I was a high school English and French teacher for about seven years.
I’ve since left the classroom.
People occasionally ask me,
“What do you miss about teaching?”
You might think it was the excitement of the first day of school. Or the resolution and freedom of the last day of school. Or maybe free days, field trips, or homecoming weeks.
But you’d be wrong.
Instead, my favorite moments happened when I dedicated class periods to independent writing.
The students would come in, be briefed on the writing task (whether new or continued), and then work on it for the remainder of the period.
You might think this sounds like a free day for the teacher, right?
But again, you’d be wrong.
On those days, I walked around the room working with students one-on-one to provide personalized instruction and feedback.
That was what I looked forward to.
I spoke to each student as an empowered equal. We both were writers and readers. We both struggled to communicate clearly. As their teacher and fellow writer, I wanted them to understand that they controlled what they wrote, the flow of the sentences, and possible effect on the reader.
They often asked me “Can I do that? Is that allowed?”
And I replied, “Absolutely! It’s your choice as the writer.”
Somewhere along the road of their educational journey, they’d picked up the idea that the “rules” of writing strip away your voice and confine your options to a tiny, suffocating box. Writing became a chore, something to avoid, something uncomfortable.
I encouraged them to trust their ears and to experiment, to breathe voice and life into their words.
Meanwhile, I served as their guide and writing consultant whom they could rely on for insight, clarity, and understanding.
On those writing days, I felt the most impactful as a teacher. I connected with students one on one, offering them the advice and feedback that they wanted and needed.
And now, at North Carolina Central University, every day is like that for me.
Each day, undergrad and grad students sit down with me in the Writing Studio for guidance along their writing journeys. At the close of each session, they walk away with more than they had imagined.
Some say that they just want basic proofreading to make sure everything “sounds right.” But as the sessions go far beyond proofreading. Just as I did with my high school students, I show them the power of their words and of the structures that they select.
“You have options. You could do this, or you could do that.”
I expand their writing repertoire by showing them new sentence structures or uses for punctuation. I uncover their writing habits and offer alternatives.
And like my high school students, they too ask, “Can I do that? Is that allowed?”
I sever them from long-established misunderstandings, confusions, and myths. For instance, they are mind-blown when they learn that it’s okay to start a sentence with because.
But what I do is more than writing instruction. It’s more than editing and proofreading and brainstorming.
With each session, I use writing as a vehicle to instill confidence, pride, and strength in the students.
I use my knowledge and experience as an academic editor and writing consultant and as a former teacher, professor, and graduate student to forge the strategies and reassurance each student needs to keep progressing toward their personal and professional goals.
I enjoy those moments with the students.
Even better, I enjoy the smiles, sighs of relief, and strengthened understanding that form throughout each session.
