Laura E. Decker
Assignments & Activities Archive
Activity Description
First-year writers often struggle to take risks on projects, especially as they move from their composition courses to projects within new disciplines and contexts (Robertson et al.). However, taking risks by diving into new discourse communities, as Bartholomae argued, is required to participate effectively in the world. The struggle to take risks relates to what Wardle termed an “answer-getting” philosophy toward writing, rather than a philosophy of “problem-exploring.” When answer-getting, students play it safe, hoping to produce the singular or correct answer or written product. On the other hand, when problem-exploring, students “grapple toward one possible solution through experimenting, questioning, thinking rhetorically, mimicking, pushing boundaries, trying unfamiliar techniques, using new tools, feeling uncomfortable, and composing a product that might or might not be judged as successful” (VanKooten and Berkley 153). Embracing the kind of messiness produced in the uncomfortable space that problem-exploring provides can lead to “curiosity, reflection, consideration of multiple possibilities, a willingness to engage in a recursive process of trial and error, and toward a recognition that more than one solution can work” (Wardle). In other words, problem-exploring encourages students to, as Wardle describes it, “creatively repurpose” or transfer what they know to address new problems and situations. Encouraging students to follow a process of trial and error, and to explore opportunities for creative repurposing, is related to Dweck’s notion of growth mindset, which she defines as the belief that one’s intelligence is not fixed and can be developed. One objective in first-year writing courses should be to help students come to embrace the risk that comes with problem-exploring, to realize the power in failure, and to develop a growth mindset as a writer. This activity aims to demonstrate for students that exploring problems and embracing messiness are tools for building a growth mindset that can serve them as writers. To accomplish this goal, this activity uses a play-through video of a video game called “I Am Bread,” (React) as well as small group discussions, a whole group close reading, a collaborative reading, and a whole group discussion.