General duties of a student: pull everything out of your teacher.
Pull everything out of your fellow students.
General duties of a teacher: pull everything out of your
students.
As you may have heard (I’ve been shouting it from the
mountaintops), I’m teaching creative writing this semester. The class I’m
teaching is an overview of the genres and a chance for undergrads to dip their
toes into the endless well that is “creative writing.” Two weeks in and I am
brimming with gratitude, happiness, and a bit of apprehension, too.
First of all, it’s a huge honor to be teaching creative
writing as a graduate student. I recognize that not many MFA students have this
opportunity and I am definitely going to try my best to do right by my students.
It’s a far cry from teaching composition, where I was handed a syllabus,
content, and projects to fulfill. I was grateful for the hand-holding, though,
since I had little experience with the topic before teaching it. Now, it is up
to me to write the syllabus, provide readings, plan assignments and decide on a
grading rubric. No biggie, right?
Thankfully, I have the good fortune of taking a creative
writing practicum in conjunction with teaching my class. This means that I get
to bounce ideas off my classmates on a weekly basis (who are also teaching
creative writing for the first time) and learn different ways to foster a
creative environment for my students to grow, explore, and flourish. Did I mention
that one of the most wonderful professors I’ve ever had is teaching it? So very
exciting. On a less exciting note, all of us teachers will be filmed twice this
semester for learning purposes. My professors says that athletes figured out a
long time ago that studying footage of their games helps them get better, so
why not writing teachers?
And then, there’s the part about actually being in the
classroom, reading and writing alongside some pretty special students. My practicum
professor says we must always approach the students with reverence. This hit
home for me last Tuesday when they turned in their first piece of creative
writing. Sitting at my desk at home, reading through the essays and poems, I was
struck by the sheer bravery of my students. Creating by definition means making
something that did not exist before. Therefore, being creative means you must
accept the unknown and give in to the process. Tapping into this part of
yourself requires a willingness to be vulnerable, which is not always an easy
thing to do.
I was moved to read my students’ work. It is clear that they
put time and effort into their writing, and their creative courage blew me
away. But also, I am honored to be given
this role as educator to cultivate and nourish their beautiful creative spirit.
I recognize now what a super special position I’m in to bear witness to
creativity, and I also recognize that with this gift comes responsibility.
As I delve deeper into the creative process, I am beginning
to understand it as a marriage between mystery and discipline. One must be
brave enough to jump into the unknown, but also wise enough to trust the
free-fall.
