Yes, students should be able to connect writing to what matters in their lives. But at the same time, students should be able to think about issues that don't seem to have anything to do with their immediate lives but grow to recognize them as important issues within their broader community. At my school, for example, when students select their research topic without receiving any guidance, 80% of them choose social media, drug addiction, performance-enhancing drugs, or sports, as if these are the only matters that connect to their lives. And as you say, they are ready to parrot expert opinions on these topics. After some discussion and guidance, however, most of the students move away from these topics. I think having students think outside their familiar thoughts and a narrowly defined home community is an important part of college education.
Thanks for reading, Min! I definitely agree about the importance of raising students' critical consciousness about important issues "that don't seem to have anything to do with their immediate lives," but I have mixed feelings about making that a focus of composition classes. I think it tends to work better in classes where those issues--and the background needed to really understand them--is the focus of the class (as opposed to writing). I've certainly tried to do this myself. Just a few years ago, I made climate change a big focus of both my Comp I and II classes: certainly an important issue, but not one that most students think of as closely connected to their day-to-day lives (even though it really is). It went ok, especially for the students who were learning about the issue in more depth in their Earth Science class, but for others, I feared they felt "forced" to make arguments about an issue that they were struggling to really understand or connect with. Some first-year students feel ready to tackle ANY issue in their research-based writing because their literacy skills, confidence, and curiosity are already strong. But most (quite understandably) feel that a few articles and discussions are not sufficient to put them in a place where they feel they can make any kind of original argument about a "big issue" that they have little to no direct experience with. Therefore, I find it's helpful to encourage first-year students to research and write about issues where they feel a bit more "grounded," personally motivated, and informed by experience, before they move on to exploring the "bigger issues" that they'll be exposed to in their other classes.
Yes, students should be able to connect writing to what matters in their lives. But at the same time, students should be able to think about issues that don't seem to have anything to do with their immediate lives but grow to recognize them as important issues within their broader community. At my school, for example, when students select their research topic without receiving any guidance, 80% of them choose social media, drug addiction, performance-enhancing drugs, or sports, as if these are the only matters that connect to their lives. And as you say, they are ready to parrot expert opinions on these topics. After some discussion and guidance, however, most of the students move away from these topics. I think having students think outside their familiar thoughts and a narrowly defined home community is an important part of college education.
Thanks for reading, Min! I definitely agree about the importance of raising students' critical consciousness about important issues "that don't seem to have anything to do with their immediate lives," but I have mixed feelings about making that a focus of composition classes. I think it tends to work better in classes where those issues--and the background needed to really understand them--is the focus of the class (as opposed to writing). I've certainly tried to do this myself. Just a few years ago, I made climate change a big focus of both my Comp I and II classes: certainly an important issue, but not one that most students think of as closely connected to their day-to-day lives (even though it really is). It went ok, especially for the students who were learning about the issue in more depth in their Earth Science class, but for others, I feared they felt "forced" to make arguments about an issue that they were struggling to really understand or connect with. Some first-year students feel ready to tackle ANY issue in their research-based writing because their literacy skills, confidence, and curiosity are already strong. But most (quite understandably) feel that a few articles and discussions are not sufficient to put them in a place where they feel they can make any kind of original argument about a "big issue" that they have little to no direct experience with. Therefore, I find it's helpful to encourage first-year students to research and write about issues where they feel a bit more "grounded," personally motivated, and informed by experience, before they move on to exploring the "bigger issues" that they'll be exposed to in their other classes.