Gramps Essay Reflection

I have to be honest here: I really didn't mind the essay. As someone who is new to the college English world - I took Honors classes for my EN111/211 requirements - I guess I haven't developed the complex where I *gasp* in horror at the grammatical mistakes and all of the other crimes against the "conventions of Standard Written English." Should a college student be writing at a level higher than the one displayed in "Gramps?" By my standards, absolutely. But I think there is good fodder within the piece to salvage it - I wouldn't give up hope on its author. I would, however, question the amount of effort that went into developing this paper. If this were turned into me, I would likely turn it back to the student with only one question: Is this really the best you can do? I would continue to ask this question until he/she said "YES!" Then I would read it and ask why they didn't just do that in the first place. This idea goes back to the Taylor Mali Def Jam Poetry video that I showed in class in which he says, "I can make an A- feel like a slap in the face - How dare you waste my time with anything less than your best?" I do not believe that a quality effort was given for this assignment but I am not going to throw the baby out with the bathwater (I like this phrase and I don't care if you don't like cliches).

I love to write and I love to read. I am not going to stop anyone from writing or tell them that their writing is not of value because they do not adhere to a prescribed set of rules, guidelines or conventions. I believe that becoming an effective writer takes practice and making mistakes and learning rules and breaking rules and more practice and a lot of reading and striving, striving, striving to find the holy ground of space/time when that which is in your heart is found on the paper in front of you - in whatever form it may manifest. I don't believe I could ever call myself a good writer because qualifiers are always based on other people's parameters and perceptions. Do I follow rules? Yes, typically - but not always; and I am not going to require my students to do so either, whether I teach in a History, Political Science or English classroom. I believe the "conventions of Standard Written English" have roots in hegemonic notions of that which is "proper" and "intelligent," as informed by white, Euro-centric colonialism and patriarchy. And I'm not buying it.

One of my life mottoes is, "You don't know it all, Callie. You don't have it figured out." And while I consider myself a "believer," I can get behind the militant agnostics who say with conviction: "I don't know and you don't know either!" I am going to teach my students the "conventions of Standard Written English," if only to arm them with the tools necessary to dismantle the whole damn thing. There are hoops that we all must jump through in order to "pass" in academia at any level. I want my students, more than knowing where to put 'the semicolon' and how to NOT write in the passive voice (sometimes the passive voice is acceptable to me), to develop self-efficacy in the writing process. I have a banner in my room that has the words of H.H. Dalai Lama (I think we're on #14 now) that is titled "Never Give Up." His Holiness says, "Develop the heart / Too much energy in your country / Is spent on developing the mind / Instead of the heart / Develop the heart." Too much head and not enough soul makes Callie a dull writer. I guess I need to work on appreciating the "conventions of Standard Written English" more. I'll have to get back to you on this one.