When reading "The Power of Voice" by Tom Romano, I was immediately brought to the memory of my wife saying to me as she proof read a paper "you don't talk like this, why do you write like this." I have always struggled to write, not only in the prose of writing but in the content too (some would say a struggle to find my inner voice).
I found the authors description of the teacher who used quick writes with her her students of interest. These are the same techniques that I have employed in drawing class for students to loosen up or to find their inner Picasso. From what I have seen and heard this process is practiced through out the fine arts from music to theater along with the visual arts.
One of the benefits from an exercise like this is that the student does not have time to over analyze what they are putting down. This is evident by the young man's comment about what happens to their class when their teacher yells.
In today's school the emphasis in writing has been place squarely on being able to write formative. This was the way that I learned to write and i see this form of writing being taught in our school today too. Now, when I sit down to write I automatically switch to a very formative mode when I start to write. In college I had an English class where our teacher had an MFA in creative writing, she used similar techniques as these to try and have us find our "inner voice".
The blogs of my friends that I read the most both use their inner voice to express them selves in their writings. One of the blogs is written just as he would talk to you in person and is for the most part a stream of consciousness. The other is also the persons inner voice, except this person inner voice is not like he talks. He tends to talk in a more formal way while being a great listener, but his blog reads with witty analogies and humor about his experiences and thoughts.
Students need to find their inner voice when writing. Writing has become such an important part in our society that students need to learn how to be able to express them selves. With the multiples of different media outlets, such as blogging, people are able to hide behind their inner voice with out being judged by their appearances.
3 comments:
Oh you are so poetic! I think you have indeed found your voice in writing! "Inner Picasso" - WOW! What a cool phrase! Your wife is very wise, yet I think we all have different voices when we speak and when we write. For instance there is the "phone voice", the "interview voice" the "talking with Mom" voice, etc. Our voice depends upon our audience, and although it may not resemble the speaking our friends are used to, it can still be authentic - as honest communication always has the listener in mind.
I do agree with you about the different voices. I still hear the formal voice in my mind as I sit down to write. But, I think that blogging is a more nonformal way to write our thoughts. I think that my generation and before mine, where taught in school to write formaly. We did not have all the different media available where we could write informally like to day. Kids today are communicating through informal writing on Facebook, Myspace and text messaging to name a few.
I also struggle to write and almost always write using a formal voice. As you stated, it is how we were taught. I have to say, I enjoy reading another person's writing more when it is written just as they would talk. I ususally find humor reading those pieces, because I can picture the person saying it. I welcome the opportunity to write less formally when I text or email someone.
I like the idea of quickwrites to instill confidence in writing and develop fluency. When I taught writing, I would do a lot of brainstorming with the students to get them past their writer's block. I also required journal writing, which was less formal and not graded. It helped students learn to express themselves and get their thoughts down on paper. I wanted that to be the focus instead of students worrying about correct spelling and mechanics.
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