Week Four- RED Pen Controversy and My Proposed Solution

For those of us who observed Tyler Livingston's classroom at Crosswinds, the Fulwiler and Harper articles make perfect sense. We watched in awe as Tyler helped students revise their papers using comments made in neat graphic drawings. Students were able to understand the meaning and importance of detail in much clearer terms (snapshot, exploding a scene). This approach to revising papers worked magnificently in Tyler's writing workshops, and seemed to carry a wide range of benefits for a variety of writing abilities. Fulwiler and Harper affirm my Crosswinds observations.

In contrast, editing for grammar seems to carry a lot of controversy these days. Those teachers who once owned stock in red pen companies now find themselves bankrupt. Educators throughout the disciplines charge RED with carrying negative connotations for students. The use of RED seems to negate student motivation, leading to lowered levels of writing engagement. But the red pen shareholders do not go quietly into the night. In “Papers, Papers, Papers”, teachers are encouraged to “make the page bleed” with red pen corrections.

This debate can be muddled further with the question: What are we correcting in RED?

For me the answer lies in the process of revising and editing. Drafts are meant to be imperfect. If writing is truly a process, then the method of revising and editing must also carry a degree of steps. I believe that correcting grammar, spelling, and punctuation is important. However, in the writing process, this should be the last step. Students need to have solid ideas and organization throughout the paper before worrying about the correct use of “its vs it's” (that one seems to stop me in my writing tracks every time).

So here's my proposed solution. Students should first read their writing out loud (this alone will alleviate a great degree of these Level I, II, and III grammar mistakes that Dornan references). After this, the following draft revisions should focus on ideas, structure of argument, and descriptions. Students should receive feedback on these concepts from both teachers and peers. I recommend friendly blues or purples for these revisions. The RED pen should be brought out as the teacher reviews the last rough draft. During this revision, grammar and spelling errors missed by the student or computer processing would be corrected. In this sense, the RED pen denotes a level of distinction. The student's work has neared completion, and only needs minor changes to complete the academic writing process. Final drafts of work should be revised/commented in green (only because it's one of my favorite colors). This solution spreads the wealth between the color wheel, while transforming RED into the new pink.

Read an interesting narrative by a tutor struggling with Red Pen Neurosis. It gets you thinking about your role as a teacher in the writing process:
http://www.uwsp.edu/tlc/TLC%20Publications/handbookPDFs/Red%20Pen%20Neurosis.pdf