Teaching Does Not Equal Correcting

In her article, "Knowing When to Shut Up: Suggestions for Creating a Collaborative Learning Environment", Marsha Arons gives examples and suggestions for how to encourage students to take initiative of their learning process. She talks about how students learn best when they are in charge of their own learning, and how it is our responsibility as teachers to give them the tools to do so. All good teachers know that feeding students answers does not help them grow--in fact, it cripples them as learners, causing them to be dependent upon others for the information they retain. When teachers instead ask questions or step out of the way of their learning, students are given opportunity to flourish.

One way that Marsha Arons does this is by allowing students to fail. When they are given freedom to fail, they are able to learn from their mistakes first-hand and brainstorm how they will act or learn differently next time. Additionally, Marsha Arons ensures that she knows her students well. She observes them in a variety of contexts, one of which is through memoir writing prompts. Arons guides them through the process of writing, but allows for students to share and improve their writing as they are so inclined. Due to the personal nature of these prompts, she gains a foundational understanding of who they are as individuals, and thus how she can best come alongside students to scaffold their learning. This individualistic approach makes students feel safe and known--the perfect combination for amplified growth of the learner. As students become comfortable to share, Arons strategically takes steps back, removes herself from their writing processes, and "shuts up". She recognizes that learning takes time, it is a process, and constant correction does not help the student, but often hinders their growth as they become self-conscious about the content they are producing.

For this reason I chose this article to support my own writing prompt. I asked students to write a creative writing piece inspired by a space that they have occupied in their lives (a home, the home of a relative, a school, a workplace, etc.) in which they have experienced a significant event or spent a significant deal of time. Once they have chosen a place, they must then write their piece from the perspective of the place itself. Upon reading the responses I received from Caleb and Zach, and speaking to them about their pieces in person, I modified how I anticipated responding to the pieces of my students. They developed beautiful work, and both reported that their writing took a far more emotional turn than they were expecting it to. Based on their responses, I think that these pieces require me, as an instructor, to "shut up". I will not harp on my students for correct grammar or misspelled words. Instead, because there is potential for these pieces to evoke heightened emotions, I hope to respond to them with gratitude for their sharing and encourage their vulnerability in a way that makes them feel seen and heard, guiding their journey as they process particular important events in their lives.

There is a time and place for correct grammar and spelling--this prompt is not one in which I will be concerned with these things. Instead, I hope to cheer them on as they venture deeper into the places they are exploring of themselves, and celebrate the finished product regardless of its grammatical accuracy. As teachers, so much of our job is to merely facilitate a vibrant learning environment. If we are constantly correcting our students at inappropriate times, they are not going to feel safe to fail and in turn, their growth as a student and as an individual will be hindered.