[ti:Having Problems with a School Paper] [ar:Jeri Watson] [al:Education Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Learning English Education Report. [00:04.91]Today we welcome a return visit [00:08.06]from Jennifer Ahern-Dodson, [00:10.61]assistant professor of The Practice [00:13.37]in Writing Studies at Duke University [00:16.58]in North Carolina. [00:18.94]Ms. Ahern-Dodson serves as outreach director [00:23.15]and language arts and media program director [00:26.46]for the university's Thompson Writing Program. [00:29.82]She helps many students and professors [00:33.53]organize writing groups. [00:35.39]Jennifer Ahern-Dodson says [00:38.59]that probably everyone has had difficulty [00:41.38]writing an essay or paper at some time. [00:45.12]She says when writing seems easy, [00:49.17]it is usually because he or she [00:52.78]has something important to say. [00:55.67]Today she provides some tips about [00:59.42]how to get those important points into the computer. [01:03.21]Suppose you have done some research for your paper, [01:07.62]but you still have more research to do. [01:10.56]Ms. Ahern-Dodson says try some writing [01:14.49]before you're ready to write the completed paper. [01:18.27]"Don't wait until you've done all the research [01:21.32]for the research paper [01:22.73]or you've figured out in your head exactly [01:25.38]what you want to say before you get started. [01:28.30]Sometimes just stopping in the middle [01:30.71]and writing something about [01:32.25]where you are at that moment, [01:33.61]you can discover your ideas [01:34.92]and think about [01:35.97]what you want to express or understand." [01:38.53]The teacher advises that you note [01:41.58]what information other people [01:43.58]may already have presented about the subject. [01:47.39]And she urges you not to get discouraged [01:51.90]if you find that others have seemed [01:54.92]to have used a lot of that information. [01:57.53]"There's so much research [02:00.08]that's been done already [02:02.32]that it can be intimidating [02:03.88]once you start figuring out, [02:05.67]well, what have other people [02:07.37]said about my topic (subject)? [02:08.43]And so I might just keep researching and never stop, [02:10.63]and say, ˇ®Well, What do I have to contribute? [02:13.12]People have said everything already.' " [02:15.18]Instead, she suggests taking some time [02:19.18]to think about what you're noticing in the research. [02:22.54]What points and thoughts of your own might you develop? [02:27.60]"You don't have to be an expert on everything. [02:30.99]What is it you find interesting [02:33.69]in the middle of this process?" [02:34.99]This should help you decide [02:38.19]what you want to write in answer [02:41.18]to what others have said. [02:43.40]Or it can help you decide [02:45.90]what additional research you might need [02:49.67]if you are dealing with the subject [02:52.02]in a different way from others. [02:54.28]As you progress, [02:56.39]Ms. Ahern-Dodson strongly advises [02:59.58]working with other writers. [03:01.59]"Who can give me good feedback (reaction) on my ideas [03:04.49]as I'm developing them ¨C [03:05.79]and to not make me feel like I'm alone in the universe? [03:08.83]So much of our anxiety about writing stems [03:12.49]from sharing our writing in high-stakes (extremely important) [03:15.09]situations like submitting to a college [03:16.45]or turning it in at the end (of a school term). [03:18.40]And we cannot really do anything about it once we submit it." [03:20.60]She spends a lot of her time [03:23.17]helping students and professors form writing groups. [03:27.46]She says the reaction of others [03:31.00]can tell you if you are communicating your ideas. [03:35.20]It can show if your writing is interesting. [03:38.84]"Better to find out that no one is interested in [03:43.04]that one paragraph before you submit it [03:45.69]than after you submit it." [03:47.63]And that's the VOA Learning English Education Report for today. [03:53.69]Coming soon, all about writing groups. I'm Jeri Watson.