Teaching Freshman Composition: A Modest Proposal

Abstract

A two year college is claimed to have these advantages : ^ more receptively to the educational needs of the community, liberal admission policies, comprehensive course offerings for students of all ages, extensive educa tional counseling, and most importantly, superior instruc tion. To the teacher, the last of these is obviously the most important and also the most questionable Before I state my contentions, I might list my quali fications to discuss the matter. I had always planned to be English teacher. Consequently, my schooling was always with that goal in mind. After I received my pre liminary degrees (A.B., M.A.), I applied for a teaching job. It was somewhat of a shock when I finally realized that these degrees only permitted me to do police duty for the board of education at a local high school, or else to teach freshman composition at one of the so called institutions of higher education. This golden opportunity would be at starvation wages. Since I didn't want to remain forever in the frayed collar class, I took a job as a communications specialist (ghost writer) for a large industrial corporation. In this capacity I wrote speeches, technical film scripts, advertising copy, television commercials, news releases, sales promotional material, technical articles, and any other type of writing that needed to be done. Writing was my vocation, but it was also my avocation as I wrote poems, essays, plays, and short stories, none of which were very commen?ai. Teaching also became my avocation as during this 15 year period I taught a variety of English courses at several four year colleges. Even tually, I returned to teaching on a full time basis at a junior college. Part of my teaching assignment has been freshman composition. My students included those intending to transfer to four year colleges and also those who are termed students, those students taking tech nical courses in electrical, electronic, mechanical, busi ness, medical, dental, or any of a dozen or so other fields. It is not expected that they will transfer or continue on with their schooling at the present time. They will be come technicians. It is my contention that junior college administrators, and English department heads, have taken an unrealistic attitude regarding terminal students and the freshman composition courses they are required to take to get the highly prized Associate degree. They contend that the terminal student should take the regular freshman com position courses. The entire freshman composition pro gram is predicated on the theory of integration and in most cases consists of expository writing. As a theory this has some merit. After all, if the tech nically oriented student is ever required to do any writ ing it will probably be exposition. But administrators fail to realize and chairmen of English departments will not admit that the English department teaching staff unconsciously thwarts the theory. Practically all fresh man composition teachers were English majors in college and want to teach the exotic courses in English and American literature to the superior, gifted, and literary oriented students. But in a junior or community college which has an open door policy only the more politically active teachers get to lecture about Shakespeare and his friends. Most English teachers have to be satisfied with the grand and glorious opportunity of teaching freshman composition classes. Some also get the chance to teach remedial English to the low and slow achievers. These teachers are ill equipped to teach expository writing, are not interested in teaching it, and are disgruntled because they must do so. They may have left high school teaching to get away from this. Now in their teaching they empha size creativity and the subjects they assign are not of a technical nature.