paired with “Asters and Goldenrod”

Emphasizing critical reflection to appreciate the dynamics within educational spaces and how different people navigate them, this activity is designed to support the writing of an extended piece that is both analytical and creative. This could be completed in-class or extended as a homework assignment.

Introduction

JS: This assignment is most directly linked to Robin Wall Kimmerer’s short essay, “Asters and Goldenrod,” which she also discusses in an interview with Krista Tippet titled “The Intelligence of Plants,” diving into the historical violence against indigenous practices and ways of knowing that she has managed to marry with her scientific training as a botanist. Yet the intention of this assignment emerges from the heart of this whole book: co-writers and colleagues, we wanted to create a resource for teaching and learning that prioritizes critical reflection—on all sides— about the consequences of standardization in educational spaces and practices. Recalling the genocidal history of residential schools for indigenous children, Kimmerer’s piece is just one reminder of the explicit violence inflicted through the disciplinary power of schools. We see this refracted in many communities and histories reflected in the texts gathered (see “Saving a Language You’re Learning to Speak” and “Three Ways to Speak English,” for instance), and one of the goals of this project is to also bring this awareness to our regular teaching practices in first-year writing. In these courses especially, the politics of language are negotiated in an intensified way: not only are we explicitly teaching language and writing, we are also facilitating the transition to university as another educational institution.

The longer I teach, the more I have come to feel that the way we show up in these spaces, interact with one another, and try to teach and learn, is overdetermined by a tacit agreement to be in “school” and to follow this training. So, even as we pursue more inclusive, responsive, and culturally sustaining practices for language and writing instruction, it is crucial to call attention to the fact that this teaching and learning still takes place within the broader structures of our educational systems. One way to begin a conversation about what happens in education is to invite individual and collective reflection on educational experiences, the messages we’ve received about it, and our ongoing investments in it. Not only does this actively invite diverse perspectives to be shared, but in sharing, can introduce other ways of relating to each other while learning together.

After discussing Kimmerer’s experiences on the first day of school (and perhaps beyond), many students express empathy for both the harm Kimmerer experiences as well as her strength and resilience. Many identify the racial tensions in her interactions with her advisor as well as the gender exclusions in the science field she is entering; they also appreciate the honesty in her passion for asters and goldenrod and how their beauty motivates her. While a critical reflection on learning could be a generative assignment at any point, it is especially powerful after a discussion of this material early in the semester as everyone is getting to know one another. At this point, the dynamics in the class are also still being created, and this can provide a significant opportunity for students to assert their experiences, preferences, desires, and goals. Another approach is to use this essay at the end of the semester to help students reflect on how they think about their thinking and writing, who that work serves, and what discourse practices students privilege and why.

Guide

Write: Critical Reflection

This critical reflection draws inspiration from the insights of Kimmerer’s “Asters and Goldenrod” and uses some of her ideas to prompt your own reflections on important influences on your identity as a student, your own educational path(s), and your transition to university.

For this assignment, there are no expectations about form, and you are invited to write in a format that makes sense to you and your way of thinking. The sole expectation is that you address the questions below thoughtfully to share what’s important to you.

Ways of Knowing

• What are some things – ideas, interests, activities, habits, routines – you know you already know about? How did you gain this knowledge?
• Just as Kimmerer was motivated by a good question about the beauty of asters and goldenrod together, what are some of the curiosities, deep questions, or early experiences that have motivated you forward in life?
• What experiences, knowledges, expertise, or parts of your identity have you been asked to leave behind when you’ve entered or participated in education? This demand may have been explicit or implicit.

School, Education, Learning

• How did you decide to go to college? What was your path to get here?
• What do you desire most for your college/university experience?
• Many talk about the “path” to college or that education is its own path. Did you have to step off any other paths to be on this one? How did that feel for you? Do you see a way to bridge them in “reciprocity” as a “cross-pollination” (to use Kimmerer’s terms)?
• What, to you, is the difference between “school,” “education,” and “learning”?
• What has supported your learning the most? What has made it more difficult or challenging?

Discuss: Creating Community

After reflecting on your own experiences, take some time to exchange perspectives with your peers. The “ways of knowing” questions especially highlight who you are and what’s important to you outside of education, so use this discussion to see how you can braid that into a school context. The last set of questions may also connect to a broader discussion about shaping routines, “ground rules,” and agreements as a class community.

Extension: Reframing the Course

After reflecting on your ways of knowing in and out of school as well as your experiences with education, take some time to revisit the official learning outcomes of the course. These goals are typically set by the university and are standardized across sections. Interact with these goals and set your own.

• In your view, what is the purpose of this writing course?
• What do you most want to learn?
• When you look at the official outcomes, what do they convey about the purpose of this course?
• What are 2-3 that you would like to work on? Why these ones? What are your prior experiences with them?
• What additional outcomes could you suggest adding?