Responding to Characterizations of Teen Motherhood
Beyond a material response to the letter, the students’ letter to the editor also responds to the way they, as a group, feel that society has characterized them as teen mothers. The students’ letter clearly seeks to challenge the view that early motherhood ultimately hinders future academic success. At the same time, the students’ letter voices a desire for acceptance by society. Moving back and Omega Seamaster Replica forth between strong assertions and pleas for nonjudgmental suggests that Affiliated Alternatives students are responding to multiple views about teen mother-hood that they know exist in the larger society.
On an interesting note, Kubek does not respond to multiple views concerning teen mother-hood. His letter espouses ideologies that find fault with the girls themselves, the school’s response to the girls, and the way society responds to the issue of teen pregnancy. As a result of these views, Kubek is unable to take on the students’ point of view. His letter is one-dimensional and argues only his point. Though his letter is in dialogue with his view of teen motherhood, he fails to respond to multiple perspectives on the issue.
Affiliated Alternatives students’ letter to the editor has several implications for future writing instruction not just with students deemed as being “at risk,” but with all students. In drawing attention to both Kubek’s letter to the editor and the students’ letter to the editor, I have highlighted the ways in which Affiliated Alternatives students are able to view their writing as purposeful and meaningful. Through an examination of the students’ letter, it is clear that the students were able to make and sup-port claims that are complex and multidimensional. Through the process of crafting their letter, they were able to position themselves in dialogue with Kubek as well as in dialogue with societal views concerning teen motherhood.
Looking closely at this particular writing activity demands that educators examine the ways all students respond to more than just the “formal,” dictated curriculum. As shown in this example, opportunities such as writing a letter to the editor exist as crucial sites for educators’ examination, as these are the authentic activities that frequently stress student “action” and response in the class-room. Further, the writing and publishing of the letter is itself evidence that curriculum in the Tag Heuer Replica Watches English classroom can engage students in responding to “real” events in the world that concern them. Contrary to participating in a “basic skills”focused curriculum, the activity of writing a letter to the editor prompted Affiliated Alternatives students to engage in much more than rote memorization or remedial-type skills. Calling attention to the success of such authentic writing activities, like those highlighted through this ex-ample, can assist us, as educators, in refiguring dominant models of instruction for those students who are frequently labeled most “at risk.”
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