Thanks to all of you for participating in our survey! In a matter of 5 days, we received responses from a grand total of 21 students and 2 professors! As a token of gratitude, I created this comic with the help of our animator, Jessica Kim. This was inspired by an actual response from one of you and shows the struggle that we are all too familiar with. Please share and enjoy!
If you aren’t familiar with the survey questions, please feel free to take a beat and check them out here. Now, Student E, who inspired the comic, admitted to lying in the account for her professor because her candid story didn’t seem interesting enough or long enough for a good grade. Most of the other students didn’t think they were “formal enough” to get it right. Why is it that 19 of the 21 students felt their own stories told with their own voices wasn’t good enough?
Students feel as though they need to prove themselves and show that they are sophisticated and smart which wouldn’t be evident if they wrote using common (but natural) language. It is clear that there is an issue when it comes to writing in an academic setting without losing your sense of self. Of course we have to maintain certain standards and write according to what the audience expects to some extent, but we should also make room for some flavor and incorporate some inkling of our true self to make it more than just another product of the school system.
Are you surprised by the results? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
