English 145 (8): What is teaching worth?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
And so in class, yesterday, we began to ask ourselves what teaching can deliver, what it is worth. What are the residuals of an advanced nonfiction workshop, for example? What will be carried forward, one short month from now, when we have had our last class and said our goodbyes (but not permanent goodbyes; that just won't do)? What will remain a decade hence, or two?
I want my students leaving English 145 knowing more about how they think and why they think what they do. I want them hungry, always, to know more, precise in articulating their beliefs, willing to take incalculable risks and to start all over again. I want them daring and I want them alert and I want them, most of all, to know their own value, to never doubt it.
Can we teach that? Perhaps not. We can only give it room to grow.
2 comments:
A great post Beth. My best teachers made me feel like my voice, my opinion, my creative expression and my participation in life's eternal debate all had intrinsic value or worth. Each individual voice is precious and must be celebrated. Love those class moments when the students are engaged in a lively discussion. You can feel the students reaching for the next rung in the ladder. They want to stretch their ideas and imagination because they feel that their voices should be heard.
They are so very lucky to have you as their teacher!
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