Composition studies includes both schools of teaching focused on working with the whole student. These approaches, particularly expressivist pedagogies developed by Peter Elbow, Kevin Macrorie, Donald Murray and others prompt the student to be aware of how s/he feels as s/he writes, to allow the writing to grow (or cook as Elbow puts it), and to be mindful of how relationships to writing affect the writing process. So it is not like we are breaking into completely unexplored territory. At the same time, these pedagogical approaches have often been criticized for being too "touchy feely" or insufficiently grounded in theory. They primarily provide suggestions for classroom moves, or recommend practices for writers. While activities such as freewriting do have a theory to explain why they work, there is less theory (and practice) that provides us for how to take apart, understand, and use what we find in our freewriting in ways that helps us become more conscious, more powerful (and more comfortable) writers.
The purpose of our review of theory and practice from composition studies is to lay a basis in what other researchers have already established. Whether their findings are "right" or "wrong" is something we might discuss - but at least we won't start the course with the false assumption that we are breaking completely new territory.
Some of the pedagogical approaches that I have put out there as the most relevant to our project, include new literacy approaches to teaching writing, especially as engendered by James Gee's work; Kathleen Blake Yancey's work with reflection; Sondra Perl's work on felt sense, and the work of individuals who have developed pedagogies based in personal writing, especially personal writing associated with trauma.
Researchers whose work we will review (and names of sudents who will take the lead in class discussion) are listed below.
What to include in your presentation.
1. An overview of the ideas and practices central to this pedagogical approach. Define key terms. Direct us to where these ideas/practices/terms are defined.
2. Give us some interactive discussion or get us to work on some data or some writing so that we "do" whatever your theorist's pedagogy does. For example, for Yancey, you might engage is in using "talk to" and "talk back" reflections for a peice of writing, or you might have us analyze what is going on in the sample from Yancey's texts.
3. Engage us in discussion of whether and how well this approach addresses writing issues from our list of really important things we learned about writing. In this discussion we will want to pay particular attention to how this approach teaches the kinds of "moves" that we, as writers, would need to make in order to learn about our identities, our relationships to writing, our assumptions about what it is to be a writer, etc. You, as the discussion leader, are not obliged to have all the answers = just bring your ideas and be prepared to press us into deeply thought talk.
Texts for discussion 1/30/13
Texts available in the Writing Center are in the graduate student office. Ask one of the GAs, or the receptionist to get them for you.
James Paul Gee (presenter - Sally)
"Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: An Introduction (sent to you as an email);
Language building tasks and associated questions that language researchers might ask (handout 1/23)Good learning principles from What Video Games Have to Teach Us about Learning and Literacy (I will hand this out during class as part of my presentation).
Kathleen Blake Yancey (presenters Mary, Nikki, & Heather)
Reflection in the Writing Classroom, especially Chapters 1-4. This book is available as downloadable pdfs by chapter through Project Muse, in hard copy and as an ebook through the Kean library, and in the writing center.
Sondra Perl (Heidi)
Felt Sense: Writing with the Body. Available as a hard copy in the writing center. A short version of the prompts + discussion of Perl's work is available at Sondra Perl's Composing Guidelines.
Texts for discussion 2/6/13
The purpose of our review of theory and practice from composition studies is to lay a basis in what other researchers have already established. Whether their findings are "right" or "wrong" is something we might discuss - but at least we won't start the course with the false assumption that we are breaking completely new territory.
Some of the pedagogical approaches that I have put out there as the most relevant to our project, include new literacy approaches to teaching writing, especially as engendered by James Gee's work; Kathleen Blake Yancey's work with reflection; Sondra Perl's work on felt sense, and the work of individuals who have developed pedagogies based in personal writing, especially personal writing associated with trauma.
Researchers whose work we will review (and names of sudents who will take the lead in class discussion) are listed below.
What to include in your presentation.
1. An overview of the ideas and practices central to this pedagogical approach. Define key terms. Direct us to where these ideas/practices/terms are defined.
2. Give us some interactive discussion or get us to work on some data or some writing so that we "do" whatever your theorist's pedagogy does. For example, for Yancey, you might engage is in using "talk to" and "talk back" reflections for a peice of writing, or you might have us analyze what is going on in the sample from Yancey's texts.
3. Engage us in discussion of whether and how well this approach addresses writing issues from our list of really important things we learned about writing. In this discussion we will want to pay particular attention to how this approach teaches the kinds of "moves" that we, as writers, would need to make in order to learn about our identities, our relationships to writing, our assumptions about what it is to be a writer, etc. You, as the discussion leader, are not obliged to have all the answers = just bring your ideas and be prepared to press us into deeply thought talk.
Texts for discussion 1/30/13
Texts available in the Writing Center are in the graduate student office. Ask one of the GAs, or the receptionist to get them for you.
James Paul Gee (presenter - Sally)
"Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: An Introduction (sent to you as an email);
Language building tasks and associated questions that language researchers might ask (handout 1/23)Good learning principles from What Video Games Have to Teach Us about Learning and Literacy (I will hand this out during class as part of my presentation).
Kathleen Blake Yancey (presenters Mary, Nikki, & Heather)
Reflection in the Writing Classroom, especially Chapters 1-4. This book is available as downloadable pdfs by chapter through Project Muse, in hard copy and as an ebook through the Kean library, and in the writing center.
Sondra Perl (Heidi)
Felt Sense: Writing with the Body. Available as a hard copy in the writing center. A short version of the prompts + discussion of Perl's work is available at Sondra Perl's Composing Guidelines.
Texts for discussion 2/6/13
James Pennebaker (Andre, Wayne & Robyn)
We will be reading excerpts from Opening Up. Pay particular attention to his descriptions of the original "experiments," p. 29-37, and Chapter 7, "Understanding the Value of Writing" (reprints available in the writing center) My copy of Opening Up will also be in the writing center. For a brief overview see "Writing about emotional experiences as a therapeutic process," as short summary of some of the work from his book.
Louise DeSalvo (Lewis)
Writing as a Way of Healing: How Telling Stories Transforms Our Lives. Available through Amazon for pretty cheap. Lewis currently has the only copy. For those of you scanning the book focus on chapters 5 & 6, practices for drawing on "felt" perspectives.
We will be reading excerpts from Opening Up. Pay particular attention to his descriptions of the original "experiments," p. 29-37, and Chapter 7, "Understanding the Value of Writing" (reprints available in the writing center) My copy of Opening Up will also be in the writing center. For a brief overview see "Writing about emotional experiences as a therapeutic process," as short summary of some of the work from his book.
Louise DeSalvo (Lewis)
Writing as a Way of Healing: How Telling Stories Transforms Our Lives. Available through Amazon for pretty cheap. Lewis currently has the only copy. For those of you scanning the book focus on chapters 5 & 6, practices for drawing on "felt" perspectives.
Marian MacCurdy (Luis + Maria)
The class will focus on her essay, From Trauma to Writing, (which I have copied and which is available as a handout in the writing center), pp. 158-200, in Writing and Healing: Toward an Informed Practice.
The class will focus on her essay, From Trauma to Writing, (which I have copied and which is available as a handout in the writing center), pp. 158-200, in Writing and Healing: Toward an Informed Practice.
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