What has caught my attention especially Randy's message is that a "real"
audience can address or be more sensitive to "writing" as apposed to writing
(technical). One example, awhile ago on this thread there was a posting
about students sending social action letters to a newspaper and an editorial
ocurred in which the students, teachers, and school were verbally assulted
for the writing not "writing". While the activity may have been writing
from the teacher or student perspective it was simply "writing" and nothing
more from the editor's perspective. This of course made national attention
and being pushed the editor acknowedged the student's writing was not much
different from other writing he received. When he received letters from
other writers it was the "writing" that was the main focus, but since these
were students it was the writing that came to the forefront. This was
expressed very clearly in that the editor published the articles "as is"
rather than edit them as he did for all the other letters he received. He
argued this on ethical grounds in that it would be unethical to edit their
writings and cover up the incompentency of teachers, students, and schools.
I guess my point is the discussion has primarily been at the context and
teacher-student level where it seems these issues go a lot farther. Can we
really make literacy practices in school like work or any other context,
there are different objects and histories involved. I guess this is my
frustration with concepts like "authentic" and "real" in the first place
because it positions literacy outside of school as the "authentic" or
"real". I think Paul P. is right when he refers to school as a tertiary
artifact. As a tertiary artifact it is often the writing not the "writing"
that is more "authentic" or "real". Don't take this as argueing that since
writing is more authentic it should be the primary focus, but rather like it
or not students, teachers, and schools are positioned in particular ways
that make it an "authentic" reality. If one is a student, teacher, or school
your writing is judged, positioned, and normalized in ways that do not occur
in contexts such as work. If a student or teacher writes something for a
larger audience it is not and never can be the same context as someone
outside of that tertiary artifact.
Nate
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