What is the future of the five-paragraph essay in a multimodal future? And if ‘performance’ in dance and filmmaking (to take a few examples) is to assume a place alongside ‘performance’ on a written exam, how should performance be assessed?
I think the five-paragraph essay will remain only because it has been a traditional method of argument and expository writing for so long. However, I also believe that the dance and film portions of performance will slowly be integrated into the traditional classroom curriculum. I think these types of multimodal literacy are beneficial because they force the students to “think outside the box” or in ways that challenge the norm. The benefits of assimilating such performances into the conventional styles of teaching broaden the spectrum of what people can use as a medium of expression. Teachers can use both the traditional style of teaching such as the five paragraph essay along with a newer form of assessment, for instance a film or piece of art. Through this, i feel the student will be able to achieve a mastery of several spectrums. The only difficulty lies in assessment. How can a teacher grade an abstract film piece? I think that it simply comes down to effort and thought. Ifi had to grade the video we watched in class I would give it an A because the author obviously put in much work into the movie. Additionally the creator of this film also took the time to reflect on the novel read in class and incorporates the major themes in a very subtle way into the movie. Thus I do believe that both the conventional styles of assignments (5 paragraph essay) and the newer methods (films or dance) can certainly be juxtaposed into one lesson plan.
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