It's fine for basic, beginning "here's how to organize an argument" learning. But I was/am amazed at how many people stop there and think they're expert writers. I just find it sad!
I worked with one kid who had a lovely, complex argument that centered upon two very persuasive points, and she was shortchanging them just horribly in her draft for no reason that I could fathom (at first...). Her paper looked nothing like what she had talked with me about. When I got to the 4th paragraph--a tacked-on reason she didn't even believe!--I realized that she was trying to shoehorn her lovely, complex argument into the 5-paragraph theme format.
Argh!
I told her to dump the formula and JUST WRITE what she wanted to say!
I'll never forget the joyous look on her face when she understood that she could write a *4*-paragraph theme. (LOL!) It was like I'd freed her! Seriously!
Her revised paper was wonderful. She just needed to be told that ideas matter more than the formula, that form should follow function.
Okay. I need to stop posting to this thread! Sorry, gang!
This was one of my soapbox issues when I was teaching, and I guess it's still a problem for me. Is there an "Anonymous" group for haters of the 5-paragraph theme?
