learning will help them answer those questions.  Although they know (for the most part) where they will be for the next several years, they are actively think about the next step: how to get there, what do they need, etc. They are working towards finding their place in the world, and there is not a moment to waste.  It is clear that being able to properly compose a text will help them achieve that every illusive and foggy success; more than that, it will help them articulate both the questions and answers they will encounter along the way.   

My Philosophy of Composition/Education

My philosophy is very fluid at the moment, and I am sure that it will change dramatically in a short span of time.  For this post I am going to focus on the ideals that I have seen to be true, what I have learned through class discussion, and what I predict will be true when I apply my teaching philosophy. When it comes to teaching composition there are three basic things that I believe:

1.      People write the best when they thoroughly understand the topic

2.      People want to explore topics that are relevant to their lives and experiences

3.      When people are asked to express what they care about, they will take time and do it properly. 

It has become apparent to me, while grading, that students write best about topics they understand. Therefore, if the main focus is teaching them to write clearly, it seems reasonable to start with writing about things they know: themselves, their interests, and their experiences.  In high school they are asked to study literature, and most of them do not read the books they are analyzing. They are asked to recount the events of history, and other complex topics.  While it is important for them to analyze literature and learn history, the topics can overshadow the writing.  Their own style and ability to construct a sentence will come easier if they do not also have to grapple with a topic they know little about.  After their writing skills are mature, then they can start working with more complicated subjects and the different types of writing.  If they fully understand their own writing process, it will be easier for them to identify the choices another writer makes.  Furthermore, this will demonstrate to them the importance of understanding the topics they are asked to write about.  I think that much of the weak writing we see stems from the students failing to comprehend the subject matter.  When they are asked to work with more difficult texts, they must realize that they can only write about them well if they understand them thoroughly.

Next, there can be no denying that when a topic is interesting or relevant, the learners will engage with the subject.  We had an interesting discussion in class about how achievable relevant topics are on a daily basis.  From this discussion I concluded that every lesson is in fact relevant, but maybe not in the way we would hope.  If we know that a day’s topic is particularly dry, I think it is important to discuss that with the students; they are adults now, and with that comes responsibility and having do things they do not want to do.  Whether every class is enthralling or not, the students are responsible for learning the information if they want to succeed.  Being able to work through the uninteresting aspects of a class or job and still be engaged enough to succeed is an important skill.  Obviously, it would be better if every class was intriguing, but there will be slow days and the students need to learn how to work with those days.  Also, we cannot fully comprehend how our lessons will be relevant to every single person every day. I think a useful exercise would be to start asking the students how the material is relevant to them. This will give them responsibility and control over what they get out of the class, and will get them involved on the days when the lesson is dry or the class seems disinterested.

Finally, students will engage in what they are passionate about.  If they are given topics that they care about they will take the time and do them properly.  As a teacher, I can provide new information and lead discussion, but I cannot direct what they care about.  Students want to express themselves, and it is the teacher’s job to show them how.  They will want to write clearly and thoroughly if they are writing about something they are passionate about.  If we can help them realize that the skills we are teaching them in 1301 will help them express their views in the real world, they will want to learn.    

Week Three: Possible Teaching Assignments Based on My Teaching Philosophy

A significant part of my teaching philosophy involves the big R: how is what I am teaching relevant? We discussed how adult learners need to feel like what they are being taught has value. The first assignment I graded consisted of two parts: the student wrote about their writing experiences and then they analyzed a short letter. The first half of the assignment was usually clear and focused, while the second half was usually a bit more convoluted. This observation leads me to my second guiding star: students write the best if they are writing about something they understand. If composition is mostly focuses on how writers construct their text, I want give my students lots of control over what they are writing about. The hope is that since they have already mastered the subject matter so we can just focus on the writing.
I am hoping to use these assignments when I teach composition next year, so they are designed to supplement their learning within the established curriculum, and not add too much to their work load.
The first assignment that I would like to do with my students was inspired by our class discussion; Dr. Rice mentioned how most of the incoming freshmen have not read a book from start to finish in years. I will ask my students to pick a book, any book appropriate for their reading level, and read it throughout the semester (I will provide a book list if they need ideas). Three times during the semester, they will turn in a short response to the book, and tell me what they think. At the end of the semester they will turn in a book review. This would give them a chance to read a book and react to it.
Next, every other week each student will bring in a one page essay about anything they want. It can be a how-to paper, persuasion, a story about their weekend, etc. The idea is, again, to let them write about something they know really well so the writing is the focus. They will split into pairs or small groups, and share what they wrote. This is a chance for some collaboration and peer revisions.
Another assignment that I would like to try is having the students write a letter, and send it. Again, they can choose the receiver and subject matter. They can email a friend or family member, write a complaint or complement to business, etc. The hope is for them to notice the choices they make when writing for different audience and different purposes. I would like for them to start recognizing the impact that they words make on their audience.
Finally, I hope to demonstrate in class the different effects different writings can have. During one lesson I would like to show them three different text of similar subject matter, but utilize the three different rhetorical appeals. This idea is touched upon by the three articles they will read for the regular course work. However, I would like to make the examples more applicable to their everyday lives. In my fist blog post I gave the example of three different reviews for products. This lesson would be similar to that. This would be a simple way for the students to start talking about choices and how different choices yield different results.

I have not yet taught composition, and I am excited to get the chance. I would like to make my assignments have an element of choice, so the students can express themselves, and be grounded in relevance so they see how writing effects them in the real world.

What makes teaching composition so difficult? How will I address these issues?

Why is teaching composition so difficult? Well first of all, we are basically teaching people how to use the language that they think they’ve known for years (in general, here, in Texas). We have to teach them the difference between writing and translating speech into text. Many of the papers I graded this week were written in a stream of conscience. It also seemed that the students thought writing was as permanent as speaking. They did not seem to realize that they were not stuck with the first idea they wrote. However, other students were the exact opposite: they viewed writing as something so far removed from speech that it seems acceptable to write a sentence that in no way could be considered coherent speech. This is not a criticism of the students, it is simply pointing out an obstacle we face as teachers. Students are divided into two groups: those who are flippant with writing, and those who are intimidated by it.

I hope to address this in a couple of ways. First, by actually addressing it. Talking about the differences and asking the students to decide which kind of writer they are (or if they can think of another category – I’m sure my brush here is too broad). Also, I intend to give lots of examples of both, so the students can see the kinds of issues we are discussing. Finally, I will provide materials that are personally interesting and relevant to the students. I think the letters they were asked to analyze this week were difficult, because they did not have a clear-cut purpose and most of the students were confused about the audience. I want the students to focus on writing, so the materials I give them will be interesting, relevant, and clear.

Another challenge that composition teachers face – one which I did not realize until class on Friday – is getting students to understand who is their audience. All of their previous school experience has taught them that the teacher is the audience, and their purpose is to receive a good grade. This is a puny way to look at the world and at writing. When it comes to reading papers, a teacher is a persnickety, and often grouchy, spell check. The teacher’s goal is to make the writing better. This is not the role of the audience. The audience is the group of people they would like to impact while writing. This is an abstract concept for anyone, especially for an undergraduate student that has been trained in school their whole life. I would like to instill the concept that they are not writing to appease the teacher, they are writing to make an impression.

I hope to instill this concept by, again, having very open conversations about it in class. Ask them about who they think their audience is and why. I would like to give little assignments where they are asked to produce something with a specific audience in mind, then change the audience. Giving them real, tangible examples and experiences will hopefully help solidify this abstraction.

Composition has many aspects that makes it difficult to teach; some that I can imagine, and many that I will not fully comprehend until I am in the classroom teaching. However, these obstacles can be made smaller when the students are engaged in learning. A teacher must make lessons interesting, insightful, and always relevant. These students are looking to succeed in the future: it is vital that we impress upon them how instrumental writing skills are in success. Because this class is already laid out for us, with a formula to follow, it could be easy to slide into the prescribed lessons. I intend to be intentional, and I intend to make the most out of this class for my students.