The Accidental Tutor

Don't Panic!

2012-02-03T03:33:00.000-08:00

The first rule of writing is Don't Panic!

When a writer gets stuck on something, she can sometimes panic, and obsess over what she's stuck on. Although it's sometimes not easy to apply, there's an simple remedy for getting stuck: work on something else. If you're stuck on the hook or introduction, work on the thesis statement. If you're stuck on the thesis statement, work on summarizing your research. If you're stuck on the argument, just write what you think. Remember, you do not have to compose an essay in the same order that it will be read. You can start anywhere and jump around as you please.

There are a few elements of an essay that don't absolutely have to be terrific, notably the hook and the conclusion. You might lose a couple of points, but I don't think anyone ever got a B on what would otherwise be an A paper just because the hook was weak or the conclusion stereotypical. If these elements are bothering you, you can leave them until near the end of the writing process; if you run out of time, you can just phone them in.

You need to end up with a thesis statement, and it eventually needs to be good, but you don't need to start with a good thesis statement. The thesis statement is a one- or two-sentence declaration of your position. If you're having trouble with your thesis statement, you can try starting with something vague: "I agree with Ralph Nader." "I disagree with George W. Bush." "Global warming is bad." "The gold standard is good." You can even go with something equivocal: "I'm not sure whether we should or should not teach New Math to elementary school students." You'll want to revise your thesis statement later, but some focus is better than no focus at all.

If you're really stuck, there's a lot you can do without any sort of thesis statement at all. You should have at least a topic, so you can start by just writing down what you think about that topic. Don't worry about spelling, grammar, punctuation. Don't worry about structure, organization, or coherence. If you can do nothing else, getting words down on paper that are even vaguely related to your topic is better than a blank page.

Writing is thinking: the act of translating your mental state to written words on paper or on the computer actually changes what you think of the subject matter. If you find yourself not writing, write something. Anything!

The five-paragraph essay

2012-01-27T06:05:00.000-08:00

A lot of English teachers absolutely loathe the five-paragraph essay. The form is unoriginal, stifling, and most of all boring. And they are, of course, correct. The five-paragraph essay — an introductory paragraph with a hook, background, and thesis statement plus essay map; three body paragraphs with a topic sentence, supporting details and concluding sentence; and a concluding paragraph that restates the thesis and argument — gives the writer no opportunity to surprise or delight the discerning reader with her mastery of form. Just as there are few if any enduring works of classical music that slavishly follow the sonata form, an essay that strictly follows the five-paragraph form cannot rise above mediocrity. But because it offers students a starting point, makes explicit the elements required for a successful expository essay, and provides a structure that can be usefully employed when brilliance is impractical or unnecessary, the five-paragraph form, if used judiciously, can be a valuable tool for the instruction of English composition.

There is a time in each student's life when she first begins to organize her thoughts in a coherent manner. Not knowing how to do a task "right" commonly causes anxiety in any endeavor, including English composition. The five-paragraph form allows a student to focus on her thoughts about a subject without worrying about how to present those thoughts. We can assure the student that (at least for now) the five-paragraph form is one "right" way to present her thoughts. Once she has become proficient in thinking coherently, she can move on to presenting her thoughts with greater subtlety of style.

However presented, almost every expository essay must contain specific elements. A writer must engage the reader, provide context and background, inform the reader of what her opinion is, argue her opinion, and explain and support her argument with facts and details. The five-paragraph essay gives an explicit spot for each of these elements. The introductory paragraph engages the reader, provides context, and states the writer's opinion. The body paragraphs argue the thesis in the topic sentences, provide supporting facts and details, and tie the topic sentences back to the thesis. Finally, the concluding paragraph summarizes the thesis and argument; a reader will view as important only those elements the writer emphasizes with repetition. The five-paragraph essay gives a student a way to become proficient in identifying and expressing these elements.

Every writer must sometimes sacrifice style to expediency. The five-paragraph form is perfectly suited, for example, to an in-class essay that must be composed in only an hour. For most writers, excellence of style requires revision, and no one can usefully revise an essay in an hour. Anyone, however, can learn to write a five-paragraph essay in an hour, confident that all the necessary ingredients of exposition will be present. Furthermore, good enough is often good enough. The five-paragraph essay will rarely be excellent, but it will almost always be, at least stylistically, good enough. If a student learns nothing but how to compose a five-paragraph essay in her sleep, she can be successful at many college disciplines.

We must achieve mediocrity before we can aspire to excellence. The mediocrity of the five-paragraph form is its strength, not its weakness. Instructors would not, of course, do justice to English composition by teaching the five-paragraph form as the acme of style and organization, but it gives the inexperienced and anxious student a starting point, and it makes clear and direct the necessary elements of exposition. Students "destined" for brilliance in composition will quickly grow bored with the limitations of the five-paragraph form, and students who prefer to direct their aspirations elsewhere will have a skill that will serve them through not only academia but their professional careers. As a step, the five-paragraph form serves every student well.

It's the student's paper, not tutor's

2011-12-17T06:14:00.000-08:00

Rule #1: It's the student's paper, not the tutor's.

This is the most important rule of all. It's perhaps easiest to see and follow when the student argues a position I completely disagree with. My job is not at all to make sure the student has the right opinions; my job, rather, is to help each student express herself clearly, accurately, and thoroughly, regardless of what opinion she is expressing. (Of course, I have some subtle tricks, chief among them the exhortation to research, cite, quote, and rebut contrary opinions. I won't even suggest a student has the wrong opinion, but I can always help her become better-informed. Also, if I think a student has made an factual error, I will suggest that they carefully research and substantiate the statement.)

This rule is harder to follow, I think, when it comes to matters of rhetorical and expressive style. When the student's meaning is clear, but I think he is expressing himself awkwardly, I proceed with extreme caution. There are a few guidelines that are pretty solid — especially that the end of each sentence has the most impact — but a lot of cases are considerably uncertain. I will often just mark a sentence and ask the student what he thinks about it. If he seems uncertain or hesitant, I'll offer a suggestion, but if he pushes back, if he says he really likes the wording, I'll let it stand.

There are many cases, however, where it seems obvious to me that the student's writing should not be challenged. I remember one student who offered an interesting, if unusual, reason why she enjoyed a work of literature. She had seen another tutor, and the tutor had convinced her to change the reason to something more traditional. I persuaded her to change the reason back to the original. The student is offering her own reasons, not the tutor's. As a tutor, I will point out obvious fallacies, but beyond that, it is up to the instructor, not the tutor, to judge the quality of the reasons.

I exhort both tutors and students. To tutors, remember, it is your job to help the students write what they want, and it's a big enough job to help them write what they want with clarity. And to students, don't let any "expert", be it a tutor or Microsoft Word's grammar checker, tell you what you want to write. It's your name on the top of the paper, no one else's. No matter what the suggested change, make the expert justify the change, and if you are not convinced, keep it the way you want it. Even if it ends up being "wrong", it's better to be wrong on your own merits than right on another's.