Writing is Under Attack

Originally published in edublogs, Writing for Learner Engagement. Part of the Class Home Room Blog from a course at the U of T. Posted under Always Something More to Learn, URL

What is it about human nature, that we immediately go to doom and gloom when faced with change. ChatGPT was introduced, and suddenly social media is flooded with posts about the end of the university essay; posts heralding that research papers are now obsolete; some even suggesting that education is antiquated. Writing is dead is the same argument that they tried to use when calculators were invented – no point in learning math any longer (I wish).

Perhaps we fail to remember that overhauling post-secondary education has been on our agenda for a while now. That we have been slowly transitioning to authentic assessments in order to ensure that knowledge gleaned is actually applicable when our learners enter the work force. That independent thought has power, impact, and value. Despite not seeing a relevant reason for essay writing, the connection is evidence. Learning how to use evidence to frame our ideas, helps us to form compelling arguments. You may not write essays in your real life, but you do need to know how to be persuasive, how to make a point, how to debate, how to discuss, how to be logical and reasonable. All of these skills are learned through essay writing and research papers.

We have also forgotten the humanist angle. There is only one person in the world that has had the same experiences as I have had, me. There is only one person in the world that has my perspective, my knowledge, and my opinions. All of that is meaningful. My contributions matter. Writing is a very powerful way to communicate thoughts, ideas, learning, opinions, and points of view.

So before you start the inevitable doom scroll, don’t forget that you have a voice.

Use it.