Piecing Together My Philosophy

 In my recent reading of A Guide to Composition Pedagogies, I have begun to pick up pieces of pedagogy that I believe inform my personal philosophy for teaching. It feels odd to say that I have a teaching philosophy, since I have not actually taught a class formally, but perhaps we must always begin with knowing where I am going and why before I actually go. So, the "where and why" are definitely beginning to take shape for me. 

In the Composition Pedagogies book, there are certainly pedagogies with which I did not personally connect. I do appreciate that, as I will not be the only instructor my future students have, they may have a chance to experience many of the types, even those that I do not personally plan to focus on. I see the usefulness in all of them, but they do not all speak to me as an instructor. I am learning that the best thing I can bring to the classroom or coursework is an authentic, open, real selfhood. I do not need an "instructor persona" or to use approaches that I must put on over my own values, but instead, I need to come as I am, and use approaches that allow me to learn and grow as well, from an authentic place. If I want truth and growth from my students--and I do--then I must bring that in with me as well. 

Firstly, I find that I am solidly in the "process-is-greater-than-product" paradigm, as far as composition studies. I certainly see that this approach has limitations and concerns--such as how to ensure that there is enough emphasis on producing scholarly, well-written work--but I simply believe that all students ARE writers. Writing and language are this beautiful and special thing that people do to make meaning and order out of the chaos that surrounds us. We all do it, to some degree, and we all enjoy it, in some way or another. We like to talk, listen to music, read, use social media, see movies, watch plays, sing, and generally just play with language. So, I think once students have a chance to play with language when the focus is on learning about how they do that, they get better at it. Self-knowledge is the root of learning, for me. If I know myself and understand how and why I learn (or read and write), I can improve upon it. That is what knowledge is and does, in my opinion. 

The diagram on page 216 of the text outlines the values of process pedagogy, and it resonated with me completely. Process-focused pedagogy values:

• The processes of pre-writing, writing, editing, designing, and producing thoughts on paper
• The improvement of the learner
• Writing as more than the sum of its parts (such as grammar, syntax, etc.)
• It is student-centered
• It centers on writing as a way to think
• It is a socially dynamic effort

Perhaps my appreciation for the process approach to composition can best be described by Peter Elbow, who is quoted in Concepts in Composition as saying, "I can grow or change, but not unless I start out inhabiting my own voice or style...In short, I need to accept myself as I am before I can tap my power or start to grow" (Clark 15). I believe as an instructor, I have to start by inhabiting my own voice and style, knowing who I am and what I have to offer, before I can begin to grow, change and evolve into a better instructor. I have to start from owning the authenticity that is within me. Likewise, I think writers must have a chance to do this confidently in their writing before they can really grow as students and writers. To utilize composition courses to help students tap into their own voice really appeals to me. 

While my pedagogical stance is still forming, I feel like I have at least found the place where I begin. And it isn't nothing to find a name for what feels like deep knowledge that you already had inside you. I found terminology to match what I felt deep within me about writing and learning, and process pedagogy (in combination with others, such as expressive pedagogy) is that term. It has given me a place to accept myself, so I can grow.