When I lived in India , I attended Canadian
International School (CIS) – this school had students from all over the world
but the curriculum was based on the Canadian school system. My dad had my
sister and I attend this school because he knew we would return to America in a
couple of years and he wanted to make sure we would get an education that was
close to the American curriculum.
I was back in Houston ,
TX
I had a lot of trouble with adjusting to analysis after only working with creative writing and narratives in elementary and middle school. But I think there is a lot of value in literary analysis. When my teachers told me to elaborate more, it allowed me to start seeing other people's thoughts and not just my own biases. It's hard, but the struggle is really worth it.
ReplyDeleteI agree, to become a better writer one must practice the art. Through practicing the art, one notices trends and begins to understand what the depths of writing might be. By establishing such a foundation there is space available for improvement and betterment of the art.
ReplyDeleteI agree that practicing different writing styles is important. As Margaret pointed out, analysis has its value. It helps us to break something down into parts and see how it all fits together. Seeing how something is put together might help us with structuring our own writing. However, as you point out, narrative writing has its value as well. Sometimes its purpose is purely expressive; in other words, narrative may help us to articulate our emotions. Other times, narrative provides an entertaining way of conveying an important message.
ReplyDeleteI think that some English departments look over the fact that practicing telling stories on paper will lead to better verbal communication. Writing personal narratives well takes a lot of skill and creativity that could always use practice. I appreciate the teachers that encourage putting a personal voice in everything, even analysis papers.
ReplyDeleteI also always had trouble analyzing authors' works. Writing can be interpreted in many different ways and sometimes it is difficult to pinpoint the correct meaning of literature. Furthermore, you're right, students should be encouraged to write more freely. It not only encourages them to write more but it also helps them find their unique style of writing.
ReplyDeleteI agree that being exposed to multiple writing styles is important. My English teachers in highschool always made sure to have us analyze multiple authors that each had a different writing style. I believe that by doing that my literacy was enhanced and I was more well rounded than those students whose teachers stuck to one main writing style or genre.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I had never thought about it before, I agree that the American education system does not put much emphasis on creative writing. Most english classes focus on analysis and essays. I don't think I could write a poem if I wanted to, simply because it is so foreign to me!
ReplyDelete