Process Pedagogy

Nov 28, 2022
3 min read

Tip for new teachers: Focus on the process of writing more than the finished product by devoting class time to peer review, providing in class time for students to workshop their writing, and providing feedback on drafts-in-progress.

What is Process Pedagogy?

In the words of Donald Murray, “Instead of teaching finished writing, we should teach unfinished writing, and glory in its unfinishedness. We work with language in action. We share with our students the continual excitement of choosing one word instead of another, of searching for the one true word.”

In less flowery language, what Murray’s saying is that instead of focusing on finished products (like essays), we should focus on the process that leads to these products. By doing this, we help students develop their written voices and acquire universal writing skills that apply to things even outside the bounds of traditional academic writing.

Process pedagogy’s embracing of the process over the final work pushes students to both be comfortable with making mistakes AND encourages experimentation. One of the core tenets of this pedagogical approach is the idea that students should be given unlimited (or, more realistically, many) opportunities to draft what they are writing until they, as per Murray, “discover what [they have] to say on that particular topic.”

Why is this approach beneficial?

Helps students focus on practice and process rather than putting pressure on creating the “perfect” final version. Experimentation is important! —Students are not as focused on the end product and can feel more comfortable making mistakes and taking risks with their writing.
Teaches students to better appreciate the flaws of their writing and understand why those flaws pop up to begin with.
Teaches students that editing and revising is an essential part of any writing process, not just at the end; this is a more realistic representation of how writing/communicating happens in professional settings.
Makes the writing classroom more accessible and equitable since the approach is rooted in the idea that people do not have an innate “writing faculty” or expertise. Students who are above average writers still stand to benefit from experimenting to develop their voices while students who aren’t have the opportunity to walk through their writing without fear of receiving a bad grade or being compared to their peers. Anyone can learn and improve through practice—this pedagogical approach teaches how to practice!
Gives students writing skills that extend outside the bounds of the classroom, which in turn addresses the classic English class issue of “how is this useful to me?”

What can Process Pedagogy look like in the ENC 1101 classroom?

Have students write multiple drafts of a single project. Along with this, include multiple check-in points for students to submit drafts and/or parts of a project.
Teach peer review and evaluate students on the quality of their feedback.
Focus extensively on pre-writing and writing.
Peer and instructor feedback for each draft.
Ask students to write reflections about their work, the module, and their grade so that they are learning to think critically about their writing and learning process.
Have conferences or personal meetings with students to go over student work and get feedback from the students.
Having students create their own prompts for writing.
Inviting students to write about whatever subject interests them. For example, if a student is very passionate about economics and you were teaching argumentative writing, you could encourage them to write an essay in support of or against Jerome Powell’s decision making during the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic.