Dear Editor:
As a teacher of writing at two colleges in Hudson County, my interest in motivating my students to write coincides with my own desire to grow as a writer. It makes sense to me that in order to teach a subject well, you need to be passionate about it yourself. Unfortunately, too many of our schools are filled with teachers who don’t write, or who hate to write, trying in vain to get their students to write. The folly of this should be self-evident. (Imagine trying to learn carpentry from someone who was allergic to wood and nails!) Not to mention, the rigid curriculums most schools are tied to, increasingly dominated by high stakes testing, and drill-and-kill exercises that bore everyone to death, only make matters worse. That is, unless your parents are wealthy and send you to an elite private academy like Phillips Exeter (the prep school for Harvard), where teachers are trusted and given the freedom to bring in their own materials.
My solution to this problem is to write more. In particular, I’d like to write about my craft of teaching. I’d like to write to discover and illuminate aspects of my lived world as a teacher, to better make sense of how my craft is evolving. I’d like to write to imagine a better world too, both in and outside my classrooms. A world in which people are more loving to one another, less afraid to reach out and connect. A world where the terrible silences can start to be mended, where healing and transformation might occur.
I find that the more I write, the better I feel about writing — which makes it easier to create enthusiasm for writing in my classrooms. So far my published works are limited to a dozen or so letters-to-the-editor of this paper, to which I’m grateful. Each one of these letters was special to me, an attempt to make meaning and to share that meaning with others in the community, creating openings for dialogue. Now, though, I’m ready to move forward and reach out to a larger audience. Because I’m not exactly sure how to do this, I’d like to invite others to join me on this quest. I’d like to work with others because it’s more fun and less lonely.
So here’s the crux of this letter: I propose the creation of a writer’s workshop for teachers. Once a month we’ll meet to share a piece of writing that’s somehow connected to our teaching — an essay, poem, or even a short work of fiction. In a safe and supportive space, we’ll share our work and offer constructive feedback. We’ll allow our written work to create openings for dialogue and storytelling about our craft. We’ll help each other search for publishing venues for our work, and if we can’t find any, we’ll dare to imagine creating our own magazine — or even talk show. Along the way we’ll laugh, have fun, make new friends, and keep each other inspired in our teaching.
For all who are interested, my number is 201-792-0085. Thank you for your time.
Collegially,
John Bredin