Introduction and Rationale
Many teachers feel constraint in choosing to teach poetry beyond core curriculum requirements, partly due to the time limitations imposed by state test preparation. Others perceive the genre to exist in a realm beyond their expertise or understanding, and they steer clear of too much involvement with it. Last, some teachers and curriculum officers may see poetry instruction as a luxury, and not deserving of much instructional time. Poetry, like art and music in many school programs, is often among the first study units to be scaled back.
But instruction in the reading and writing of poetry is in some ways preferable to writing instruction directed toward learning discrete writing skills, such as those required in developing the five-paragraph essay. Whereas traditionally-sanctioned school composition relies on factual support at least, and sustained description at most, the process of creating poetry depends on metaphoric thinking, startling imagery, close attention to the sounds of language, and precision in the choice of words and phrases. These characteristics are critical in the generation of solid writing—poetry or prose; and their absence leaves a reading diet bland and lacking in nourishment. So reading and writing poetry is actually more than an enhancement; it is essential in reading and writing instruction.
The intended consumers in this teaching unit are vocational students, whose primary interest in the secondary school setting is preparation for a career in various technical, service and trade occupations. For this reason, the poetry that is selected reflects the people, places, and activities associated with three specific and one general category of careers. The first is for those in service careers, including law and law enforcement, the medical professions, culinary services, cosmetology, technical, computer and office services; and work in the financial services industries. The second category of occupations is blue-collar trade—carpentry, electricity, and engine technology. The third class of career studies is that of computer technology, including hardware, software and networking technologies; and technical drafting. A final category of selected poetry is more generally related to work—that is, it concerns participation in the workforce, or labor as a means of survival and vocation.
What informs this unit is the all-too-real understanding that perhaps the senior and junior years in a vocational school represent the last chance for teachers to immerse students in modes of language that go beyond the pragmatic, and touch the power and beauty of language in the service of art. Even though vocational schools are pretty uniformly directed toward preparing students for stable, high-paying jobs, it is my belief that the understanding of language and mastery of its operation are the ultimate tools with which to equip the worker!
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