Sommers - Revision Strategies of Student Writers and Experienced Adult Writers
Summary
Sommer’s lecture called Revision Strategies of Student Writers and Experienced Adult Writers starts with words of the author, “The reason for this, I suspect, is that current models of writing process have directed attention away from revision (378).” Then she names two types of models, the first one, “Gordon Rohman’s… that the composing process moves from prewriting to writing (378)”; the second model, “James Britton’s model of the writing process as a series of stages described in metaphors of linear growth, conception – incubation-production (378).” After Sommer wrote about the models that directed attention away from revision, she started talking about the linear model , she said, “The linear model bases itself on speech in two specific ways… it is based on traditional rhetorical models and the stages of composition… the process represented in the linear model is based on the irreversibility speech (378-379).” She continues talking about the linear model, “What the linear models do produce is a parody of writing.” Then she recalls, “What is impossible in speech is revision (379).” Nancy Sommer realized a research for 3 years in which she examined the revision process of student writers and experienced writers, during this process she redefined the revision process as, “A sequence of changes in a composition – changes which are initiated by cues and occur continually throughout the writing of a work (380).” Then she explained why she used the terms student writers and experienced writers, “Because the principal difference between these two groups is the amount of experience they have had in writing (380).” Then she said, “The predominant concern in these definitions is vocabulary.” She said, “Students understand the revision process as a rewording activity.” When she finished with the student writers she recall, “Changes are made in compliance with abstract rules about the product, rules that quite often do not apply to specific problems in the text… students see their writing altogether passively through the eyes of former teachers (383).” Then Nancy Sommer continued with the experienced writers and they define revising as their primary objective, “Finding the form or shape of their argument (384).” Then she mentioned that experienced writers said, “A first draft are scattered attempts to define their territory and in the second draft is to begin observing general patterns of development (384).” Then she said how the experienced writers reacted, “The experienced writers seek to discover meaning in the engagement with their writing, in revision (386).” Based on her research she finalized writing, “Good writing disturbs: it creates dissonance. Students need to seek the dissonance of discovery, utilizing in their writing, as the experienced writers do, the very difference between writing and speech- the possibility of revision (387).” |
Synthesis
Revision Strategies of Student Writers and Experienced Adult Writers was written by Nancy. In this lecture she compares students writing with experienced writers. It is very interesting how the student writers and the experienced adult differ from their point of view of revision strategies. The experienced writers tried to find form to their writing when revising and they seek for engagement. The student writers did not liked the word revising they said it would be better to be called rewording. One problem student writers usually had during the research was vocabulary, the students do not try to expand their vocabulary, and adult experienced writers do, they try to persuade with their vocabulary. Thinking that the vocabulary problem is not only a problem in this research is a problem with most of the students. Differing on how the students called revision, it is not only a rewording activity it is also about sentence structure and making sense. I agree with Nancy Sommer ending words, “Good writing disturbs: it creates dissonance. Students need to seek the dissonance of discovery, utilizing in their writing, as the experienced writers do, the very difference between writing and speech- the possibility of revision (387).” As a student writer we are capable of discovering and creating new things, we need to change and use these capabilities to persuade writting as an experienced writer. |