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Showing posts from January, 2016

Revisionary Teaching

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“By nature, aren’t the people who are drawn to teaching attracted because they love to learn? Isn’t revision a natural process for such people?” ( Paraphrased from memory ) I nodded along as Mary spoke, for I had engaged in similar discussions about teachers who continually learn, adapt, and grow versus those who seem to stagnate – teaching the same content the same way to different kids across different years – many times. This time, however, Mary’s use of the word “revision” caught my attention. I don’t think a more apt word exists to correlate what English teachers must believe about the writing process and what teachers must believe and apply to the teaching profession. To revise means to look again. We beg our students to recognize the merits of taking another look at their writing and to tweak it where possible by adding or cutting information, finding what works and expanding upon it, and making mindful choices about language and structure. Does it not then logically foll