Reading 3: Anne Lamott, “Shitty First Drafts” + Outside source OR Kalev Leetaru, “How Data and Information Literacy Could End Fake News”

Reading 3: Anne Lamott, “Shitty First Drafts” + Outside source OR Kalev Leetaru, “How Data and Information Literacy Could End Fake News”

In “Shitty First Drafts,” Anne Lamott shares her experiences as a professional writer, particularly the messy drafts and rewriting that are a necessary part of the writing process. While Baca and Bieda celebrate the power of writing, Lamott focuses on the frustration and loathing that comes with writing something you’re not yet sure of. For Lamott, difficult (even shitty) beginnings are a necessary stage in the writing process that writers must push through in order to refine their writing and thinking and discover what they truly want to say. 

Anne Lamott published this essay in 1994, before the evolving AI tools of today that promise to fix our messy writing (though spellcheck and other computer-mediated technologies were making their own impacts on writers’ composing processes at that time). What does generative AI mean for messy thinking, “shitty” drafts, and how we think about writing processes today? Does GenAI “rob” students and writers “of the motivation to write and think for themselves,” as writers like Naomi S. Baron suggest? Is there still room for the messy process that Lamott described before the advent of natural language processing (NLP) technologies like ChatGPT? 

In “How Data and Information Literacy Could End Fake News,” Kalev Leetaru argues that “at its core, the rise of ‘fake news’ is first and foremost a sign that we have failed as a society to teach our citizens how to think critically about data and information.” In the current moment, fact checking is simultaneously more complex and more pressing than it has ever been before. With the rise and advancement of AI, how do Leetaru’s concerns regarding data and information literacy read now? In order to conduct research and write essays for this course; critical thinking and evaluating information are vital in creating your own work and arguments. This is a multi-step assignment that asks you to investigate this issue further in order to consider solutions to the problems Leetaru addresses. Is there still room for the messy responsibility and process of evaluating and fact-checking information in this new age of AI tools and other technologies? Consider that this was written in 2016 by Leetaru, and consider how much AI and technology has developed and advanced since then. 

Write an essay in which you propose how writing processes and educational requirements have changed or should change in response to the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence (AI). The purpose of this essay is for you to consider different perspectives on writing and on AI technology in order to take your own position. Consider how AI tools are changing the way we approach writing and what this means for the creative process that Lamott describes. View the “Artificial Intelligence” or “Technology in Education” or “Fake News on Social Media” topic clusters in the Gale Opposing Viewpoints Database and locate 1-2 additional sources that help you consider the impact of AI on writing processes today and in the future. 

Further questions to consider include:

• How might AI tools complement or conflict with Lamott’s approach to writing? What are the potential benefits and drawbacks of relying on AI for drafting and editing?

• How is receiving human feedback (from peer reviewers or your instructor, for example) different from receiving suggestions or edits from a GenAI tool? 

• How does changing the way we write (through AI) change the way we think through writing? How does it change the way we think about writing (for example, as a place to be creative, or a process for figuring something out)?

Further questions to explore and consider regarding Leetaru’s viewpoint of literacy and education include:

• Why is information literacy so complicated? Why is information literacy so complex? 
• How should information literacy be addressed in schools? If so, what responsibilities do the providers, creators and consumers of information and media have in this issue? about those who are already out of school? 
• Is information literacy a local, national, or global issue? How does information literacy affect global, national, and local issues? 

Step 1:

View the “Artificial Intelligence” or “Technology in Education” topic clusters in the Gale Opposing Viewpoints Database, and identify sources that interest you and that address topics related to AI and writing. For Leetaru, view the “Artificial Intelligence,” “Technology in Education,” or the “Fake News in Social Media” topic clusters in Gale Opposing Viewpoints Database. You are permitted to use one of the following ONLY: Featured Viewpoints, Viewpoints, or Journal Article in Gale. Sources must be peer reviewed. Note: You will notice that Gale sometimes renames sources for inclusion in their database, particularly for Viewpoint essays. Be sure to locate the original publication information so that you know where and when your source was originally published. 

Step 2:

Read your selected articles and identify their argument and their implications for writing: what are their greatest concerns, and how do they relate to purposes and processes of writing? 

Step 3:

Choose 1-2 sources that help you consider the impact of AI on writing processes today and in the future. Write an essay in which you consider different perspectives on writing and on AI technology in order to take your own position.

Formatting and Requirements:

• Write your essay directly in a space that saves as you go.

• Your essay should possess a creative and unique essay title. “Essay 3” or any variations like the example will receive deducted points.

• Your essay should be approximately 4-5 full pages in length (roughly around 1200-1400 words).

• Include your name, Instructor Blankman, class and date in the upper left corner of the 1st page.

• Format your essay according to MLA guidelines (see Documenting Sources: MLA Style in Achieve).

• You should have a total of 2-3 sources (including the primary text that you choose).

• Include a Works Cited page listing all sources you used or consulted. Check your Module 4 for the proper way to cite our eBook and how to cite outside writing tools. At this point in the semester, there is no excuse for having an incorrect or incomplete Works Cited page.