To me, good writing is a very broad statement. Good writing comes in many forms, levels, and opinions of the audience. Good writing for a 5th grader should be viewed differently than good writing from a graduate-level college student and rightly is viewed differently. Someone who is a baseball aficionado would be more likely to appreciate and notice good writing on scouting reports and other documents based on baseball, major league organizations, and the Major League Baseball Association compared to someone who knows nothing about the sport. Lastly, good writing is simply an opinion made by the audience of the piece of writing.
That being said, "good" to one person may not be "good" to another; the audience has the power to decide what your writing is. Examples of this can be seen in AP Exams, UIL writing events in highschool, etc. because there are three to four people who read and grade the writing. There are things that authors can do, such as use correct grammar, rhetorical devices, etc. to make their writing more respected, of course, but the power is held by the people in the audience.
Miles- The audience is a HUGE factor in what we define good writing as. What you think is a good piece, may not be a good piece to me. It's all about perception. I agree with you about the different forms and levels. Great connection you made with the age level playing a role in this. What my 2nd grade daughter writes and defines as good will be very different than what I turn out for my classes. Excellent definition!
ReplyDeleteHi Miles,
ReplyDeleteI think that the comment about the levels of writing is important to mention, especially for us as educators. You're right, I do have very different expectations of good writing depending on whether I am grading my seventh graders or my seniors. Great point!
I agree with you that there are different levels of good writing. As long as what is being written is appealing to that audience it can be great writing. But like you said for someone that doesn't know anything about sports it might not hold the same with someone that does. That being said, if the writer who is writing about sports can make it knowledgeable and easy to understand to someone that knows nothing about sports it can still be good writing. I also agree with you and Tori that there are different expectations for younger kids than an undergraduate college student.
ReplyDeleteI agree that there are many different kinds and levels of good writing. The audience of good writing is essential because not everyone may agree upon a piece. The opinions of people is what creates the aspect of so many different genres and writing styles. I agree with your perspective over the different levels within writing because a young child will not understand the same kind of good writing as an adult would.
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