On Elbow

Peter Elbow’s article “Ranking, Evaluating, and Liking” seems helpful. He presents his theory of evaluating students’ writing and suggests ways in which instructors can apply his ideas in the classroom.
His idea of liking students’ writing suggests a number of assumptions. Elbow assumes that some instructors do not like students’ writing (and perhaps, the students, as well). He attributes the attitude to these instructors’ dissatisfaction with their own writing; to their uncharitable feelings toward students’ supposed ignorance, arrogance, or foolishness; and to general fatigue from working under the pressure of having to teach college students to write effectively.
One way to lower the stress that can lead instructors to dislike students (according to Elbow) is to provide students with opportunities improve their skills—informal writing assignments for a small, encouraging audience—without having more papers to grade. I like this idea. I will probably use it in my classroom. Sometimes, I tell students who come to the writing lab that their English 1000 papers are low-stakes opportunities to solve problems by thinking critically—opportunities to develop those skills that they will need to be successful in the advanced courses in their majors and in their jobs. But most students, knowing they need to pass English 1000, do not think the stakes are too low (which is why some come to the writing lab so frustrated and nervous). So, to relieve some of the pressure on students (as well as instructors who want to see their students’ writing improve), instructors can lower the stakes further by assigning writing that will not be graded. And if students are required to present their work to an audience that seems to be a better motivation to get students to improve than a grade.