Explain Gee’s concept of “filtering” (15) and how it impacts primary Discourse acquisition. Why do some people more than others just seem to “get” reading, or find it easy to master dominant secondary Discourses?

Gee’s concept of filtering is a process where aspects of secondary Discourses are filtered into a primary Discourse. It represents a transfer of features that allows a child to practice secondary Discourses while learning their primary. Some people, according to Gee, find it easier to master dominant secondary Discourses because they have practiced those skills longer through filtering.

Several times in this section Gee talks about the “naturalness” of the 5-year-old girl’s reading ability, but he also says that the whole episode is “another example of how linguistic aspects of Discourses can never be isolated from nonlinguistic aspects like values, assumptions, and beliefs” (16). What are some of the nonlinguistic aspects of this “storybook reading” Discourse? Why does Gee want us to see that these aren’t “natural” either?

The nonlinguistic aspects of the storybook reading are the thought processes behind it. Gee calls it an “ideological message” (16) and explains that these aspects are unconsciously embedded in linguistic devices. I think maybe Gee wants us to see that these aren’t natural because they are learned aspects from a secondary discourse.

We used Fortin’s article about the Detroit School System as a case for considering the implications of Gee’s point about access and a hierarchy of Discourses. Now turn to Newstok and think about his argument for the value of imitation in conjunction with eitherBartholomae’s thoughts about tradition or Gee’s ideas about apprenticeship. Write a Barclay style paragraph that centers on your own question or idea and uses a quotation from Newstok and either Bartolomae or Gee to support or build it.

In Scott L. Newstok’s article titled, “How to think like Shakespeare” he explains how modern school systems have underprepared students for college. In it, he makes a bold claim stating that “you become a creator by wrestling with the legacy of your authoritative predecessors” (Newstok). Meaning that creation isn’t about making something new from nothing but rather connecting what is already there in a new way. This is similar to David Bartholomae’s ideas about tradition in his chapter “Against the Grain”. He explains that, for him, writing can’t happen until he imagines himself, “within a discourse- a kind of textual conversation/ confrontation with people whose work matters” (Bartholomae 194). Both Newstok and Bartholomae are hinting at the same thing, that in order to be able to create in the modern world you have to use what has already been created.

Finally, use any of our active reading tools (annotation, double-entry journal, idea map, response to reading questions,) to frame and pose a question about Discourse. What are you thinking about and how is our reading influencing your thought? Be sure to post a link to or an image of your strategy in use.

How integral are Discourses to personality? Are Discourses the entirety of a person? I have been thinking about this a lot because to me it almost sounds like Discourses are just another word for personality and I’m wondering if people agree with me or have other ideas about Discourses.

I framed these questions from my annotations on this page.