Blog #19- Revised Intro

Teacher Comments:  An In Depth Look at

Current Teacher’s Commenting Practices In An Urban School Setting.

Introduction

Studying the way teachers comment on student papers is importance to writing studies because its sheds light on ways to improve student's quality of writing. Anyone could compile a reasonable list of guidelines that a teacher could follow when commenting on student writing. Such a lists would most definitely include providing feedback while remembering to be being positive and encouraging. However, effective commenting is much more complex than simply providing encouragement. It is important to study the type of feedback that teachers are actually giving. When it comes to commenting, less is always more. Bombarding students with massive amounts of comments can have a hindering effect on their potential of better writers. The purpose of this study is to investigate if current teachers are applying the expert’s findings on the best teacher commenting strategies in order to become highly effective in helping their students become better writers.

There have been several studies performed in recent years on teacher comments and their effects on student writers. A notable researcher, Nancy Sommers, has performed research studies on this subject matter including the production of a film entitled Beyond the Red Ink. The film portrays college students speaking about their teacher's responses to their writing. Sommers, in her book Responding to Student Writing suggests that teachers often times bombard students with conflicting comments. They point out grammar errors while also telling the student that his or her overall idea in the paragraph is unclear. A teacher must “resist the urge to correct grammar and punctuation errors” in order to allow students to find their own mistakes. On the contrary, it can lead to students feeling confused on whether they should fix the grammar mistakes rather than work on making their ideas clearer. Sommers point out that teachers most often follow the "deficit model", which she identifies as teachers focusing on the wrong, inadequate, and absent in a paper rather than focusing on what the paper actually contains. She goes on to state that teachers should focus on having one purpose while commenting on student writing. In other words, they should focus on one lesson at a time. The teacher should either focus on the grammar or on development of the main ideas. By focusing on one purpose, Sommers hopes that this would turn into a lesson learned by the students. This lesson, according to Sommers, if taught correctly, would be “transported” by the student to future writing piece. Sommers also introduces the importance of creating a dialogue with the students in the process of commenting on their writing as oppose to a monologue, where the only person speaking is the teacher.

Sommers presents a need for varied styles of comments. She encourages margin comments because it shows students that the teacher is being an active reader of their work. The comments are also tailored directly to specific parts of the writing, which is useful when engaging in a teacher students dialogue. Sommers also promotes the use of conferences with students as this serves as the perfect gateways to a conversation. The teacher has the opportunity to give comments while getting feedback from the student on the intent of their writing. During these conferences, Sommers, suggest that students write their own notes. The act of putting suggestion into your own words makes the effect of the comments more meaningful. This also gives students a solid plan of action for the revision and editing process.

Lastly, Sommers discusses the use of a rubric when commenting on student papers as an important component, however, she cautions that it “should not replace teacher commentary or be the only response students receive”. She states that if used correctly, a rubric can make grading an easier task for teachers with “clear assessment criteria”. In order for a rubric to be effective Sommers ask the following three questions:

1.     Are the elements within a rubric specific to the assignment?

2.     Does the language f the rubric form the basis of instruction around the assignment?

3.     Does the rubric clarify expectations and assignment goals?

If the answers to these three questions are affirmative then the use of a rubric can be a useful method to focus comments and avoid subjectivity.