80-20
A rule that seems to apply 80% of the time
Amazing, isn’t it? Five people who have been on the 60 Minute Writer course I’ve just finished teaching (apart from marking some work that people have sent in) have commented on the course evaluation form. And four of these comments (ie 80%) were really positive. One comment made me wonder if the person who made it had been on a different course. And, as usual, I have been focusing on the one negative comment. In other words, 20% of the comments have hijacked 80% of my attention.
I will relate the comments — which are anonymised — in a moment, but first, allow me to explain the nature of the course.
It takes place for one hour a week, in my case online. Each week I look at a different aspect of creative writing. For example, it might be to write something in a non-linear manner, such as starting at the end of the story instead of the beginning. For instance, one of the versions of the Bang on the Head story I’ve been writing in my Experiments in Style was written in reverse order.
I tend to structure the hour as follows:
Introduction to the topic or technique + prompt. (15 minutes.)
Writing alone. (20 minutes.)
Paired share in breakout rooms (10 minutes.)
Whole group sharing/issues arising/things learnt. (10 minutes.)
Next week. (5 minutes.)
I tend not to go into the breakout rooms. I do that very occasionally, but prefer not to because (a) it’s disruptive and (b) I want the students to learn from each other as well, not just me. I know that as a student I’ve felt quite put out when a tutor has barged in either as I was receiving some feedback or about to give some feedback. It’s a fact of life, possibly because of our conditioning or what we are used to, that in the eyes of students tutors and students are not equal, so an interuption by the tutor is potentially more disruptive than an interuption by another student. That’s what I think is going on at least.
The homework each week is to develop the piece they wrote during the session, and to read any handouts I send to them. These handouts are aid-memoires about the craft of writing. For example, I recently wrote and sent them a suggested further reading sheet. Sometimes they consist of the details of publications where they can submit their work, which I encourage them to do. As for the homework, I mark everything they send me, and keep a record of my comments on each piece.
Well so much for context. Here are the comments I received:
Terry is an excellent tutor who goes the extra mile for his students which is much appreciated.
Terry Freedman has been an excellent tutor throughout. His teaching style and resources have been absolutely spot-on, and this course has exceeded my already-high expectations. Thank you very much, Terry, for an excellent learning experience.
Thanks Terry, you influenced me to write in short periods of time. Also, to drop the angst and seriousness of life or to rephrase what I want to write in a more readable way.
Thanks Terry for another great term.
All fine and dandy, until I came upon a comment that said I should have offered more support while online. When I read that I almost fell over. How on earth could I have given more support? And what kind of support did this person want — help while s/he was writing on their own? Help during the feedback session? More personalised attention during the thirty minutes everyone was together? And if they did want more support, why didn’t they say something? Or did they think I count mind-reading as part of my skillset?
Anyway, such is the lot of a teacher. You would think I’ve become used to it by now. I’ve been criticised because of the traffic, the food in the café and the lack of a parking space. The only thing I haven’t been blamed for — yet — is the weather. I know I’m not the only tutor who ends up feeling irritated by just one comment, but it’s not a great feeling so I’m going to concentrate on the nice comments instead. Note to self: Must do better.
As always, I have to wonder which side of the bed did that person get out of that morning. And did they oversleep, miss a coffee / tea, get cut up on the way into work, not had the support they needed with the kids from their partner, etc. People’s circumstances as so different from ours, as are their expectations.
Feedback requests need to be more specific otherwise you may just get emotional responses rather than constructive ones.
And yes, the 1 in five always irritates, just like a single bit of grit in your shoe.
"20% of the comments have hijacked 80% of my attention." Isn't that the way it is?! Sheesh. That 20% can feel like a burr under the saddle, a pebble in one's shoes, a teeny tiny thorn in the flesh. I know the feeling, too, when thinking, "What else could I have done?!" The last time that happened, I chalked it up to not pleasing everyone all the time and proceeded in good faith, knowing I did my best. I'm certain, Terry, that you always do your best for your students. P.S. Love your drawing, as usual.