Then there's the other side of workshop groups. "What if my group doesn't give me any input?" I think what's really helping this time around, is writing down questions you have about your essay at the end and having your group members answer it. I know it's really helped me with the essay we're writing now. I don't want to sit here and give you solutions because I really don't know a good solution for people like that. I'm not an English teacher, but I think writing down questions at the end of your paper is a good start.
How about you?
Do any of you have the problem of getting no input? Can you think of any solutions to fix the problem? Or do you feel like you're the one that can't give any input?
It's hard when you don't receive great input because you have NO idea what to fix on your paper, and to have to do that three times over? It's really challenging. Either my paper truly is A worthy or me and my group members can seem to find the problem lol. It sucks cause it worries me the entire time if I am even doing the paper the right way or if I am following MS. Ahmed's writing rules. Workshopping is great though to help other people with their papers. I personally like reading other people's papers when it is personal stuff because it's always interesting to get on a personal level with someone else.
ReplyDeletei totally agree with the fact that getting input from your peers is sometimes better than just from a teacher. Being in a new group is pretty cool because you get to experience new styles of writing as well as different types of feedback. luckily both groups i have had have done a good job at providing input.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I find it hard to give input during workshops. I'll go home and read the papers struggling to find more things to comment on. The questions did help me find more things to point out to the writer. I like having other people read my paper because they find things that I did not see. If your group still doesn't give you feedback, it is your responsibility to go back and look for things to change or expand on. I also like that we get the chance to read each other's stories and really get to know our classmates.
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ReplyDeleteI have already noticed that my new group helps me with my paper in ways that my old group didn't. I got really comfortable with my last group and I'm beginning to get more comfortable with my new group. I think that time when you give your group your first paper is somewhat nerve racking. You are letting them into the way you think about things or a personal story. You also don't know how they write and if they will judge you on your writing skills. It's intimidating. I do enjoy the groups because I like seeing how other people write their papers. I also like getting the other people's opinions.
ReplyDeleteThe groups help me a lot. I like being able to talk to people and have them explain to me what works and what doesn't work in my papers. This way i can really tell what is going on in someone else's head when they are reading my paper. This gives me a lot of insight on how to correct my work and expand on it. I don't mind the new groups because with such a small class i see no reason why we can't get to at least somewhat "know" what another. I also like the smaller groups, because when i am editing my group members papers i spend more time going threw them, and you also have more time to talk about the papers with one another on workshop days. I haven't had problems getting input from my group members, so that hasn't been an issue for me.
ReplyDeleteI think the groups are a great idea. I really don't think my paper would have become what it is now had I not heard the constructive criticism in my last group. I agree with you about the new groups and not knowing what to expect, but it really helps to meet the classmates you don't already know. I think reading their work offers a different perspective from the student you know in class. Smaller groups are better in my opinion, because I'm more driven to speak. Especially for someone with major stage fright like myself, it can be intimidating to speak in large groups. And as far as not being able to give input, it's a matter of understanding that you aren't being mean, you're simply trying to guide the author on the path to a better paper,
ReplyDeleteI know how you feel. I don't want to come off sounding harsh either so I may not provide as much criticism as I should. But I think the best way to go through with the peer editing is to strike a balance. We should aim to give as much criticism as we can to be helpful, yet also highlight the best parts to give the writer confidence. I find the peer groups to be helpful, and I like that we have smaller groups cause we can spend more time on each paper. I think that it is vital to get others opinion and insight. I need the perspective of others to see the flaws in my paper, so while peer editing may seem tedious at times it is really helpful.
ReplyDeleteAt first workshop groups are a little awkward but after a while things are smooth. When I give advice in workshop I try to find a balance between being critical and being supportive. I think I have done well to give input to my group. The only issue I have occasionally with workshop is that I receive advice not specific enough. At the time it will make sense but when I actually start to correct my paper I'm not sure what to do exactly initially. Besides that workshops have been helpful for me. I hope everyone else is benefitting from it too.
ReplyDeleteI’ve usually gotten pretty good input from my groups. The way I view these groups is probably different from yours though. I see these groups as a small aid to the editing that we should primarily be doing ourselves. I reread my own paper three or four times at least looking for things I could improve. My group helps me out by pointing out changes I could make, but I don’t expect them to be the majority of the input. It’s first and foremost my paper. I do take my groups suggestions into account but I primarily look for things to improve on my own.
ReplyDeleteI find that giving criticism often leads me to find what I need to improve in my own essay. We all make similar mistakes and its very easy to relate your own advice to another student to your own work. The one thing I would like more of moving foward is more input on where I can go directionally in my story, and what I can do to further draw in the reader.
ReplyDeleteI think that criticism is great. It allows you to get feedback from your audience. When you stare at the same paper for hours and hours it is nice to have a fresh pair of eyes take a look. I think we need to be careful on the way we express our criticism and also give complements so that the writer knows where there strong points are. I agree that asking the questions were a smart idea because if you are questioning something about your paper then there probably is a reason for that.
ReplyDeleteI always think I get a lot of input, but usually everyone says the same things about my paper. After I read one workshop and fix my mistakes; I try the other, but it says everything the same! I think everyone in workshops should be assigned a certain part of the paper they need to analyze and critique. That way, everybody will get unique and reinforcing feedback from everyone in their workshop group.
ReplyDeleteWorkshop groups are awesome. I think its so helpful getting your students opinions. I find it hard to give my opinion though. Who am I to judge someone else's story? I try to pick at word phrasing and sentence structure a lot so I can avoid being mean. I think that when I write a comment saying, "change this" or "take this out" I’m offending the person. I also find myself looking for stuff to write so I can have more on the paper. I’m worried that Ill get a bad process grade for not having enough comments or something. I usually have a lot to say but these last drafts were hard to pick at. What do you guys think about writing comments? Is it easy? or hard?
ReplyDeleteI honestly really enjoy having workshop groups. It is really good to have your peers edit your paper because everyone likes different things. Therefor everyone would give different comments. Some help, and some dont. But I really like having that criticism. I know I need it. The workshhop groups have helped me improve my writing a lot. I also enjoy having Ms. Ahmed comment on our paper during the conferences. Having our peers and her edit the papers makes them even better. She finds things that should be fixed that some of us normally wouldnt. Sometimes I have encountered a comment that doesnt help me at all but that just makes me have to edit my paper myself. Which is also a good thing to learn.
ReplyDeleteWorkshopping for me is an extremely helpful thing we do in class. I love getting feedback, negative or positive. Anything helps me fix my paper and try to improve it. I like our smaller groups better now because it allows me to discuss into further depth with my group members about how I feel about their essays and getting tips about what they feel about my essay. The questions we had to write at the end was a help too. I was doubting a few things about my essay so I was glad to be able to get good concrete answers that were written down on my paper. If I didn't receive this help from my classmates, I don't think I would be able to improve my papers because I myself have no idea what to fix at first.
ReplyDeleteI really like the small groups better. I feel like we can spend more time on each paper during our workshop groups. Also I put more effort into each paper when I am reviewing them. In my first workshop group we did not really know how to workshop a paper so it was not that helpful. My second workshop group I find to be really helpful.
ReplyDeleteWork shopping has helped me out a lot. There is a a certain way to mark ones paper though. The goal is to give positive feedback without being to critical. This helps with keeping the author optimistic about their work but also gives them the help they need to take their paper to the next level. My work shop groups have helped me a ton. They were positive with me but still had things to say. This gave me a positive outlook on my paper and encouraged me to fix the things that they needed me to correct.
ReplyDeleteI find it very hard to give input to people I barely know! Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that all the papers suck and that I just want to write horrible things. But basically, it is harder for me to express my opinions to people I'm not already comfortable with. I think posting the questions at the end of our essays was most definitely helpful though. I always have questions as I write my essay that I need answered. I can never make up my mind about things so it definitely helps for others to give you their feedback!
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