The author, Natalie Wexler is a one of the founders of the board of trustees for the Writing Revolution. In her article, Why Americans Can 't Write, with the advent of email, writing ability has become more important than ever, and writing deficiencies have become increasingly apparent. The writing skills have been lacking in America, and the reason is because schools have only 24% of the students in eighth and 12th grades were proficient in writing and just 3% were advanced. The exercise doesn 't provide kids with the tools they need to write analytically. The standards in middle and in high schools teachers expect students to know things.
The desire to change and inspire is a part of most people; sometimes it is because of our natural selfishness, and other times it is because we truly care for others and their ideas. The power of words is compelling; not because it forces you to do something, but because it forces you to think of something. Writing is the ultimate messenger, and it is a skill that some spend their lives perfecting. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was written from a solitary cell in Birmingham, Alabama. He had been arrested while participating in a peaceful anti-segregation march in 1963.
Lastly, she reflects how physical writing gave the “at risk” students a voice for the first time. Analysis The apparent audience for Anna Quindlen’s essay is those interested in the movie “Freedom Writers,” and those interested in how writing impacts our lives.
Although many scholars debate the levels of literacy in the Ancient world, the Vindolanda tablets do provide evidence of written eloquence in writing, and even more surprisingly, evidence of women writing. This in itself is a testament to Latin notions of literacy where (elite) women were just as capable of literacy as men. Specifically, Vindolanda tablet 291 contains a letter to Silpicia Lepidina from Claudia Severa, wife of Aelius Brocchus, who is sending an invitation to a dinner party for Severa’s birthday. The elegant script is marked by a high level of formality, such as ‘For the day of the celebration of my birthday, I give you a warm invitation to make sure you come to us, to make the day more enjoyable for me’. The ‘warm invitation’
In her essay "Does Texting Affect Writing?", Michaela Cullington presents her argument that texting does not impact formal writing written by students. She discusses the concerns presented by many people about how texting language can transfer into writing, but through the use of personal experiences and credible sources she discusses how this is not true. Her use of multiple different studies and situations help boost her argument and allow the reader to truly see how students actually do formal writing. She presents a strong argument as to why those who believe students don't have the control and knowledge to write formally, instead of with text speak, are wrong.
All of these factors combine and work well together to form a well-executed argument within Cullington’s essay. Cullington begins her essay by addressing her opposition: “It’s taking over our lives” (pg. 361). She cites studies done that suggest that a decline in the quality of students’ formal writing has occurred since the advent of text messaging, and she also cites teachers who believe that their own students’ works are influenced for the worse by the students’ being accustomed to texting and using textspeak. Cullington then proposes her opposing position that the writing of students is unaffected by their use of texting and text speak. She also cites studies that support her thesis that text messaging and textspeak do not have an effect on
Queen Elizabeth’s rule sported a new humanistic culture and higher literacy rates in England that have not been seen before with previous ruling monarchs. According to Elizabethan England, more books and pamphlets were published in England. This is caused by a growth in printing which in turn means books could be made for less money and significantly less time. The sheer amounts of books now being produced allows cheaper and easier access to books for everyone. With more access to books, literacy rates were able to increase such as the yeomen who “were illiterate at the start of Elizabeth’s reign but literate by its end” (177).
Not So Fast” Andrea Lunsford researched students’ writing for 30-plus years to see what effect new technology has on how students learn. Lunsford discovered that students are actually improving their own writing skills with the help of mass media. Not only does it allow students more access to educational resources and information, but it also encourages students to do more creative thinking and writing outside of class which Lunsford refers to in her article as “life writing.” In her research she recalls the account of a student who sent a friend a text message which was completely informal and would be considered unprofessional by most piers. However, the same student also sent a very formal and professional report to her faculty adviser later on.
“Should everybody write” is the question that is argued throughout the article Should Everybody Write by Dennis Baron. Baron, an English professor at the University of Illinois, incorporates essay styled writings in correspondence to English problems faced in today’s world. His main concern in this essay is to demonstrate to his audience a proper answer to the argued statement and uses rhetorical strategies throughout his article to support his claims. The use of tone is incorporated when he discusses the context of writing history. His purpose in this article is discussed using his strong sense of logic and he also conveys to his audience’s emotions to caution them on their own writing or writing fears.
As a college student, Emily Vallowe wrote a literacy narrative with a play on words title: “Write or Wrong Identity.” In this work, she told the story of how she believed her confidence as a writer developed; however, she was becoming dubious as to her distinctiveness as an author. Although I have never been a self-proclaimed wordsmith as Ms. Vallowe obviously had been for years, I related to her journey. Not only did she grow up in Northern Virginia like I did, she never considered herself an inept writer—a possibility that I could not fathom about myself. Then, at some point, we both began to question our own ability and to question who we really were.
Not So Fast”, conducts her own study with a few colleagues to take notes on how students writing skills are changing. She decides to conduct another one twenty five years later to see how much the writing skills have changed since technology has been updated and became more available to students. She found that “students today are writing more than ever before.” Although we still have the same amount of writing errors as before, the patterns of errors are different. Many people argue that technology is only making our writing skill worse, this study helps to prove a different theory.
In chapter 10 of Everyone’s an Author, the main idea is that when writing a report, you must present facts, but not your own opinions as facts. The chapter emphasizes that, when writing a report, it is important to present information in an unbiased, factual manner, even if doing so may prove to be difficult. To summarize, the chapter’s main purpose is to offer instructions on writing an objective and credible report. First, a writer must determine what type of report they are writing – be it for an academic field, for media, or even a community. After identifying the media type you will be writing for, the chapter then suggests reviewing a list of characteristics their report must have.
Do you know that Shakespeare is not the only gifted writer in his family? This mysterious member exists in the English writer Virginia Woolf’s imagination. In her famous essay “Shakespeare’s Sister,” Woolf uses the hypothetical anecdote of Judith Shakespeare as her main evidence to argue against a dinner guest, who believes that women are incapable of writing great literature. During the time when Judith is created, women are considered to be naturally inferior to men and are expected to be passive and domestic. Regarding her potential audience, educated men, as “conservative,” Woolf attempts to persuade them that social discouragement is the real cause of the lack of great female writers without irritating them by proposing “radical” arguments.
Towards becoming a writer -------------------------------- I promised myself that I will learn a new skill this year. I resolve to learn how to write with purpose.
The review analyses the current ‘learning by visual stimulations’ against ‘kinesthetic physical learning’ debate and the push to keep cursive in school education. The paper reflects on if the positive attributes associated with cursive writing are still valid enough for mainstream education and communication in the 21st century. Cursive Handwriting In The 21st Century Communication and expression are important facets of humanities constant search for new ways of enhancing day to day experiences.