My New Book!

My New Book!
My New Book!

Tuesday, December 17, 2024

December 17, 2024: Fall Semester Reflections: First-Year Writing

[I think we could all use some reminders these days of the best of our communities and conversations. So for this year’s Fall Semester reflections series, I wanted to share one moment from each of my classes that embodied those collective goals. I’d love to hear about your Falls in comments!]

I haven’t said much if anything in this space yet about AI, although I will be doing so next week as part of my Year in Review series. As I’m sure everyone reading this knows, it has become a central focus in the world of higher ed, and perhaps especially for those of us teach writing. I’ve actually seen the most use of programs like ChatGPT in my online-only literature courses, where of course all the work is already happening online and where it’s harder to build the kinds of communal respect that allows us to talk together about such fraught topics. I did see a few instances in my First-Year Writing sections this Fall, but what I wanted to highlight here is another product of that mutual respect: when I identified this AI-driven writing with the individual students, they were willing and able to recognize why this wasn’t a good call, to hear my perspective, and to work together with me to help develop their own ideas and writing for these assignments instead. If our job is to teach—and yeah, it sure is—then that’s how we should be approaching AI too, as another moment for teaching and learning and growth.

Next reflection tomorrow,

Ben

PS. Whattaya got?

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