For as long as I can remember, going to school meant projects, tests, quizzes and of course: papers. I often dreaded this aspect of coursework, mostly because I am a huge procrastinator and have little to no drive to get anything done ahead of time.
Upon coming to UW, I took a class dedicated completely to writing papers and the correct form to be used. The five paragraph essay was the end of my existence. Academic writing was completely defined by research, citation, and a specific form. Things are beginning to change significantly. This class is a perfect example; it's an english class dedicated to new media and the use of it as an academic process.
Unfortunately, this is the only class that this holds true for. The rest of my coursework is dedicated to the five paragraph essay. Paper, after paper, after paper, await me throughout the semester. I often feel suffocated in the midst of writing a research paper. Where does my personality show through? Nowhere...it is fact after fact after fact, all attached to someone else's name. But there are definite advantages to academic writing.
If new media were to take over all classwork in a university setting, a very important skill would be diminished. As much as we all hate it, paper writing is the very foundation of many careers. All students benefit from the practice of writing. The one english class I took as a freshmen prepared me for the rest of my classes of my college career (with some limitations, but that's a different entry completely). If students didn't learn how to do the research aspect of a paper, and correctly form a thesis, how would new research come to be? It is thought that much of new research is spurred by review of old. Also, on a more personal note, I'm not very good at new media. Perhaps as a result of years of objective writing, where I'm not supposed to let it be known that the person who wrote the paper has personal opinions, I am horrible at forming, much less expressing personal ideas about pieces. For example, I feel like I do not know how to "react" to readings/discussions/etc, and when asked to do so, I freak out.
On the flip side of this issue, being able to navigate new media is definitely a necessity in the business world today. The use of new media is an up-and-coming skill that may not get you ahead, but get you in the running. It's becoming a skill that is a prerequisite for many careers. When was the last time you were asked to write a research paper on a job interview?
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4 comments:
You make a really strong point about how new media is more like a prerequisite for some jobs these days in comparison "getting you ahead" only a few years ago. I also agree that, while the 5-paragraph essay is important, it does tend to suck the life right out of you after a while. How would you incorporate new media with the old, traditional form, and at what education level do you think we should start implementing more new media coursework?
I'm not sure how I would incorporate new media with old. But I definitely think that writing "the old way" is something that should be practiced; new media, such as web design, blogging, etc. would probably be great if implemented in high school. That way both ways of writing could be practiced quite a bit to be incorporated at the college level.
i'm beginning to think that more should be expected at the high school level as far as the "academic" writing goes and as you get into a university setting, i believe a combination of new media and the academic style, with an added stress on learning new media, because college should get you ready for the real world, and as you said, most jobs don't require a lot of five-paragraph essays or research papers.
I whole-heartedly agree with you when you said "...being able to navigate new media is definitely a necessity in the business world today." I also think it holds true for any field. New media is becoming such a huge part of life that one needs to be fluent in it to survive.
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