Okay, I must admit, I have been the hypothetical student, I have scanned for the grade, breathed a sigh of relief (or confusion), and stowed the paper away in my bag....but only in the classroom. Sometimes, I need to distance myself from the emotional response that only a grade can bestow on a serious student. When I have digested this arbitrary little indication of my worth as a student, I can go back and read the feedback fully.
I remember that in the Harvard writing video, a student remarked that professor feedback was so meaningful because you knew that for a few minutes, the professor was thinking about and interacting with your own ideas. Even if this professor had hundreds of students, for that one moment, your minds met. I absolutely love this idea. Even at a small school like Richmond, I know that when my professor reads my paper, they understand a little more about what I am thinking in a way that is impossible to understand when they see me in class. And by commenting about my ideas, criticizing or praising my thoughts, and telling me theirs in return, I know a little more about them.
I really cannot stress enough how much of an influence a professor's words on their writing can mean. I can remember the exact moment when I stood outside Ryland, fall of my freshman year, heart beating rapidly, reading the comments on an essay. On the page, a professor who I admired and feared equally had simply written, "brilliant commentary, analysis excellent." Knowing that the work and thought I had put into my writing was acknowledged by someone like this professor was an indescribable feeling. I was inspired to work harder.
However, as illustrated in the teacher's comment - "This is a redneck argument!" - condemned by Gorkemli, poor teacher feedback can also make an negative effect on a writer. A friend and new English major recently told me of a comment given on her final term paper for her first 300 level English class. The professor, who she liked and admired very much, had written at the end, "good ideas, but your writing style is just not sophisticated enough for a major." Certainly, this comment is not quite as blunt as Gorkemli's situation, but equally harmful toward the student. My friend told me all of this, not emotionally, but disturbingly resigned to her fate as a poor writer who just couldn't cut it. In her eyes, she couldn't improve; her inherent style was inadequate. The professor's criticism became a universal condemnation, something that no amount of reassurance from friends can make right. Any time she talks about writing a new essay, she quietly refers to this professor's comment as something she would have to compensate for, but couldn't alter.
In starting this blog post, I asked several students I was studying with if they remembered feedback from teachers on previous papers. Like my friend and I, all of them were able to tell me the exact wording of specific, influential comments - positive or negative - that they had written months and even years ago. Clearly, this is a valuable part of a college experience. We as tutors have the ability to harness the power of the teacher comment, to clarify, to emphasize, or to put into perspective.
Top notch posting here - you deftly weave together specific discussion of our relevant texts, personal reflection and critical analysis. Concluding with your informal survey of student response to commentary is especially effective.
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