Brandt Writing

Brandt Writing

Questions for Discussion and Journaling:

1.       Brandt defines a literary sponsor as the people who expose us to writing and the people that when we think about how we learned to read and write, we think of those people. There is an endless possibility of who can be a literary sponsor, he lists a bunch and really none of them have much in common. The thing they do have in common is that they are powerful figures, people that we look up to, they are usually older and smarter than who they are sponsoring. They give their knowledge to other people but also get credit for their knowledge.

2.       Sponsors are in no way shape or form the most educated people or the smartest people we have ever met. Brandt tells us that even though Sponsors love to share their knowledge and information with the world, they also want credit for their thoughts and ideas. Sponsors do not know everything and there is always more ways to learn. So, just as we are learning from sponsors they are also learning right beside us. There is always more information to be thought about and always more things to learn. Even a teacher in English could know everything there is to know about a book but a student might look at it in a different way. The student could have noticed something in the reading that the teacher did not and therefore the teacher gains more knowledge.

4) Brandt is trying to show us that sponsors are almost like gardeners. They have to plant a seed in your mind of an idea that they want to educate you on. Then after the seed is placed, there are specific layers that need to go on top of it for the plant to grow. It is just the same with literacy. Sponsors seek out information they want you to know, they give you an idea and put layers on it, or stratify the ideas to you in order for you to fully understand and have all the education opportunities you can. She also uses the word “stakes”, learning is then kind of turned into a competition or race. People are pulling for more education in order to gain knowledge and power in this world. So the stakes are high in the furthering education.

Applying and Exploring Ideas:

1.       I would say my primary literary sponsors are my parents, my kindergarten teacher, basically any teacher I’ve ever had, my creative writing teacher, my priest, my aunt, my brother and my friends. School was definitely the biggest institution where I got my literary from, my clubs like 4-H and girl scouts also had an effect. My church was huge in my life growing up so that also had an effect. I think these are probably normal and extremely adequate literary sponsors. I think this could be the answer to most people but I have been exposed to different things through clubs that I’ve joined and summer camps that I have gone to that other people haven’t. I’m sure there are thousands of literary sponsors that I haven’t explored. Things that I’m not interested in like history or science are areas that I tend to avoid so I don’t have a lot of experience in those fields.

2.       I think I have definitely had literary sponsors who have withheld certain types of literary. The example the book has it true, my school blocked certain book so you could absolutely not read them or if you had a choice to read any book you want, there were still restrictions on your choices. You could never read a magazine or Facebook post as a choice for a paper or project. Although these are outcast ideas, they are still writing. Also in a Catholic church like mine, there is only one book you read and that’s the bible so there are definitely huge restrictions there. In church you cannot really get past that so you don’t have a choice and there wasn’t anything I could really do about that. In school there are ways to manipulate the system and go around it but it is not very easy.

Meta Moment:

Brandt answers the first chapter goal which is “To understand the concepts of literacy and multiple literacies”. She shows us what literacy is and how we are exposed to it. She teaches us how we gain are knowledge and has us reflect on where our past and experiences have brought us to where we are now. I think this is reflective of everyday life because I am exposed to new and different literacy every day of my life. It always surrounds me and helps me think of my future. So it is a way I’ve never thought about before but it is something I can apply to my everyday learning.