Fools Rush In by DeWitt/Dickson

According to DeWitt and Dickson, "Early research in teh field of computers and composition strongly suggested that sound pedagogy should always begin with what we already hold to be true about teaching writing: that the technology should be secondary and used as a means to achieve our primary goal of facilitating student learning. Not only does this sell short the possibilities for inventing pedagogy that grows out of our experiences with various technologies, but it also paints an unrealistic picture of how innovative classroom applications of technology are created. Often, computer-rich assignments and classroom activities grow out of teachers' experiences with the technology itself" (Teaching Writing with Computers 69).

Well, huh. I guess I'm old school after a mere two years of teaching and being only 32, because I agree with the former. I still see my computer as being a tool to help me write, but not the reason why I should write. In fact, I find the above statement to reflect more about the teacher's need to be entertained in the classroom -- these professors admit that they started all this because they were bored with their old pedagogy -- rather than focusing on the needs of the students to learn how to write.

However, I am entertaining introducing a technology-based project in my Comp 2 class -- after they complete two other assignments that have more to do with their OWN interests and what THEY need to research, not what I'd want them to discover based on my own interests. This goes back to what I inherently believe about teaching composition: Students would be more interested in writing if they understood it is real to their lives and essential to understanding themselves and the worlds around them. They get that when they are allowed to pick their subjects on their own terms. While I do feel it would be beneficial to have students study such things as anti-censorship, on a freshman level I just don't know if this is of interest to all of them -- and I'd be losing students who don't plan on working in a communications field.