The Fifth Right of Every Writer- The Right to Write Badly

The title of the fifth right initially struck me as odd. The right to write badly seemed ironic to me because in the classroom setting we strive for just the opposite. We desire for our children to become exquisite writers, as perfect as possible. But after reading the author's reasoning for this right, I embrace the right to write badly whole heartedly.

Exquisite writing must be developed, and the best way for this to occur is through practice. With practice comes mistakes, and by making mistakes we learn and better remember some of the most important lessons we ever learn. Therefore, if mistakes inspire crucial lessons, then school should be the place where academic mistakes are expected and acceptable. Mistakes in writing allow writers to grow. If perfect writing is what we expect from our students, then they will write safely, and their writing will not convey the quality we wanted them to achieve. Our student writers will not be willing to take risks and experiment with their creativity because of fear of failure.

For mistakes to be acceptable in the classroom, it is important to assess writing in such a manner that reflects the idea. In all writing, the teacher should focus most of their energy on the positive aspects included in the student's work. Emphasizing these to the student will help them understand which qualities the teacher most likes with out having to reveal which ones are disliked. After receiving praise, the student will continue the aspects of writing for which they received praise and eventually discontinue use of incorrect practices.

Accompanied with the right for students to write badly is the necessity for time to make improvements. If we embrace students' mistakes but pressure them into a restricted time frame, they will resort to safe writing again. Students should be given the freedom to leave a work that they have spent too much time on to return to at a later date. This time away from the work will allow the students to better analyze and revise their creation than if that is requested of them with tired and familiar eyes.

In order to encourage writing badly during writing instruciton, we can focus on proper writing during other areas of instruction. By integrating writing into other subject areas, we provdie students with more practice and a shorter amount of writing for them to more easily concentrate on the proper mechanics. This will boost student confidence in all areas of writing.

A second way to promote student confidence is by keeping writing portfolios to allow students to see the progress they have made over the weeks and months in the school year. Allowing students to have some choice in the works they place in these portfolios will allow them to practice assessing their own writing and will also enhance their confidence.