Learning as Interpretation, as [Re]Writing: A Philosophy of Teaching and the Function of the Writerly

Abstract

This reflective essay makes the case for a “writerly” framework for teaching and learning in higher education that offers new ways to conceptualize student engagement and interaction. Writerly teaching and learning, based on the work of literary theorist Roland Barthes, aims to make students more than just consumers, positioning them instead as producers of their learning and the curriculum. The writerly leads us to think about active learning and student engagement not as vague abstractions, but rather as something that happens purposefully in the moment, in the “just after” when a student experiences new ideas about the content, where students are prompted to creatively produce new meanings and understandings.