Comparison of texts - How to teach essay writing

How to teach: English - Chris Curtis 2019

Comparison of texts
How to teach essay writing

I am pretty short for a man. Think of Curley in Of Mice and Men but with less curls, less aggression and fewer gloves. I know I am pretty short for a man because lots of people, especially men, generally look down on me (and I don’t mean figuratively). My understanding of shortness comes from the relationship between my own height and other points of reference. Now, I am not hung up about my height,4 but I use it as an example to show how one’s understanding is linked to external reference points. That’s why we should constantly be getting students to look at their own work and see the relationship with other pieces. I do feel, however, that peer assessment doesn’t help with this.

Peer assessment often seems to involve a student conjuring up a judgement from nowhere. They usually have insufficient experience to form any decent analytical idea as to whether the work is good or not. All too often they opt for glib comments on how the spelling needs improving or how they like the way the student has used punctuation. When students compare their work with another’s, then you get more fruitful pieces of assessment. I have read millions of pieces of writing, so when I look at one I have clear ideas about what a typical student should be producing. My assessment and judgement has a basis. Students don’t have that knowledge, but shoving two examples together helps them to see if X is better than Y. Then the peer discussion can be about why X is better than Y, but also what Y does better than X. The relationship between the pieces can be explored and fruitful comparisons can be made.

Putting comparative elements together in lessons is crucial for developing a picture in students’ heads of how texts can differ. By comparing two texts, students can see different angles or approaches.

The following is an example using a single sentence, but I usually use a longer text with a class.

Student example: The writer makes Lady Macbeth a mean character to create tension.

Teacher example: Lady Macbeth is used by Shakespeare to show audiences the potential for ruthlessness that Macbeth has.

When comparing the two examples, you might pick up on the following in the teacher piece:

✵ Change in subject — Lady Macbeth to the writer.

✵ Emphasis on the choice rather than the writer.

✵ Change in verb — ’used’ rather than ’makes’.

✵ Uses ’Shakespeare’ rather than ’the writer’.

✵ Makes reference to the audience.

✵ Longer answer.

The great thing about using examples as points of comparison is that it draws attention to what the student has done and makes them reflect on the writing process. I always start with the following sentence stems:

Mine’s better because …

The example is better than mine because …

The key to this is the relationship with the text. That’s why I am prone to writing at the same time as students and then showing my work on the board. Examples shown at the start of the process are good, but I think that they are even more important at the end. Students need to make mistakes and learn from them. Again, this is another way to promote dialogue about writing.