Nicholas Bon - Questions for 6/28

1. In Tobin’s article, he discusses his first encounter with process pedagogy. He describes Donald Murray’s Teach Writing as a Process Not a Product as reminding him more of Whitman or Emerson than any book about writing he had encountered before. Another of Murray’s books, A Writer Teaches Writing discusses, in Tobin’s words, “cultivating surprise, writing for discovery, encouraging risky failures, and teaching writing as if your students were not students but real writers.”

As idealistic as this might sound for the production of writing and encouragement of students, is this a practical philosophy for generalized writing instruction? Would this need to be adapted to work in an academic setting that still very much prioritizes clear objectives and adherence to preset guidelines?

2. Bartholomae makes the comment on page 13 that the essay in question is “too finished, too seamless, too professional.” What features or stylistic traits of an essay (or other piece of writing) will cause it to seem too polished, and what might a writing instructor do to prevent the proliferation of overly formulaic writing from their students (if this is indeed a problem)?