Mentor-Teaching in the English Classroom PDF
Preview Mentor-Teaching in the English Classroom
GGeeoorrggiiaa SSttaattee UUnniivveerrssiittyy SScchhoollaarrWWoorrkkss @@ GGeeoorrggiiaa SSttaattee UUnniivveerrssiittyy English Dissertations Department of English 6-18-2009 MMeennttoorr--TTeeaacchhiinngg iinn tthhee EEnngglliisshh CCllaassssrroooomm Timothy R. Blue Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/english_diss Part of the English Language and Literature Commons RReeccoommmmeennddeedd CCiittaattiioonn Blue, Timothy R., "Mentor-Teaching in the English Classroom." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2009. doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/1059575 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of English at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in English Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MENTOR-TEACHING IN THE ENGLISH CLASSROOM by TIMOTHY R. BLUE Under the Direction of Elizabeth Burmester ABSTRACT This dissertation is a rhetorical analysis of the theories and practices surrounding student- centered mentor-teaching. I examine textual representations of the teacher/student relationship as well as theories and practices involved in the discursive formation of teacher/student relationships, examining the intersection (or lack thereof) between the ways we as researchers talk about teacher/student relationship formation and the way(s) such relationships form in the “real world” of the English classroom. This institutional critique of teacher/student relationships draws on the works of ancient rhetorical scholars like Quintillian and Socrates, and on the post-1980 scholarship of Robert Connors, Lad Tobin, bell hooks, Paulo Freire, Parker J. Palmer, Mike Rose, Wendy Bishop, Louise Rosenblatt, Jeffrey Berman, and Peter Elbow. These scholars have all provided helpful models for me as I have framed my own beliefs about the value of expressive writing, the usefulness of writing conferences, the need for teacher vulnerability as a model for students’ expressive writing, the appropriateness of various relational settings beyond the classroom, and the ways grading/responding to student writing can either promote or inhibit a trusting student/teacher bond. While all of these scholars have contributed to my own beliefs and ideas, I am merely identifying and classifying pedagogical movements; rather, I am synthesizing these movements’ theories and practices in order to formulate an overall critique of the strengths and weaknesses of the various approaches. I also draw heavily upon the theoretical underpinnings of psychoanalysis, feminism, reader-response criticism, and composition studies to weave together a synthesized working model of mutually beneficial teacher/student relationships as they pertain to the high school and college English classrooms. Ultimately, I suggest my own contributions to the existing scholarship that will call for a mixture of both bolder pedagogical approaches and greater relational caution, depending upon the concept and the student(s) involved. I conclude with suggestions for utilizing teacher research to formulate new theories and practices for mentor-teaching in the English classroom. INDEX WORDS: Composition pedagogy, Literature pedagogy, Reader response, Expressivism, Personal writing, Student-centered teaching, Teacher-student relationships, Mentor-teaching, Mentor, Mentoring MENTOR-TEACHING IN THE ENGLISH CLASSROOM by TIMOTHY R. BLUE A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Arts and Sciences Georgia State University 2009 Copyright by Timothy Ronald Blue 2009 MENTOR-TEACHING IN THE ENGLISH CLASSROOM by TIMOTHY R. BLUE Committee Chair: Elizabeth Burmester Committee: Marti Singer Nancy Chase Jeffrey Berman Electronic Version Approved: Office of Graduate Studies College of Arts and Sciences Georgia State University August 2009 iv DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my students, without whom I would not have the unending drive to come up with new and more effective ways of relating to other individuals through my teaching. At its core, teaching is a human-to-human endeavor, and my teaching is motivated above all else by the relationships this career allows me, even encourages me, to pursue. My own life was changed by the spiritual applicability of the literature I read my junior year at Wake Forest University in a class called Faith and Imagination under the tutelage of Dr. Ralph Wood. While I am deeply grateful to Dr. Wood for teaching this class, my own teaching is driven by a wish that borders on anger that no teacher ever helped me make these connections before that time. I feel that I missed out on so many great learning opportunities in high school and college English classes because none of those teachers pushed me to see the deep intersections between the lessons of literature and my own reality. As such, my dissertation and my entire career are dedicated to helping students see these connections for their own lives, hopefully earlier than I did. Additionally, I am dedicating this dissertation to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In my view, the Trinitarian view of God demonstrates that God is, in effect, a living relationship amongst three parts. Thus, if we are created in His image, we are created for relationships. I believe that He put the passion inside of me for seeing lives changed through relational teaching, and without his calling in my life, I would never have had the drive to finish this degree or to press on with this demanding but rewarding career. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Above all others, I am grateful to my family. I thank my wife, Ann Blue, for the endless hours of sacrifice she has made in making this degree a reality for me. Whether it was my physical absence at the library, my mental absence because I was thinking about some concept and how to integrate it into my research, my emotional absence when I was overwhelmed and drained to the point of near exhaustion, or any other form or absence I can’t identify, she has been as patient as Job and as encouraging a wife as I could ask for. Thank you, my love! I also want to thank my daughter, Ellie Ruth, who was born during my PhD pursuit and who also sacrificed time with her daddy while he was working on this project. I adore you, and I hope you will have many mentor-teachers in your life! Secondly, I want to thank my committee members, Beth Burmester, Marti Singer, Nancy Chase, and Jeff Berman, who have provided guidance and wisdom along the way in so many ways. You are all models of various aspects of mentor-teaching to me, and I guarantee you that I will carry on the torch of outstanding teaching you have passed off to me. I hope our interactions have only just begun! Finally, I want to thank my parents, who have made this dream a reality through their funding. Thank you for valuing education and for believing in me despite all the twists and turns I have taken in figuring out just how to live out my desires for higher education. I hope I can provide the same encouragement and support for my children as you have for me. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS V CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION: THE NEED FOR MENTOR-TEACHERS 1 A New Term: Mentor-Teacher 9 Ancient Models of Mentor-Teaching 12 Modern Examples of Mentor-Teaching 19 The Unique Mentor-Teaching Opportunities of the English Classroom 25 Methods and Methodology 31 Outline of Chapters and Conclusions 39 CHAPTER 2: MENTOR-TEACHERS IN THE COMP CLASSROOM 42 Four Key Benefits of Student-Centered Writing Pedagogy 50 Students’ Voices: Calling for Mentors 59 The Mentor-Teaching Influences of Lad Tobin and Wendy Bishop 62 Composition Assignments: Moving from Theory to Practice 75 Letter Writing between Teachers and Students 81 Mentor-Teaching and Therapeutic Writing Assignments 89 Stories of Composition’s Meaning in Students’ Lives 96 CHAPTER 3: MENTOR-TEACHING IN THE LITERATURE CLASSROOM 107 A Return to Louise Rosenblatt and Reader-Response Criticism 114 Letting Students’ Questions Lead the Way: The Literature Workshop 128 Canonical Literature and Mentor-Teaching 140 Mentor-Teaching and Classroom Discussions about Literature 142 Mentor-Teaching and Writing about Literature 149 vii Conclusions: Literature’s Value for Mentor-Teachers 155 CHAPTER 4: PERSONAS AND PRACTICES OF THE MENTOR-TEACHER 161 Teaching Personas: Learning from Books and Movies 161 Self-Revelations and Mentor-Teaching 177 Conferencing and Mentor-Teaching 185 Evaluation, Grading, and Mentor-Teaching 195 Despite Our Best Intentions 204 CHAPTER 5: A CALL TO ACTION 207 Teacher Research: The Ideal Scholarly Approach for Mentor-Teaching 207 Where Is Teacher Research Most Useful? 211 Conclusions from My Own Teacher-Research on Mentor-Teaching 213 Students’ Views on Mentors’ Roles 215 Students’ Views on What Makes a Class Meaningful 219 The Real-Life Impact of Mentor-Teaching 227 What Students Are Telling Us, If We Will Only Listen 231 WORKS CITED 238 APPENDIX A: WRITING ASSIGNMENT IDEAS 254 APPENDIX B: STORY WRITING AND RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT 257
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