Download Noteboom Lindsay Noteboom Dr. Marty Knepper Teaching Writing

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Lindsay Noteboom
Dr. Marty Knepper
Teaching Writing
14 October 2010
Former Student, Future Teacher: My Interview with Danielle Panowicz
As I opened the doors to South Sioux City High School, I was immediately taken back to
a familiar place. The white walls, windows, and glass cases decorated with red and black, the
school’s colors, seemed to awaken my inner “Cardinal.” It had only been about three short
years since I roamed the same halls as a high school senior, and I could not help but feel like a
student again filled with school pride and ready to learn. In a way, I was going back as a student.
I was going back to learn not how to be a better student, but how to be a teacher, more
specifically, a teacher of writing.
I weaved my way through the peculiar hexagonal layout of the English department until I
came to the room where I had spent one semester in composition class. If I was going to learn
anything about how to teach high school writing, I would learn it in this particular room from
this particular teacher, and this teacher was Mrs. Danielle Panowicz.
Mrs. Panowicz has been a writing teacher for nearly eleven years, the majority of which
has been at South Sioux City High School. Because South Sioux has a block schedule with
ninety minute classes, Mrs. Panowicz only has three classes: American Literature 2, English 2,
and Composition 1. Although the ages of the students in these classes can vary, she mainly
teaches students who are sophomores, juniors, and seniors and has as many as thirty-five
students in one classroom.
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Mrs. Panowicz, a Morningside College graduate who originally planned on going into
pre-law, realized that her passion was in teaching English and received her teaching and
coaching certification at Briar Cliff University and her Master of Education degree at Wayne
State College. When asked about who inspired her to develop her philosophy and methods, she
claimed, “My high school English teachers and my college professors because they were so
excited to be teaching.” Mrs. Panowicz generates this same positive classroom environment.
Motivating students is difficult, but Mrs. Panowicz says, “You have to be excited to read their
papers. Even if you have a lot to do, you have to make sure they know that their writing is
important.” Letting the students know the teacher is invested in their writing helps tremendously
when it comes to motivating students to learn. Also, Mrs. Panowicz asserts that students have to
have more at risk than a simple grade. In her Composition I class, the students have to create a
project, write a paper, and present it to the principal and new superintendent. By bringing in the
principal and superintendent to the classroom, the students are more motivated to do well
because people in authority, other than the teacher, are going to be listening.
Creating assignments that students are invested in is important, and one way of doing this
is by assigning fun, new, and interesting projects. One of Mrs. Panowicz’s favorite writing
projects she assigns is called “Unsolved Mysteries.” In this assignment, students research a
mystery that has never been solved, and in many cases, they are unsolved murders. Mrs.
Panowicz says that this is a great assignment because the students “really get into it.” The
students become the detectives, researching the background of the victim, the day of the crime,
the evidence, and different theories. They are determined to solve the mystery, and that is an
enormous motivation for students.
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With all the discussion on writing assignments, the conversation quickly turned to
grading papers and the paper load. When asked about the paper load, Mrs. Panowicz jokingly
rolled her eyes and exclaimed, “I have a whole stack at my desk right now!” With around eighty
students and a whole hour and half per period to fill with writing, I do not doubt that her paper
load is heavy. However, Mrs. Panowicz believes that keeping a steady pace while grading the
papers helps to keep the frustration down. She will not let herself do more than five papers in
one setting. Otherwise, she says she begins to become irritated with the papers and the grading
suffers because of it. Mrs. Panowicz suggests always using a rubric and sharing the rubric with
the students beforehand so that they know what to expect.
Besides the rubric, Mrs. Panowicz notes how important it is to take students’ feelings
about their writing into consideration when grading. She says, “Kids take their writing very
personally, so be careful what you say and how you write certain things. It is better to make
suggestions and not demands.” When grading, she writes quite a lot of comments on the
students’ papers but never writes in red pen because of the negative feeling that students get from
seeing their papers marked all in red ink. Although Mrs. Panowicz does mark the students’
mistakes as she grades, she said it is also immensely important to always write something
positive. This reinforcement also helps to motivate the students and shows them that their work
is valued.
When the interview was finished, I began thinking more and more about what she had
said. Motivation is crucial when it comes to students and their writing. If there is no motivation,
many of the students will not see the point in writing. Generating a positive classroom
environment, creating fun and interesting projects, providing an incentive besides a grade, and
constantly offering positive reinforcement on student writing are all examples of ways to
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motivate students. When I begin teaching, I will try my best to get to know each of my students
individually and to be excited about their writing. As a teacher, I need to show the students my
own enthusiasm, not just for writing, but for learning in general. One of the most influential
parts of the interview did not come from what Mrs. Panowicz said, but how she talked about
teaching. Her passion for teaching is apparent in the way she speaks about it and in the way she
interacts with her students. I know that I have the passion to teach inside me, and I cannot wait
for the chance to begin teaching. I hope that one day I can influence at least one student the way
Mrs. Panowicz has influenced me.
As I walked out of the high school, a strange feeling came over me. I realized that my
days as a student are numbered as my career as a teacher draws near. I will never return to South
Sioux City High School as a student; rather, I will return as a teacher-in-training. Although I
will someday cease to be a full-time student, I will never stop learning, and like Mrs. Panowicz, I
will never stop encouraging students to learn.
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Interview Questions
1. How long have you taught?
2. What ages/levels of writers do you teach?
3. What type of classes do you teach? What type of writing occurs in these classes?
4. How did you learn how to teach writing? Courses? Experimentation? Reading?
5. What kind of writing do you do yourself?
6. Who or what influenced you the most as you developed your philosophy and methods?
7. What strategies do you use to handle to paper load?
8. How do you usually grade papers? Do you use a rubric? What elements does your rubric
include?
9. What is your favorite writing assignment that you assign?
10. How do you motivate students to write?
11. How involved are parents with student writing/student grades?
12. How do you handle technology
13. What is your best experience teaching writing?
14. How do you deal with the issue of writer choice of topic, style, etc. versus providing a
structure for the writing?
15. How do you generate a positive classroom climate that is conducive to student writing?
16. Does South Sioux mandate certain writing practices such as 6 Traits or assessment rubrics?
17. What lessons have you learned over the years as you have taught writing?