English 101 - Why do I make my students turn in hard copies? (assignments, college)
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I have a professor who requires hard copies to get around the late submitters who claim they turned it in online and don't know why it's not showing up.
I definitely have some thoughts on this. To me there is a palpable difference between reading something I'm holding in my hands versus reading the same words off a glaring screen. Communication, particularly of an idea or a story, doesn't just happen because you say something or write something. The "receiving" party must be equally engaged and prepared to take in just what is being communicated. To read a student's intricately woven thoughts and ideas with no more attention than you would pay to a random email does not, to my mind, give it the attention and respect that it deserves. When you read an essay in an endless digital scroll, there is no sense of where you are in the story. No anticipation of having only two pages left and wondering how it will end. No flipping back a page to reconsider a thought or idea. Here's a test. Have one of your students submit BOTH a digital and a hard copy. Read the essay on your computer and evaluate it. Now, wait until you have a bit of spare time. Take the hard copy and sit back in your favorite chair, with a good light and read it again. Allow yourself to pause from time to time at the end of a page to consider what was just said. You won't lose your place. When you have finished, evaluate it again. My guess is that the printed words and the way that they were taken in will have had a greater impression upon you.
In a world where students are learning how to condense their thoughts to fit 140 characters, your insistence on hard copies is subtly showing them a more satisfying way to enjoy literature. Good for you.
It's your class. Why should you have to justify it to anyone unless the college has some sort of green policy about paper usage. You definitely don't have to justify it to your students.
Hi. I've been teaching English 101 for 2 semesters now.
When my students turn in major essays, I have them give hard copies rather than digital. I'm not sure I have a justification though.
In college, I always turned in the physical copy so maybe I'm used to it.
Is there any reason to ask for hard copies? Will all essay assignments be turned in by email some day?
I grade the hard copy of my student's work. The digital copy is just for running through a plagiarism checker. I find it easier to grade a physical copy.
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