by Melissa Gomes
I have had the rare privilege of getting to both take the writing-intensive class in linguistics as an undergraduate student and now assist teaching the same course as a graduate student. My first experience with the Writing Intensive Program (WIP) was three years ago as an undergraduate linguistics major taking LING 3150: Generative Syntax. I had heard the class was a lot of writing, but I had no idea what WIP was or what the ideas or motivations behind the program were. Nonetheless, I was soon completely sold on the design of the course.
Writing gave me a sense of ownership over the material, rather than simply restating what has been told to me in lectures.
While it was a lot of work, I felt like I was being invited to participate in my own learning in a way I never had before. There was no textbook, no one telling me exactly what to think, and no mindless regurgitation of information. In class, we worked together to confront aspects of language and build our understanding of syntax around it. Rather than telling us all the answers, we were guided to those same conclusions ourselves through discovery learning. The writing-intensive aspect of the course was realized through the homework assignments that were to be written up as stand-alone essays. I was writing more in that one semester than I probably had for the entirety of college career up to that point, but I loved it. I loved getting to explore the ideas presented in class through my writing. Writing gave me a sense of ownership over the material, rather than simply restating what has been told to me in lectures. I finished the course having found my new favorite way to learn—through discovery learning and writing.
So naturally, I was ecstatic when I learned that I would get to TA the class that I enjoyed so much as a student. During TA training before the semester had started, I was formally introduced to the WIP program and its principles—one of which was writing as a means of learning. I learned that writing can be used as a tool for learning. Through writing, students can think through their argument and even develop a deeper understanding of their own thoughts in the goal of presenting those ideas coherently to a reader. It really clicked for me why I enjoyed the class so much, and I was excited to help students reach those same satisfying levels of understanding and accomplishment. I thought that since I had taken the class as an undergrad and have continued to study syntax as a graduate student, I knew everything I needed to know about the class. However, being the TA has been like looking at the flip side of the same coin.
I had reaped the benefits of WIP principles in action, but I now needed to understand how to sow those principles into the course so that my students would reap those same benefits. I was very familiar with my side of the coin as a student, and I thought that meant that I understood the entire coin. Having taken the course as a student has proven to have both pros and cons. On the one hand, I understand well the process of discovery and learning the students are undergoing, but on the other hand, I only know the process from my own experience and often times my students have very different experiences. As a student, I always loved writing, and I loved the design of the course immediately. However, my students exhibit an array of different learning styles, attitudes about writing, and places in their development as writers. As a TA, I’ve learned how to give effective feedback for each individual student’s writing and ways I can interact with my students to best help them get the most out of the course from where they are.
Syntax is my primary area of concentration, and a huge part of my future career goals is not only being able to produce valuable research, but also to educate the next generation of linguists. Syntax is a subject that is difficult to teach purely from a more traditional approach of lecturing and then giving a test. The course design of the writing-intensive syntax courses is so conducive to the nature of syntax, I cannot imagine teaching syntax any other way. Incorporating writing as a major aspect of the course allows students to internalize and show mastery of the material through their writing.
Incorporating writing as a major aspect of the course allows students to internalize and show mastery of the material through their writing.
Getting to serve as the WIP TA for these syntax classes has largely benefited my abilities as a student, a writer, and an educator in my field. I have deepened my own understanding of both syntactic theory and the writing process through serving as the writing coach to my students. I also feel equipped with pedagogical principles to guide my teaching in the future. The Writing Intensive Program has been a meaningful part of my education throughout my time at the University of Georgia, and I can only hope that my contribution as a WIP TA will allow my students a similarly meaningful experience.