NWP and NCTE in Retrospect

Although I have attended the past two NWP annuals, this marks my first year attending both NWP and NCTE conventions. I submitted paperwork well in advance for my school district to pick up the tab with NCTE (where NWP is reimbursed by the Rutgers University / NWP partnership). This year I choose to focus my attention to the NCTE Friday and Saturday sessions, considering that my big day with NWP was Thursday.

Now one might wonder how these two seemingly similar conventions may overlap, or perhaps compete with one another. Having attended both, I can attest that each organization has a slightly different agenda that works toward some common goals.

The National Writing Project’s mission is for teachers teaching teachers. Their sessions focus on writing as it relates to technology, literacy, and the content areas. Workshops are typically built around a particular model, where hands on writing activities, student samples, classroom practices, centered on a problem or question that the sessions strives to address. For example, a question may ask, “How do new computer technologies promote writing and new forms of literacy,” after which they present a session on how they had their students collaborate writing a newspaper article using Wiki. Writing is the heart of the NWP.

The National Council of Teachers of English delves into various aspects of English instruction including (but not limited to): literature, drama, writing, critical reading, English as a second language, literacy research, and film. Researchers, authors, teachers, administrators, literacy theorists, book / film publishers, etc present sessions. Typically the work of NCTE weighs more heavily toward college and high school with fewer sessions aimed at the elementary level. The catalog of sessions is diverse and plentiful with a ride range of sessions. NCTE doesn’t have a central focus as much as several appendages of service branching in various directions, but still all connected to one body.

Both NWP and NCTE have their places. At best, their work is collaborative- to improve reading, writing, listening, speaking, appreciation, and cultural inheritance of the English language. Both organizations strive to service teachers to deepen their knowledge of both English content and pedagogical knowledge, resulting in improved educational quality for the students- our citizens of today, leaders of tomorrow.