Teacher Expectations

In regard to Errors and Expectations, I believe that Mina Shaughnessy is right about ‘remediating’ teachers. It is important to remember that the teacher-student relationship is not strictly about one party or the other. Teachers should remember that they are paid to help the students. Sometimes this means adjusting the course and course work to the needs of the student. I’ll get into the job of the student in the next blog. This relationship is like any other relationship it requires compromise on both sides of the desk.

Shaughnessy asks on 286, “What is the goal of instruction?”. The goal, of course, is better writing on the sentence level and the overall structure and content of the paper. I think there is a deeper goal than just better writing-self awareness. She hits on this point earlier when she gives an example from a basic writing student. The student wrote an earlier piece, full of errors, and with an unsteady tone and syntax. The second piece she wrote begins, “I am the smartest girl in this class”. (277) She goes on to describe how she has gained confidence through every writing assignment. She also realizes that revision helps her out immensely.

The student now feels like she heard and that she is a part of the discourse community. She begins to see herself as an academic, as someone with a bright future. My expectation as a teacher is to give my students this same feeling, that they have a voice, it does matter, and someone is listening. I don’t expect myself to be amazing at teaching basic writing the first time, but as long as I help some students make the improvements to their writing and themselves, then I have done my job.

Shaughnessy, Mina. Errors and Expectations. New York: Oxford University Press, 1977.