Gere, Laura Beth

English class rooms are supposed to teach students how to become literate. The students learn how to read and write, but is the class room really broadening their composition skills or hindering them? Through my experiences as a student I have discovered that the class room has suppressed my confidence as a writer. In "Kitchen Tables and Rented Room: The Extracurriculum of Composition" by Anne Gere explains how literature classes can be insufficient in expanding the abilities of many potential writers. Many of my experiences coincide with Gere's arguments against class room walls.
Gere shows how the class room can prevent students from learning to their fullest potential. She explains how the school systems are ineffective in trying to broaden students' literacy. "They did not think of themselves as writers because teachers had taught them they could not write" (Gere 78). Gere is explaining how the members of the writer's workshop did not get their skills from schools but from themselves and their community. These women developed their skills from critique from one another. They were the teacher and student all in one.
All throughout school I was never confident in my writing or reading skills. In first grade I was almost held back because I was always too nervous to read out loud in front of the class or the teacher. I would stumble over my words, so the teacher just assumed I could not read. However that was not the case. I could read, not as fast as the other kids, but I was always too nervous to speak in front of the class. This was my first experience of discouragement. If I couldn't read, then how could I possibly write well?
During high school, my school experience was not any better. My English teacher was not big on writing. Her curriculum mostly included reading and tests. She did not really reach us how to develop our skills as writers other than grammar. I remember we were assigned a paper on our thoughts on elderly people. For once I decided to be more opinionated rather than passive. I decided my essay would not be cute and fluffy like my class mates. She did not agree with my opinion and docked my grade. I felt insulted and discouraged from being expressive and innovative.
Gere, also explains how these women develop confidence through their writing. "Despite their inexperience, workshop participants gain confidence and begin to think of themselves as writers" (Gere 76). These women discovered how to be confident in their writing and in turn discovered themselves. They no longer saw themselves as just another person, writers. To be a writer, not just someone who writes signifies being importance and having your voice heard.
In my writing experience I discovered my confidence is like a roller coaster. In elementary school I despised writing. I never felt good enough. I always felt as if I did not live up to the standards of my fellow classmates. This feeling emulated on and off throughout the years. In middle school I was placed in advanced English. I did not understand how, but it gave me confidence in my abilities as a writer. That soon changed in high school. When I attended the big public school I struggled in my English classes. When I transferred to the local charter school, I felt more comfortable but definitely not confident. I always measured myself to my fellow students, even though I knew they were more advanced in their composition skills and I was excelled in mathematics.
It wasn't until I attended college the second time that I regained my confidence as a writer. In my English 101 and 102 classes I discovered that my writing is significantly better when I care about the subject matter. My English 102 instructor challenged me and I actually enjoyed writing. However because I struggled and failed my last semester do to relationship problems, mental and physical breakdowns and parental health issues, I feel I have lost his confidence once again. I no longer have the same passion for writing I did a year ago. I have lost this devotion to exhaustion. I feel I am slowly losing this battle. I feel just as these women in the workshops once did. I do not feel as if i am a writer. I'm fairly confident that I am not a good writer. I hate reading my own writing as well as having my writing read. Gere states, "But unless you read your work and get reactions from different groups of people, you're not a writer. You're just dilettanting around. You gotta get rejected and get applause," (Gere 76). I agree with Gere; I am not a writer. My fear of rejection over powers my need for approval. The only thing keeping me from quitting is the same thing keeping my from my potential; fear of failure.
Gere explains how these workshops do not just benefit the individual but the community too. These women gain confidence in them and help change the quality for their personal relationships. I feel this is the kind of change many people need. Gere says, "Positive feelings about oneself and one's writing, motivation to revise and improve composition skills, opportunities for publication of various sorts, the belief that writing can make a difference in individual and community life--these accomplishments of workshops outside classroom walls mirror the goals most of us composition teachers espouse for our students" (Gere 78). These kinds of feelings can make the difference in one's life not just a writer but as a person. As future teachers we need to discover ways we can interpret extracurriculum into the curriculum of the class room.
In high school I feel they failed miserably at this. They made us exchange papers and correct the mistakes. However, the students never corrected more than grammar. In college, I've discovered the instructors achieve this more than in high school, but it's not quite as affective as the workshops in Gere's article. In my English courses we always have peer review. The problem with this is that many of the students do not have confidence in their abilities to critique their peers. Teachers need to develop a way to engage their students with one another and the subject matter.

Gere

I think as a younger child extracurriculum was encouraged a lot. I remember as an elementary student wanting to write and thinking it was fun. Not until I was in middle school and high school did it seem to turn into a chore. In elementary school writing was fun for me. I loved to be able to write about topics and see what others had to say. Doing things like journals and writing clubs was interesting as a younger student. I remember my teachers would encourage us to keep journals of our own to keep us writing and not only about things for school. In high school writing wasn’t fun for me anymore. I just spat out information or things I knew were expected from me and would help me to do well in my English classes. I was never encouraged to write outside of class as I got older. The only encouragement for me to write outside of the classroom was to work on an assignment. I think that also not really being able to write about things that appealed to me was a big factor in my liking writing as I got older. I tried to write here and there in high school, things like poems and short stories and even keeping a journal, but writing wasn’t the same as it once was.

I’ve never thought of myself as a writer, or even a good one at that. I’ve always managed to do well in my writing classes throughout the years but for some reason I’ve never thought of myself as a writer. I think the lack of encouragement plays a big part in that. Yeah I was good at spitting out information on a certain topic for an English paper, but I’ve always thought that I was stronger in other areas. Even today I think of myself as a so-so writer. I’ve always managed to do well in English but I’ve just never thought of myself as a great writer. I feel that in order to keep students involved in writing and to help encourage students to keep writing which will keep them interested in writing outside of the classroom is to encourage things like a journal or a poetry club or creative writing group. Though it’s harder to keep older students interested in things like that I think it’s important. Not so many high school students are going to think something like that is interesting, but for the few that do I think it’s worth the try to keep people interested in writing and not just for school purposes. “The women in the Tenderloin Women’s Writing Workshop take strength from finding that their experience is worth expressing” (pg. 76), and I agree. Knowing that expressing yourself through writing can help you vent and help others work through their problems and issues is nice. This is why I chose to keep writing, even if it was only a little journal, in my high school years. I felt that if I kept something like this it would not only help me vent, but it would keep me interested in writing other than just for school purposes.

Blog #2 - Gere - Adam Buelow

Throughout my education, I have had to write countless papers on many different topics, in different formats and through different perspectives. Even though I wrote in school, I never had the urge to join a writing group such as those explained in Gere’s “Kitchen Tables and Rented Rooms: The Extracurriculum of Composition”. Although I am pretty sure that if I was given the opportunity to join a writing group, back then I would have declined. Back in high school I had a negative viewpoint on writing. I thought that the only point for us to write is just to show the teacher we knew the topic on our paper. After years, and maturing, I figured that it is not just that but also to expand on our ideas, to teach ourselves new thoughts. Compared to those days, I would just read about the topic and paraphrase and did what I had to do to get a good grade. But now I read about my topic and have to expand my ideas to make a more thorough and interesting paper.

Through our writings, we have taught ourselves new ideas that can be used for the rest of our lives. We can find an article that we can connect to and relay it on to someone else, in hopes of that person bonding to it in the same way. Back in high school I did my work just to get it done. I think it is safe to say, that in this class, with our peers picking our writing topics for our blogs, really gives us another view (hierarchal standpoint) in how we are taught in school. I enjoy classes that the students do take part in discussions and even deciding what we write about. Through this class, even though it is not an extracurricular activity taken place in someone’s kitchen, I feel that we can relate our class to those writing groups. When it says “workshops outside classrooms walls frequently, however, succeed with those individuals deemed unsuccessful by their composition instructors” (78) in the article, I think that it refers to some teachers who do not expand the students mind beyond a certain idea. Within those groups, these people of all sorts come together to continue in what they enjoy, and that is writing.

I would not have called myself a writer a couple years ago, but I believe that when taking initiatives in my work, I would like to think of myself having evolved into a writer. I do not believe that I was taught unconsciously that I was a bad writer; I just thought that there were certain classes that I did better on papers than in let’s say another class. I definitely have labeled myself as a bad writer, but once I figured out the best way for me to write, I liked to think of myself not as a “bad writer” or even a “good writer”, but a writer that works towards becoming better in their work.

Blog# 2: Gere

My experiences from English classes was difficult to adapt in High school. Not having extra curriculum to help me with my English, made it more less of a interest topic to learn. Being a bi-lingual student, English became confusing subject to learn and understand why certain things took place in English speaking, the reading, and the writing. Wasn't clear in my mind, on why it was so important for commas to be in the right place. Struggled with adverbs, adjectives, etc. In Anne Gere text, 'Kitchen Tables and Rented Room: The Extra curriculum of Composition,' she mentions in her text "two prisoners in contingent cells communicate by blows struck on the wall. The wall separates them, but it also permits them to communicate," could relate this very well. Felt like there was a wall that separatedme from learning English, but also English became a wall, where I was able to communicate with others surrounded me.

To be honest, as a student there were times I felt I wasn't a good writer. Knowing how to read or write, but when it came down certain topics that was picked by the teacher, noticed it was hard to write about something that did not interest me at all. Felt I wasn't a good academic writer due to the fact the English teacher that I had, didn't pay attention just wanted the students to "copy and paste," to pass the class. My role was to memorize, performance and to move on. Did not take anything I was taught into consideration for the future. Reflecting back to Gere, "walls can be a means of communication as well as a barrier,"going back to the beginning; English (the subject) became a barrier to learn the important basics, but also became a communication strategy with others. The one thing I could say interested me in English was creative writing, poetry, short stories, and presentations. Creative writing, helped me explore my imaginations. Poetry, writing poetry taught me to let go some emotional personal situations on paper, and getting it out of my system to move forward in life. Reading short stories gave me imagination thoughts and inspired my writing. Presenting certain work helped me to focus more and most importantly learned on my own outside the academic walls.

Had a couple of English teachers who didn't really teach me anything. Didn't really explain the mistakes I have done so I would pay more attention in the future. Had some teachers who showed that their careless teaching, " teaching for the money and not from the heart," which is really so to be apart of. Coming to college and retaking the basics English courses as a non-credit class, made me label myself as a dumb bi-lingual writer, who don't comprehend anything in English..Became an embarrassment to admit and a struggle within myself. Feeling like a quote mention in Gere text, "I never felt like I had anything that anyone was interested in hearing," but in reality I have plenty to say that people would like to hear and/or maybe learn from it. When it come down to academic writing, I have labeled myself "not a good writer," but when it came to be a "free writer," referring to poetry, creative writing, etc. I labeled myself as a "good writer," due to the fact of writing what you feel, think, and not being graded on. Pushed me forward to write more. I love writing, especially in journals, love to hold a conversation with the paper and myself and not caring what others have to say or think.

Gere Post

I will not be able answer every question posed in this week's blog prompt, and I could not be more thankful. The first question asks you to explain how experiences from your own classes failed to include Gere's extracurriculum. I'm unable to answer that question, because surprisingly, I have not ever had such experiences. I've never thought that I was a bad writer, nor have I have been taught that I could not write. I consider myself lucky to have had positive educational experiences and creative, motivational teachers.

English was incorporated into the standard curriculum at my elementary school in grades K-4, and it was usually the subject that I looked forward to the most. My teachers in grade school made it seem "fun" to read and write. The physical layout of the classroom was conducive to a positive learning environment, and my teachers always had creative ways to appeal to multiple learning-styles and student interests. her article, “Kitchen Tables and Rented Rooms: The Extracurriculum of Composition,” Gere describes the relationship of physical and mental disciple, saying "The relaxed physical environment of the extracurriculum suggests that we re-think the relationship between physical and mental discipline." She goes on to describe classrooms that feature things such as carpeting, cushioning, and bean bag chairs. These are exactly the kinds of physical settings that I experienced in my elementary school classrooms. In kindergarten, it was the "reading circle," which was just a rug where the teacher read to students. My first grade classroom had an old, deep bathtub in a corner that was full of pillows. Every student was given the opportunity to read in the tub during silent reading time. It was one of the most exciting parts of the day. Gere encourages teachers to "...focus on the experience of writers not always visible to us inside the walls of the academy." I believe that creating fun learning environments can have a strong impact on a student’s willingness and anticipation to learn.

In middle school, my classrooms no longer had reading tubs or bean bag chairs. However, students were allowed to get out of their desks and read in various places in the classroom or in the hallway. We chose which books we wanted to read, and later wrote about WHY we chose our books, and what we thought about them. When we learned the rules of grammar, we constructed our own grammar handbooks. My 8th grade English project was to write a book. Every student was to write their own 15-20 page book that included a problem-solving plot, illustrations, a bio about the author, and hand painted hard cover. At the end of the semester, our class held an open house where students read their books out loud and received awards for "most suspenseful," "most artistic," and so on. My teachers have always understood the need to incorporate hands on activities in the classroom. I think that if more teachers designed lesson plans that were hands on, and appealed to numerous learning styles, then more students would get excited about their learning.

Of course, every grade level has federal standards that they must comply with, and students must be taught the basic principles of reading and writing. My classrooms had rigid curriculum, and students were given traditional lessons on the road to developing their reading and writing skills. What is important about my experiences in education is that there was always balance in the lesson plans my teachers designed in terms of traditional and non-traditional educational approaches. Gere describes a type of "self-education" in her extracurriculum, which can be carried over into the classroom. Teachers can do many things, like setting up mini-workshops for their students, to get them involved in their learning. It is important to let students have a voice in their education, and it's possible for students to design their own curriculum and still learn everything that they are "required" to learn.

I've enjoyed reading and writing from a very young age. I had personal journals throughout grade school and middle school that I wrote in daily. I read books every night before going to bed. I started as a reporter for my high school paper my freshman year and worked my way up to being editor-in-chief of the newspaper. Looking back on my education, I have to ask myself the common question of nature vs. nurture. My teachers always praised students for doing a good job, and encouraged students to do their best work. Maybe the reason that I'm a good writer today isn't because of natural ability, but because my teachers offered fun lesson plans and always told me that I would always be a good writer as long as I kept working hard. Whatever the reason, I'm thankful, and I'm fully prepared to follow in my teachers footsteps and get creative in the classroom.

Gere, Blog #2

Throughout my schooling, I can’t say that the extracurriculum that Gere discussed was ever emphasized in any way. We were always told what to write about and how to write it; there wasn’t much leeway in what could be done. If the paper or assignment wasn’t written how the teacher expected it, you got a bad grade and so you quickly learned to conform in order to get good grades. It was the only way to write, as if there was a right and wrong way. There were also things to write about. They were always prescribed and only seldom did we get to choose a topic. The writers that Gere described in her article were lucky, as she put it, “In their prose they look at the experience of farming, old equipment, the process of milking cows, and country schools” (75). They were able to write about the things that they cared about and that mattered to them. The writing was about their lives and that was what made them want to write. This is something that is lacking in most traditional English classes. Due to some of this, I have often thought of myself as “not a writer” and also a “bad writer”. Growing up, writing wasn’t something I enjoyed, probably because it held no interest for me. The writing I was doing was not about me or about anything that I cared about and since some teachers wanted us to write fiction, I found myself to be a bad writer. Fiction was never a strong point for me and it was especially difficult when I was not given any direction on it since I had become so used to having to follow directions that it was odd to not have any. It was also hard to write about my opinion on matters, too. I was always afraid that my opinion would be “wrong” because it was not what the teacher was expecting and so I often wrote what I thought they had wanted to hear. Gere also explained this in a statement she made. She said, “Some of the women are hesitant because nobody ever asked them their opinions about anything”(76). I felt this way often growing up and in school. I didn’t feel that anyone really cared about what I thought and why should I? All that mattered was getting a grade and passing, not thinking for myself. It is still hard to get over that hurdle to this day.

As far as what teachers can do to bring this extracurriculum into the classroom and still get things done: First, allow some flexibility. Writing properly is a life skill that needs to be practiced but not with such rigidity that the students learn to hate it and do it just to get by. Students should have some choice in what they write about. Second, balance is key. There are obviously things that need to be taught and at the same time learned, this can be understood. Teach the important things while allowing time for “fun learning”, learning that doesn’t feel like learning because it’s fun or a game. Also having things to do, such as writing, that involve the things that the students are interested in would help.

Karrie Haak: Blog Post #2, Gere

Thinking back on my k-12 education, would I say that their teachings gave me the opportunity to fit the requirements expected of me today, to be able to think critically or thoughtfully about any given text? The answer would be, no. English class seemed so technical and stale. I was honestly bored. Of course we had to read the classic novels, which I am grateful for having to have read them…but honestly at the time, I really could have cared less. I didn’t appreciate or give them the respect that they deserve. Many times, I just read them to get through them, that's if I did even that…I had been known to read the “cliff notes”, watch the movie or ask my friends what they thought. Maybe, it was because when we were through reading these great “classics” we were not given the opportunity to relate these novels to anything in our lives or give are impressions/opinions.

What we were expected to do was regurgitate, what the story was about, who the main characters where, what the plot was, and what the theme was…who really cares? It really didn’t matter to me. Maybe that is why I never felt as though I was a good writer. I remember writing in my English classes both spontaneously and over an extended period of time, whichever style was expected of me, I always remember feeling very anxious and never really liking to write anything at all. I would get papers back from my teachers and they were always handed back to me upside down, why was that? Nonetheless, I would turn the pages over, just to see my paper littered with RED pen marks. Those red pen marks made me feel inadequate and insecure. Which reminds me of Anne Ruggles Geres article, “Kitchen Tables and Rented Room: The Extracurriculum of Composition” at one point she was referring to the harmful views a few of the participants from the writing groups in San Francisco and Iowa, had during their education. Many of them said that they “had negative experiences with schooling, [and they never thought] of themselves as writers because teachers had taught them the could not write"(Gere78). Is this really how our education system should treat its students and is this really what education is supposed to be about?

How can education be a more thoughtful and interesting learning process? I believe that educators need to incorporate more of “free form” of learning literacy into their classroom curriculums. Just as Gere’s article recommends that one should go “beyond the academy to encompass the multiple contexts in which persons seek to improve their own writing: it includes more diversity in gender, race and class among writers; and it avoids, as much as possible, a reenactment of professionalization in its narrative”(Gere 80) How can this be done? I believe the curriculum needs to include the interests and expressions of its student population. This however will take some work on the part of the educators, they will need to get to know their students in more ways then whether or not they know how to incorporate the theme of a novel correctly in an essay. This type of education will take some work on the students’ part as well. They will need to do research on topics that interest them. But, I do believe that if they were truly interested in the topic it wouldn’t seem like work at all.

Now even though I recommend a so-called “free form” of education. I do realize that there has to be some constraints’ and standards within the curriculum to have education be useful to society as a whole. Even this “blog” has constraints. We’re suppose to read a text and write a response with an educated opinion. We also should mimic the author and instructor through quotations and verbiage. We also need to be grammatically correct. Although, we can not take all constraints out of the educational systems, I do believe by incorporating both a “standard/technical” form, as well as the “extracurriculm” form of writing will not only be encouraging, but also a rewarding experience for many more students.

Blog #2 Gere-Lauren Miller

In “Kitchen Tables and Rented Room: The Extracurriculum of Composition”, Gere focuses in on the flaws of traditional classroom methodologies regarding the teaching of composition. The two writing groups in the article, the Tenderloin Women’s Writing Workshop and the Lansing, Iowa Writers Workshop, show the benefits of learning outside the classroom.

Like many other students, I have had experiences with the flaws of the way composition is being taught in the classroom. From the time I started writing in kindergarten through high school, I have been told what topic to write on and how to write it. I was given a format and a subject that was supposed to be interesting to me. I jumped through the hoops and somehow came up with a decent essay every time, but it did not reflect me at all. These writing groups put themselves into every piece of writing. “The extracurriculum I examine is constructed by desire, by the aspirations, and imaginations of its participants (80).” The writing I was doing involuntarily in school had none of these components. I wrote with a fake enthusiasm and got nothing out of my writing.

That’s another way in which my experience with writing in a classroom has differed from the extracurriculum. The writing groups in this article used their writing to benefit themselves, their families, and their communities. “Reaching out into the community with prose performances develops in participants the perception that writing can effect changes in their lives (77).” My writing in high school was somewhat like Rodriguez’s; except I became good at faking an interest in the topic I was writing and creating a point a view. I didn’t care about the topic or gain much of anything while doing the writing though.

In school, there were times where I did not feel like much of a writer. I would get writers block, have trouble making papers sound right, think that nothing I said was important, or simply feel like my writing was not up to par. Other people clearly think this as well. “Bob Leppert, a farmer with little formal education, says, “I never felt like I had anything that anyone was interested in hearing” (76).” This paper shows that when you write for yourself, you can write. Anyone can find passion and inspiration in something and write and when they do it for themselves and in something that interests them, the words flow and you gain something from it. These people found confidence in their writing, gained self-esteem, and bettered their communities.

As for being taught unconsciously that you couldn’t write as a student, I think that happens to almost every student. Teachers pick out the format in which students are supposed to write, the topic, and down-grade students for straying from these rules. Creativity is both encouraged and discouraged in schools. Down-grading for straying away from the topic, which in my opinion is another way of putting yourself into your work, discourages creativity. Offering options and some sense of self-direction into writing programs is one solution to this problem.

Gere's Article, Blog 2

In this reading, “Kitchen Tables and Rented Rooms: The Extracurriculum of Composition”, Gere discusses the importance of extracurriculum. This term can be described differently by many, but in this text she explains exactly what it means to her. Gere states, “The extracurriculum I examine is constructed by desire, by the aspirations and imaginations of its participants. It posits writing as an action undertaken by motivated individuals who frequently see it as having social and economic consequences, including transformations in personal relationships and farming practices”(pg. 80). This reading shows how much our education system is really lacking to give its students the freedom and power to use their ideas and opinions to write great works.

Personally, I have only positive things to say about my experiences in English classrooms. I had the same English teacher all four years of high school, and he was phenomenal. Like any class, we followed a curriculum, but we were able to openly express our ideas and opinions in class discussions, as well as our written papers. In class we were required to read certain novels or poems, but I never left that classroom without understanding the concept and ideas. We also had books to take home and read outside of class. These books may have fallen under a specific category, but we always had the option of a few different stories. Allowing students to make this decision already gives them a little more interest in what they are reading. Handing someone a book and telling them to read it, understand it, and write about it isn’t exactly realistic. Most English classes expect that out of their students, but I feel I had a very different experience. I was fortunate. Not only did we have options in our book-choice, but we also had some options in our quizzes and tests. Essay questions were always included in our test, but out of the four or five given, we could choose the two or three that we cared for most, and wanted to write about. We had a specific curriculum that needed to be followed and accepted, but we were able to read, talk, and write about things that we truly did enjoy. Senior year our class was even given a journal to use. We would take 30 minutes of our class time to write in them; about anything and everything. These journal entries had no guidelines whatsoever, and everyone enjoyed them. We were allowed to be creative and take pleasure from our writing. All of these extracurriculum options I was given is similar to what other institutions and teachers should really push for. Some sort of “writing club” would also be great. This could be a club where people come together and write about their stories and experiences as well as their interests and desires. They could share these written works with another because it can give them that confidence. Like Gere states, “the women in the Tenderloin Women’s Writing Workshop take strength from finding that their experience is worth expressing”(pg. 76), it truly is nice to share your experiences and have those people read and listen to you. Another woman says, “You write down your world and then you read it to other people and they affirm you for it”(pg 76). It’s great to get the opinions of others and have them appreciate you and your works. If there was a club like this in schools I think there would be a lot more interest then we could even imagine.

On my papers I always received above-average grades, and I knew that there were times I truly could write great things. Throughout my years in school I was praised for my writing abilities. But even with all of the compliments and good grades in class, I sometimes felt that I wasn’t a very good writer. Writing doesn’t necessarily come easy to me, so it always seemed that I was putting in twice as much time and effort in as some, and probably getting the same grade as most. I have always expected more and more out of myself, and I feel like I can never truly be satisfied with my works. I’ve never labeled myself as a “bad writer”, but I feel like I’m definitely not where I would like to be. A lot of these feelings are more of a personal matter because I do not feel that I have been taught unconsciously that I cannot write.

Extracurriculum is important, and it’s necessary to becoming better writers and students. Gere’s reading really shows the importance of extracurriculum and it’s lacking in schools. Giving people the freedom to choose what they write and how they write, would really be inspiring. If people like writing they’re going to continue to do it, and become better at it. This is what we need to really focus on in our education system.

Gere: Sarah Hanson

When I went to high school extracurriculum was not encouraged. We were pretty much robots, we were assigned a paper and told exactly what we had to write about and given an outline to help us. I had one teacher who allowed us to pick our own topic and work in groups. So two friends and I decided we wanted to write a paper dedicated to lowering the drinking age to 18. We researched it for weeks and weeks, worked long hours on it, and eventually turned in the final copy. Two days later, the vice principal of the school walks in, points at me and the other co-authors of the paper and told us to follow him. Twenty minutes later i was forced to pack my things and go home because i was suspended from school for two days. The teacher had reported our paper to the principal and they thought it was "offensive" writing. So needless to say my writing experience in high school from that time forward was not a very positive experience. To this day i credit that incident as one of the reasons i am not studying to be a teacher. It was always read this and then talk exactly about this. I never had the freedom to write what i wanted until i got to college.

Until we talked this week in class as us being writers, i really never thought of myself as a writer. Teachers have never praised me on my work. Sure they put some notes on a paper that i turn in that they liked a sentence or two, but never told me i was doing a good job. When we had the conversation in class on thursday that we are all writers, i do now consider myself to be a writer, and not a terrible one. When i was in high school no one every said i could not write, but i was put down a lot for my writing. Like i mentioned when i was suspended from school, that really made me think that i was not a good writer. When i got to college and took some entry level english courses, teachers really gave me good or bad critiques, but it was much needed. Because of them my writing schools have improved tremendously, and they have instilled some great techniques that i use now.

I do believe though that teachers need to include extracurriculum into the classroom. I believe the most important time to do so is in high school. In high school you are building skills to get you ready for the college level. I also do believe that it is essential to start earlier in school, but it is most important to develop those skills before you get to college. I did not have all the skills a writer should have going into college, and it did put me behind a significant amount from my other classmates. One truely great professor worked with me the entire semester and help me develop much better writing skills.

Drew McCann: Post #2: Gere

My writing experience throughout my academic career is mostly the neglect that Gere talks about. The only time I ever received really any attention at all to my writing like Gere talks about was in my English 102 that I took last semester. Even at UW-Madison no class took the time you really sit us students down to discuss our writing as to how to become more successful writers. Even when I was an English major at the time, writing papers all the time. The only thing that was ever stressed for what they saw as effective writing was the importance of a thesis sentence and format. My freshman year I took what was supposed to be the Madison equivalent of Milwaukee’s 102 was a speech writing class. Yes, I took a speech writing class even though I am pretty sure I would never in my life give a speech where such a class is needed. In this class, the importance lied in the actual giving of the speech and not really even the writing of the speech. I do have to say that that class was absolutely awful in that it gave me absolutely nothing for my college-learning career.
But where I do believe writing extra curriculum like Gere talks about needs to happen this most is in high schools. This is where writing really starts for students and they begin to find the voice inside themselves. As important as it is, writing in high schools is almost not talked about. I pretty much had no idea how to write at a college level when I first got into college because I was not taught how to do it in high school. As I sit here trying to think of any writing activities or teachings given to me in high school I come up blank. At my high school it was pretty much just not so important as part of the English curriculum to have writing in there. This is another reason why I want to go into English teaching is so that other future students do learn how to write before getting into college and not after like I had to.
The whole notion that I thought of myself as an actual true writer really did not sink in until probably the middle of my sophomore year. I realized one day that after writing a great number of papers for classes that I am not only a writer, but thought of myself as a pretty good one too. I even realized that I do some degree enjoy writing papers, especially English papers when I argue about something in a book that I just read. Even last semester at 102, I am really proud of my paper and wish that others would read it. The notion of being a bad writer I don’t think was ever assigned to me by a teacher of even myself. It was more that I did not know how to write effectively because I was never taught or talked about it as discussed earlier.

Blog Post #2-Kate Kernien

Anne Ruggles Gere discussed the importance of the extracurriculum in “Kitchen Tables and Rented Rooms: The Extracurriculum of Composition.” The extracurriculum she describes is the experience of writing outside the classroom walls and writing for love, “After all, as the Latin root amatus reminds us, members of the Tenderloin Women’s Writing Workshop of the Lansing, Iowa Writers Workshop write for love” (88). In the writing classes I took in high school, the extracurriculum was rarely experienced. In the majority of my classes, I was assigned to read a book in a given amount of time and then at the end, I had to write a paper discussing a major theme or problem that occurs in the book. I would read the book to get it over with it, sometimes just skimming because I found the novel boring. When I would receive my paper assignment, I would struggle to begin writing the paper because I had no clue where to start from. Nothing usually stuck out to me about being an interesting topic to write about, there was nothing that I could truly relate to. However, in my senior year of high school, I took an A.P. English class. Even though the class was supposed to be designed around preparing the students for the A.P. English test, my teacher made the class exciting. She would have different activities set for every set of books we read. With one book, she set up a debate. One half of the class would represent the one group described in the book we were reading and the other half of the class would represent the other group and then three judges would decide who won the debate. Another time, my teacher gave us a list of books we could choose from and then we could get partners to read the book together and in the end decide on a project we wanted to do. Some of the projects were papers, others were scrapbooks, and there were also some videos. She gave us options on how we wanted to learn; which was a nice change from the other teachers that did the usual process of assigning books for us to read and then assigning papers. I think, if teachers would try to make their students more interested in what they were reading, then they would be making the classroom more like the extracurriculum. Students would begin to enjoy the things they had to write about. However, I do not believe the wall between the classroom and the extracurriculum can ever be taken down because in the classroom you write because you have to, whereas in the extracurriculum you write because you want to.

Even though I enjoyed reading and writing in the A.P. English class, I still never thought of myself as a writer. I also do not believe I was taught unconsciously that I could not write. I have never thought of myself as a “good” writer, but I also have not thought of myself as a “bad” writer. I think I am fully capable of writing an “A” paper, but when it comes to writing, I have trouble being truly committed to a paper and proud of what I wrote. I usually just write to get an “A” and get the paper done with. I don’t spend time trying to make the paper really influential, I just write to get all the questions answered in the prompt. I have never been assigned a paper that would cause me to really “love” what I was writing, which is what happens in the extracurriculum as described by Gere. Most of the papers have to include literature that I never really can relate to, so it is difficult to be passionate about what I am writing.

Blog Post #2: Gere

Ryan Popp

Throughout my academic career, I was exposed to many English classes. Most of them I experienced in high school. As students we were advised to take as many English classes as we could to further our writing skills for college and the working world. Our teachers stressed how important it was to take their English curriculum serious to succeed in further education. But as my schooling continued I didn’t understand how a lot of their curriculum pertained to us. In my classes we had to follow a strict set of rules when writing. We never got to pick our topics when writing a paper. When teachers did this, many students in the class didn’t look forward to writing. We didn’t understand how the topics we had to write about were any better than the ones we came up with. By the time the paper came due many classmates decided to just throw something together. They always would argue that they can’t write about something they don’t care about. Some of these classmates were the best writers in the school, but would get bad grades in English classes. Teachers thought they were teaching students lessons by not allowing us to write about current topics. One teacher I remember told the class that the only good writers were from the past. So the class would get stuck trying to comprehend poetry from the early to late 17th century. What teachers didn’t understand was that so many students were under achieving to make a point and both sides were too stubborn to make changes. As a student, I always did what was assigned. I did my work and received good grades from my literature teachers. But when I would compare some of my pieces to other students’ writing, that they did outside of class, it was amazing how well they wrote. Although, to my teachers I was a very good writer, they didn’t understand how many great papers they missed from other students. They stereotyped these students as “bad writers,” but these students were some of the best in the whole school. After I would read classmates’ work I felt that I was the “bad writer.” It was amazing to me how the wrong topics and stereotyping could lead students to not show their great writing skills. This situation leads me to think that Gere was correct about including the “extracurriculum” in schools.

In order to get students or anyone to write to their full potential I think they need to find a topic that interests them. Then they will feel passionate about their paper. It doesn’t make sense to have students always writing about ideas that don’t interest them. I understand that there are many important writers and poets that have great works that everyone should read and try to interpret. But teachers should allow for students to find their own ideas to write about. If my teachers would have allowed this, they could have seen how well their class could write. By allowing the “extracirriculum” to enter our schools, it will destroy the barrier between teachers and students. People will be able to write freely in all environments and not feel self conscious about being a “bad writer.”

blog #2

It can be very difficult to compare education standards and methods across decades, let alone centuries. Ideas change and develop, theories are disproven, and traditions are modified but it does not mean we cannot learn from it. Not every and any definition will always fit perfectly and figuring out why this is so explains it to us that much more. Extracurriculum can be explained in different ways and has multiple definitions, as seen in Gere’s article. While Applebee, Rudolph, and Graff have very specific definitions for extracurriculum which leaves them somewhat limited and stuck in the era it developed in, “Significantly, Rudolph, Applebee, and Graff all describe the extracurriculum as a white male enterprise” (79). Gere’s explanation for extracurriculum is a much broader one and seems to be more relatable to education in the past and present. Trying to quote her whole definition really would not give justice to her explanation in this article but this aspect of her definition I thought was most important, “it extends beyond the academy to encompass the multiple contexts in which persons seek to improve their own writing” (80). People have to want to do better for themselves and not be forced to.

I feel that my English experiences, from elementary to today’s, have always challenged me. With a private school education I always felt the standard was so high and the difficulty almost pushed me away from wanting to improve my writing and composition skills. Gere pays attention to literary practices outside of formal education and takes interest in cultural influences. Thinking back on my earlier education it was rare that I ever wrote for something that did not involve my formal education. I am what Jeff Daniels, the actor, would describe as a “Philistine” in the movie The Squid and the Whale. It is one who has no interest in intellectuals and books and is only interested in the shallowness of athletics. Although there may be one instance where I could have had extracurricular literacy practices, but Gere’s concept of extracurriculum would not agree. During the long summers my father was always trying to get me to write and practice my writing. He would sit me down in front of our gigantic computer monitor and tell me I could write whatever I wanted as long as I wrote for 1 hour and then I would be free to go play outside. I was not directly seeking to improve my writing skills but unconsciously used other desires to accomplish my writing. My father forced me to use my writing to achieve different means; in terms of extracurriculum people will always use their writing as a tool for success.

Gere Blog Post #2

I have been put in many situations throughout my high school and middle school years where I haven't been able to really broaden my literacy due to class or school policies along with being scared or not allowed to share my opinion. The curriculum in my schools was built to have students believe whatever the teacher was saying. In other words I was taught to mimic what the teacher believed and take that into interpreting readings and writing my own papers. I believe this lead me to be less literate because I couldn't write about what I wanted to and what interested me, rather I wrote about what the teacher drove me to write about and that kept me from really engaging into the project because I was usually not interested in the topic given to me. This same concept goes onto some of my college courses as well. I took English 102 last spring and the whole class was based around the topic of "fear." This meaning throughout the semester we were to research, read, discuss, and at the end of a semester write a final research paper that declared if we passed or failed the class all on fear. At first I thought all the English 102 classes had a topic that they based their class around, then I found out that most didn't and they could write about whatever interested them. This mad me feel like I was at a disadvantage because the simple topic of "fear," didn't interest me at all. I was at a stand still for most of the course because I never could really engage myself in the whole idea due to my lack of interest for the topic of fear. I think that if we could of choose our own topic for our research paper I would of been able to get a better grade because I would of been able to choose a topic that truly interested me rather than just meeting a requirement.

I wasn't required to do a lot of writing in high school, maybe a paper here or a response paper there. But I never thought as myself as a bad writer because I usually got good grades on these papers and felt confident in my writing until English 102. This class was especially hard for me because I had never had to write or think about research papers in the past. My teacher also wasn't very helpful. She made us choose our topic (fear) and flat out told us a week before portfolios were due that she expected all of us to not pass the class (due to poorly written rough drafts.) All of this feedback made most of the class believe we weren't good writers. Mostly because I couldn't engage myself in what was being taught due to a lack of enthusiasm on the topic. I was taught unconsciously that I was a bad writer mostly because I couldn't add my own flare and excitement in the topic assigned. Interest in a topic can lead to overall better writing, because rules restrict better writing!! I believe guidelines lead to leaving out important details that can interest readers. A fear driven policy in the classroom can lead to less interesting writing, that readers don't care to read about!

Soua - Gere Blog

Soua - Blog prompt 2

Gere’s article talks a lot about how literature classes in the school system are ineffective in broadening students’ literacy. “Few of the participants in the Tenderloin Women’s Writing Workshop or the Lansing, Iowa Writers’ Workshop had much formal education, and many had negative experiences with schooling. They did not think of themselves as writers because teachers had taught them they could not write.” (pg 78) In my high school years, I have never experienced this. My teachers taught me the best they could. When we felt like we did not understand something, they made sure we knew what they wanted us to know. But, there was a situation similar to this. Last semester, I took a math course and we did all our work online. It was a “learn at your own paste” course and I was having difficulty. They did not explain to you how to do the problems, you were expected to know how to do it already. As we got more into the course, it was getting harder for me. I would frequently ask the instructor for help with problems in the same category and the instructor would get frustrated with me. Also, it was two courses in one semester, math 95 and 105. When I got done with math 95, there were only three weeks left before the end of the semester. I asked my instructor if I could take math 105 during the spring semester because he told us earlier that we can do that but then told me no. He told me that I will be able to finish it within three weeks because it was only going to get easier. But instead, it got harder and harder for me. I tried to get help by going to math tutor but the instructor was no help. The tutor I had was the same as my instructor, so I stopped going to my tutor session and turned to the internet for help. Because we were expected to know everything already, they did not teach us anything. They would only help explain how to do a problem. I know that math doesn’t really have anything to do with literature but the situation I had with my math instructor and the quote above from Gere’s reading has one thing in common, our teacher’s job is to teach us what they know that we don’t but they fail to do so.

There have been times when I would say that I am not a good writer. Because English is not my native language, it is a bit challenging for me. When I read other students’ work and compare it to mines, I do think that I am not a good writer because theirs just seem better than mines. Their word choices are better than mines and theirs just seem more sophisticated. Sometimes I feel like I am not a good writer because of the fact that English is not my native language and I don’t fully understand the English language system.

I think one way that teachers can include the extracurriculum in their classes and still get accomplished what they need to get done is to make some time and have reading groups where the students pick what they want to read and write about. Sometimes I feel like students don’t do well because the stuff they do does not interest them. In the reading groups that Gere talked about, they were good writer because they wrote about what they wanted to write about, stuff that matters to them. If teachers can do this, then they can help strengthen a students’ writing.