Article Response: "Take the Pencil Out of the Process"

All too often teachers identify kids who struggle as lazy. This article forces us to think about writing as a physical act. Many of us take handwriting for granted and it is therefore difficult to imagine why so many of our students struggle to commit pen to paper. Broun points out that, "sometimes kids grow out of this," and she says, "sometimes, with extra practice, their skills improve." As a teacher, I struggle with the point at which you know for sure whether or not a child will "grow out" of writing difficulties.

From about grade four on, the writing process is crucial to learning. Kids are no longer learning to read and write; rather they are reading and writing to learn. I have a few students for whom the writing process is very labor-intensive. Perhaps this is the Cardinal Sin of teaching, but I struggle with drawling that line (so to speak) between "forcing" them to write and allowing them to use a computer or iPad. One particular student has ADHD, along with a myriad of other difficulties. Allowing him to do his assignments on the computer produces similar results to that of writing. He is easily distracted and spends more time fiddling with font sizes than putting actual answers down. I am often left wondering where am I going wrong?!

Another extremely important point made by Broun is when she says, "Fair is not giving everyone the same thing, fair is giving people what they need." She is referring to having computers in the classroom and allowing students with difficulties to use them as a writing instrument. I have two student computers in my classroom and I personally, find them cumbersome. I prefer the use of the iPads whenever possible as they are more mobile and it is easier to monitor student activity.

Broun states that, "Texting is now part of our culture". We should be embracing the shift from pen and paper to touch or keyboard typing. Technology will continue to change but it is not going away. Technology has made current-day information accessible via touch, so why then are we still reading to kids from outdated textbooks and having them copy pages and pages of notes from the board?