Students should be taught more than one citation in secondary schools. Were you exposed to more than one way of thinking? More than one way to write? More than one way to cite your work? I know in high school I was taught MLA. MLA only.
In the library there was one version of MLA, probably about 5 years old. Don't quote me on this, but MLA changes almost every year and a new version is released. This led the entire student body to be falling behind. As mentioned by Gallagher in Chapter 1, I was often told to practice using MLA but never formally taught it. Student's should be taught the material they need to learn more, rather than having them practice without instruction. Too many times I was told "Go to the Library, there's a form with examples and instructions".
"Recently one of my teacher candidates attended a course in which fellow English teachers were adamant they needed students to learn to cite using MLA by memory."-P. L. Thomas, EdD
In addition to the constant changing of format, there are also many different types of citations. For example: APA, Turabian and Chicago. Only being subjected to one version of citation limits the knowledge that should be being taught for the future.
Because of this lack of knowledge, I went into my first college science, looked at the syllabus and thought to myself, I'm screwed. All of my lab reports and papers were to be in APA format. At that point I had to teach myself how to do it... believe me, when you teach yourself how to do something, it doesn't come out very well.
Teachers need to start teaching the material students need to succeed in order to expand the students' growth of knowledge.
Kelli-Lynne, nice use of pictures to illustrate your point that material needs to be taught, not just assigned. What did you get from Christensen and Gallagher that relates? And how important is MLA/APA anyway, do you think?
ReplyDeleteChristensen and Gallagher both focus on teaching the material in the classroom rather than just assigning. Christensen writes in the introduction about taking the student's talent and building on it one step at a time in the areas they need help. For example: Jerald who is extremely intelligent but struggles with grammar, sentence structure and punctuation needs to be taught where and when to use punctuation and capital letters. Once he has learned that, the teacher can then move on to work on the next area that he needs help with.
DeleteSimilar to this, Gallagher writes about students who are assigned to write a paper, but are never taught the proper way to write it. Teachers should be teaching these students the process of writing: how to make a graphic organizer, where to put a thesis, and how to use showing language to make their writing more appealing. I think it is important to teach because ultimately that is in the title of the job and learning on your own is not easy or fair for the student.
I think it is important to learn both MLA and APA because they are both used at the college level. Preparing our students for the next level of education is extremely important so they are not completely lost or falling behind. It is the teachers job to work for the students and prepare them for success, not failure.
I hope we explore the importance of MLA/APA in class...I've been wondering the necessity of this format of writing in secondary schools. The first PL Thomas quote you used is one that stood out to me too. I don't know if I had to be in my 40s to finally understand the value of ongoing learning, but I'm there. How do we as teachers remind each other that we need to be constantly analyzing and reconsidering what and how we teach? Kelli, I'll keep reminding you if you keep reminding me. :) There's a famous quote by Michaelangelo that I love so so so much: Ancora Imparo, which means "Still, I am learning." I'd like to remember that, even as we transition from learners to teachers...it still applies!
ReplyDeleteThank you Sarah!! I'll make sure to keep you on your toes and to continue learning alongside you!! :-)
DeleteI completely agree with what you said about the APA format! Like you, I was only taught MLA citing throughout high school. I had to scramble to complete my history paper that was supposed to be in APA format during my second year at RIC. And, if I may quote you, "MLA changes almost every year and a new version is released." It seems to be that way! Awesome post!
ReplyDeleteI fully agree with you that students need to be taught how to write using all forms of format. This reminded me of when Gallagher said that teaching writing should cross all departments of education and that all teachers should be familiar with writing standards. That being said, English teachers should be aware of what format is used in different classes. In science classes it is more common to use APA format rather than MLA. In history classes I used Chicago instead of MLA, but I was only taught MLA in high school. The first time I encountered APA was in college, and I felt bed because my professor had to take time to review what APA was with the class. This shouldn't be the case. I find it almost hypocritical that it is expected for all teachers to be familiar with writing standards, but English teachers only teach MLA rather than including APA and Chicago for other classes.
ReplyDeleteGreat ideas! Glad I'm not the only who felt this way.
I can certainly relate with you in terms of the MLA formatting. From junior high through high school the MLA criteria was pressed hard on students. Headings, margins, page numbers, paragraph form, citations and so on were drilled into our curriculum constantly. Don't get me wrong, as an English teacher to be I am a firm believer that the MLA format is a great platform to get students started with their growth in writing (especially in relation to standards). Yet, as you've stated, there are many other variations of citations etc... I also entered college without a clue of how to tackle the APA and Chicago style formats. Sure there are multiple references that can be accessed digitally and through libraries, but they should be touched upon in secondary schools. Some students can't simply teach themselves. This post also sparks my belief that free writing should be practiced more in secondary schools. Once the basics of writing are mastered, the more students write the stronger they become (whether their writing is academic or not).
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with this. I went into a psychology class without any idea as to how APA formatting works. I got a C on a paper because I formatted incorrectly. I had naively assumed that MLA was the only form for citation necessary; after all, that was all that was taught in high school. If teachers would take a bit of time to explain that knowledge is not a fixed thing to have, I believe students would be better off in the long run.
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