Today am trying to analyze another writing center student's revision work. Got 97 on stats exam. Maybe I have a new calling?
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Monday, November 09, 2009
NCPTW Fun
I enjoyed this conference immensely and went to several excellent presentations. One was a presentation about how peer tutors receive training from librarians in how to help students with research projects. The peer tutors conduct reference interviews and can work with students on the research and writing processes. Very cool stuff. I really think this model of peer tutoring is exceptional because it recognizes the interconnectedness of the research and writing processes and helps students get beyond thinking that one simply precedes the other.
A WC director and one of her tutors presented the results of a survey of faculty that indicated that although faculty value in student writing many of the same aspects that WC tutors value, they often don't consider the WC as a place to get help with those concerns (organization, development of ideas, thesis). It indicated that more communication needs to happen between the WC and faculty.
Throughout the conference there were discussions about the extent to which peer tutors serve as "informants" on the practices of certain instructors. Senior peer tutors know which professors want good thesis statements and which ones want particular fonts. Should peer tutors mediate instructors' expectations of students? Hmm...
The conference organizers chose the concept of leadership and many presenters emphasized how peer tutors can take leadership roles through activities such as developing tutor training programs. One peer tutor talked about how her WC uses recorded conferences to discuss ways to improve conferences.
I attended a good presentation by students and tutors who discussed L2 writers in the WC. A student presented about how she improved writing by working closely with a tutor and yet insisted to others that she will always "write with an accent." She realized that writing well did not mean making her "sound" like a native speaker. Tutors discussed the difficulties that are inherent in tutoring L2 writers and how to navigate them.
A WC director and one of her tutors presented the results of a survey of faculty that indicated that although faculty value in student writing many of the same aspects that WC tutors value, they often don't consider the WC as a place to get help with those concerns (organization, development of ideas, thesis). It indicated that more communication needs to happen between the WC and faculty.
Throughout the conference there were discussions about the extent to which peer tutors serve as "informants" on the practices of certain instructors. Senior peer tutors know which professors want good thesis statements and which ones want particular fonts. Should peer tutors mediate instructors' expectations of students? Hmm...
The conference organizers chose the concept of leadership and many presenters emphasized how peer tutors can take leadership roles through activities such as developing tutor training programs. One peer tutor talked about how her WC uses recorded conferences to discuss ways to improve conferences.
I attended a good presentation by students and tutors who discussed L2 writers in the WC. A student presented about how she improved writing by working closely with a tutor and yet insisted to others that she will always "write with an accent." She realized that writing well did not mean making her "sound" like a native speaker. Tutors discussed the difficulties that are inherent in tutoring L2 writers and how to navigate them.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Inelegant Variation
A recent conversation reminded me of Fowler's concept of "elegant variation" that today is known as "inelegant variation"--the practice of substituting an awkward word or phrase to avoid repeating a word or phrase in a sentence. In Fowler's day, "elegant" was a pejorative term. Since the word now has a positive meaning, his concept has been renamed. See this headline from Austin American Statesman that Garner cites: "Victim's Family Can Witness Death of Loved One's Killer." The reader must stop to consider whether "Victim" and "Loved One" refer to the same person. (Garner recommends dropping "Victim's.")
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Revisiting Vygotsky and the Forbidden Colors Task
It is fun to read the work of researchers who revisit studies conducted by big-name people in our field of learning theory. In this case someone as returned to study conducted by Leontiev that Vygotsky interpreted.
Recently I came across an article that challenges Vygotsky's conclusions about Leontiev's Forbidden Colors Task--conclusions that are included in Mind in Society. In the Forbidden Colors Task, children of different ages were asked 18 questions in four separate tasks. In the first task, the children were asked the questions; in the second, the children were told two color words that they could not use in their answers. The third task included the same constraint as the second task, but the children were also given nine colored cards to aid them. The fourth task was similar to the third.
What were the results? In short, the elementary-aged children made the same number of errors with and without the cards. Older children (8-9 years) had fewer errors when they could use the cards. Vygotsky believed that the results showed three separate stages of development: in the preschool stage, the child could not organize the external tools (the colored cards) to help with the task. In other words, their answers were not mediated by the external tools. Older children were able to use the external tools to mediate their answers, and adults could use internal tools (psychological tools) to mediate their answers.
When van der Veer replicated the study, he added an instruction phase after the fourth task.
The instruction was in both how to use the cards and how to use verbal strategies in the tasks (such as giving "funny" answers, as in the sky is pink). The number of errors severely dropped for all children after the instruction phase, but a closer analysis showed that there was no relation between errors and card use. Thus, the verbal strategy played a an important role. Van der veer also concluded that it is probably wrong to assume that the older children exclusively relied on the external tools--they most certainly brought internal strategies to the task as well. So does this call into question the simplicity of the non-mediated - external tools - internal tools trajectory of development? It is possible that the children in Leontiev's study relied more on the cards because they weren't given instruction in verbal strategies, but Van der veer seems to believe that Leontiev's study was probably not a good one for studying internalization....
Recently I came across an article that challenges Vygotsky's conclusions about Leontiev's Forbidden Colors Task--conclusions that are included in Mind in Society. In the Forbidden Colors Task, children of different ages were asked 18 questions in four separate tasks. In the first task, the children were asked the questions; in the second, the children were told two color words that they could not use in their answers. The third task included the same constraint as the second task, but the children were also given nine colored cards to aid them. The fourth task was similar to the third.
What were the results? In short, the elementary-aged children made the same number of errors with and without the cards. Older children (8-9 years) had fewer errors when they could use the cards. Vygotsky believed that the results showed three separate stages of development: in the preschool stage, the child could not organize the external tools (the colored cards) to help with the task. In other words, their answers were not mediated by the external tools. Older children were able to use the external tools to mediate their answers, and adults could use internal tools (psychological tools) to mediate their answers.
When van der Veer replicated the study, he added an instruction phase after the fourth task.
The instruction was in both how to use the cards and how to use verbal strategies in the tasks (such as giving "funny" answers, as in the sky is pink). The number of errors severely dropped for all children after the instruction phase, but a closer analysis showed that there was no relation between errors and card use. Thus, the verbal strategy played a an important role. Van der veer also concluded that it is probably wrong to assume that the older children exclusively relied on the external tools--they most certainly brought internal strategies to the task as well. So does this call into question the simplicity of the non-mediated - external tools - internal tools trajectory of development? It is possible that the children in Leontiev's study relied more on the cards because they weren't given instruction in verbal strategies, but Van der veer seems to believe that Leontiev's study was probably not a good one for studying internalization....
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Language, without its outward garb...
is thought, according to Sapir. From Language: "thought is nothing but language denuded of its outward garb." (223)
And he defines language. (Who is bold enough to do that?) "Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions, and desires by means of a system of voluntarily produced symbols." (8)
And he defines language. (Who is bold enough to do that?) "Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions, and desires by means of a system of voluntarily produced symbols." (8)
Saturday, June 13, 2009
More on Language
Talking about the language of the writing conference: a lot is said during a writing conference, but very little is done in terms of revision. Or perhaps I never noticed that talking about language changes requires a lot of, well, talking.
In the conference I am transcribing now (with 30) there is a lot talk about the lab procedures, the particular tasks they carried out and the correct way to report those results. The tutor is experienced and provides a lot of guidance about what the correct way to to this is. So much about a conference is correctness, the desire to bring things in line, not to push things out of line. At this stage, though, this is what they wanted. And the conversation is about how to bring ideas into alignment with what is expected of them.
I can't think of a time when they reject the advice, except for a time when an idea was expressed and the consultant was suggesting a different phrasing for that idea. Sometimes the consultant stays out of the process of re-phrasing and lets the students figure it out for themselves.
In the conference I am transcribing now (with 30) there is a lot talk about the lab procedures, the particular tasks they carried out and the correct way to report those results. The tutor is experienced and provides a lot of guidance about what the correct way to to this is. So much about a conference is correctness, the desire to bring things in line, not to push things out of line. At this stage, though, this is what they wanted. And the conversation is about how to bring ideas into alignment with what is expected of them.
I can't think of a time when they reject the advice, except for a time when an idea was expressed and the consultant was suggesting a different phrasing for that idea. Sometimes the consultant stays out of the process of re-phrasing and lets the students figure it out for themselves.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
readings
After reading the William's article, I am interested more in examining the relationship between time, the tutorial, and the revision. Williams piece is wonderful and I think that my research study could build on it. However, she has a clear method for measuring revision and I don't have that. There are several things that I just have not been able to
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Getting through the PhD
Things I learned at the panel on the last year of being a graduate student:
Take resume to WCogBeh for feedback.
Make sure you look at the calendar and carve out time for the professional conferences. The application will require three publications so make sure you have some good writing for your app. (You may include a cover letter to explain the contexts of the papers.)
Ask the question (at interview): What does a successful candidate for tenure look like?
Budget for the last year (lots of printing expenses).
The defense of the proposal is more important than the thesis defense.
Make sure you talk to everyone on your committee--not everyone needs to read things, but you should be willing to talk to people about what you are doing.
Finish the dissertation before you take the job--do not go in ABD unless you must.
Go to job talks here and learn about them.
You need to think about the letters that people will write about you when you choose people for your committee.
Take resume to WCogBeh for feedback.
Make sure you look at the calendar and carve out time for the professional conferences. The application will require three publications so make sure you have some good writing for your app. (You may include a cover letter to explain the contexts of the papers.)
Ask the question (at interview): What does a successful candidate for tenure look like?
Budget for the last year (lots of printing expenses).
The defense of the proposal is more important than the thesis defense.
Make sure you talk to everyone on your committee--not everyone needs to read things, but you should be willing to talk to people about what you are doing.
Finish the dissertation before you take the job--do not go in ABD unless you must.
Go to job talks here and learn about them.
You need to think about the letters that people will write about you when you choose people for your committee.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
A break from academics...
I went to Hawaii for my cousin's wedding and had the opportunity to go snorkeling at Waikiki Beach where I saw many varieties of tropical fish, including surgeonfish, butterfly fish, Golden Butterfly Fish, Reef Triggerfish, Parrotfish, Cornet fish, and Unicorn fish.
What was really fantastic was how so many different kinds of fish were swimming together over the reefs. I regularly saw parrotfish with butterfly fish and triggerfish. For some reason, the triggerfish were often alone, swimming far away from other groups of fish.
What was really fantastic was how so many different kinds of fish were swimming together over the reefs. I regularly saw parrotfish with butterfly fish and triggerfish. For some reason, the triggerfish were often alone, swimming far away from other groups of fish.
Monday, July 07, 2008
Comps Preparation
I have been doing more reading about the teaching of composition since my syllabus will focus on teaching writing teachers. A daunting task, in some respects. What are all of the things that they need to practice doing so that they feel able and ready in the classroom. Surely, there are some skills: responding to student writing and creating assignments that facilitate student learning are two.
As to commenting on student writing, the article that many people mention is the one by Nancy Sommers that paints the then-current situation in a negative light: teachers appropriate student writing, provide confusing comments that simultaneously ask students to fix local problems and make global revisions, and give advice that is vague and interchangeable with other student papers.
So these are things to avoid. Noted.
As to commenting on student writing, the article that many people mention is the one by Nancy Sommers that paints the then-current situation in a negative light: teachers appropriate student writing, provide confusing comments that simultaneously ask students to fix local problems and make global revisions, and give advice that is vague and interchangeable with other student papers.
So these are things to avoid. Noted.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Who vs. Whom (or Why Yoda Would Want to Keep Whom)
Who vs. Whom (or Why Yoda Would Want to Keep Whom)
Edward Sapir tells us that we don’t “chafe” at using sentences like “Whom did you see?” “without reason.” We hesitate to use “whom” in an interrogative sentence. Other relative and interrogative pronouns (which, what, that) do not differentiate between objective and subjective forms. “Whom,” then, seems to hint at a pattern that is not shared by words it would appear to be related to. One solution is to get rid of whom because the who/whom relationship is not found in which/what/that. Got it? Well, remember the scene in The Princess Bride when Wesley is insulting Prince Humperdink and telling him all the horrible—oops, I mean horrific—acts of mutilation and torture that he will inflict on the Prince? Wesley goes on and on…much like I’m about to do here.
The other reason why “whom” feels wrong to us is because of its relationship to interrogative adverbs such as how, when, and where. These, too, are not inflected and always possess the same outer form. Sapir thought that the tendency in interrogatives was to be constant and uninflected. Another reason why we should banish the whom. But wait…there’s another reason for abandoning whom: the difference between the subjective and objective pronouns is directly related to differences in position. E.g., we say “I saw him” and “He saw me”, but we don’t say “Him he saw.” (Sapir argues that constructions like “Him told he” are archaic and poetic and “against the drift of the language.” And in the interrogative sense, we never say, “Him did you see?” (Unless you’re Yoda.) Again, Sapir: “It is only in sentences of the type ‘Whom did you see?’ that an inflected objective before the verb is used at all.” Whom is needed, though, because the interrogative pronoun must come at the beginning of the sentence—e.g., “Where did you go?” or “When will you be here?” Thus, the solution to this conundrum is to keep the interrogative at the beginning of the sentence and not inflect it so that it is more in step with the prevailing patterns of the language. Thus, Who did you see? is where the language is headed, and not without good reasons.
Sapir is awesome.
Edward Sapir tells us that we don’t “chafe” at using sentences like “Whom did you see?” “without reason.” We hesitate to use “whom” in an interrogative sentence. Other relative and interrogative pronouns (which, what, that) do not differentiate between objective and subjective forms. “Whom,” then, seems to hint at a pattern that is not shared by words it would appear to be related to. One solution is to get rid of whom because the who/whom relationship is not found in which/what/that. Got it? Well, remember the scene in The Princess Bride when Wesley is insulting Prince Humperdink and telling him all the horrible—oops, I mean horrific—acts of mutilation and torture that he will inflict on the Prince? Wesley goes on and on…much like I’m about to do here.
The other reason why “whom” feels wrong to us is because of its relationship to interrogative adverbs such as how, when, and where. These, too, are not inflected and always possess the same outer form. Sapir thought that the tendency in interrogatives was to be constant and uninflected. Another reason why we should banish the whom. But wait…there’s another reason for abandoning whom: the difference between the subjective and objective pronouns is directly related to differences in position. E.g., we say “I saw him” and “He saw me”, but we don’t say “Him he saw.” (Sapir argues that constructions like “Him told he” are archaic and poetic and “against the drift of the language.” And in the interrogative sense, we never say, “Him did you see?” (Unless you’re Yoda.) Again, Sapir: “It is only in sentences of the type ‘Whom did you see?’ that an inflected objective before the verb is used at all.” Whom is needed, though, because the interrogative pronoun must come at the beginning of the sentence—e.g., “Where did you go?” or “When will you be here?” Thus, the solution to this conundrum is to keep the interrogative at the beginning of the sentence and not inflect it so that it is more in step with the prevailing patterns of the language. Thus, Who did you see? is where the language is headed, and not without good reasons.
Sapir is awesome.
Friday, April 04, 2008
April 4
April 4, 2008
The first presentation I attended was about assessing writing centers, teaching information literacy in the writing center, and designing a writing program that covers about three years. I was introduced to Zotero, a FireFox extension that enables users to save sources. Stanford University has actually created their own browser toolbar that students can install. It lets them access the university catalog and databases (it is called FastJack). I think it's cool that the university has developed its own browser add-in that lets students always have access to materials.
One of the presenters discussed bigthink.com, which is trying to be the academic YouTube.
One of the best presentations I have been to was the one about using "This I Believe" radio essays to teach composition. The outreach director of "This I Believe" was at this presentation, and she talked about how the show was started. I guess the producer at NPR was also thinking about reviving "This I Believe" and approved the proposal soon after he received it. I also met Cole Bennett, who with a colleague developed a curriculum that is on the "This I Believe" website. Their curriculum is very popular and might be sold through iTunes. Bennett discussed the advantages of teaching students to compose radio essays, emphasizing that they teach students to establish ethos and make their private identities public by finding ways to appeal to an audience. Bennett said that they are going to be collaborating more with the communication department in the future.
The first presentation I attended was about assessing writing centers, teaching information literacy in the writing center, and designing a writing program that covers about three years. I was introduced to Zotero, a FireFox extension that enables users to save sources. Stanford University has actually created their own browser toolbar that students can install. It lets them access the university catalog and databases (it is called FastJack). I think it's cool that the university has developed its own browser add-in that lets students always have access to materials.
One of the presenters discussed bigthink.com, which is trying to be the academic YouTube.
One of the best presentations I have been to was the one about using "This I Believe" radio essays to teach composition. The outreach director of "This I Believe" was at this presentation, and she talked about how the show was started. I guess the producer at NPR was also thinking about reviving "This I Believe" and approved the proposal soon after he received it. I also met Cole Bennett, who with a colleague developed a curriculum that is on the "This I Believe" website. Their curriculum is very popular and might be sold through iTunes. Bennett discussed the advantages of teaching students to compose radio essays, emphasizing that they teach students to establish ethos and make their private identities public by finding ways to appeal to an audience. Bennett said that they are going to be collaborating more with the communication department in the future.
Thursday, April 03, 2008
More conference stuff...
Today several of the presenters discussed the need for more research that is replicable, aggregable, and data-driven. This means that compositionists are adopting more quantitative measures to analyze, for example, the effects of testing on student writers. One panel presented data that showed that ESL students perform less well on on timed writing exams than students whose native language is English. (This isn't really new. We've known for a while that minorities and students from economically disadvantaged households struggle with standardized tests.)
Other observations about technology at this conference. There is discussion about having students create multi-modal texts. One instructor had his students create a Facebook page for Saddam Hussein. I don’t why I think that that is really funny. One presenter discussed a student who resisted the assignments and could not understand the assignment’s relevance to his education. The presenter discussed ways of making these assignments relevant by discussing concepts such as audience. Clearly more and more junior faculty are talking about multimodal literacies and ways that we can teach students to examine the potential these technologies have for communication.
Other observations about technology at this conference. There is discussion about having students create multi-modal texts. One instructor had his students create a Facebook page for Saddam Hussein. I don’t why I think that that is really funny. One presenter discussed a student who resisted the assignments and could not understand the assignment’s relevance to his education. The presenter discussed ways of making these assignments relevant by discussing concepts such as audience. Clearly more and more junior faculty are talking about multimodal literacies and ways that we can teach students to examine the potential these technologies have for communication.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Croquet, Social Chemistry Not Required, and Runaway Trolley
First Technology Presentation: University of Maryland University College's Effective Writing Center
They only offer electronic tutoring. Students go to the website and submit a draft online that is tracked in a ColdFusion database. Students receive feedback from "advisers" who record an introductory statement with Audacity or Dragon Naturally Speaking in which they introduce themselves and talk briefly about the advice they are going to provide. The textual commentary the tutor provides is based on a template that all advisers at the EWC use.
The presenters cited these advantages of tutoring online: the advice they provide can be more carefully crafted in an e-mail message; students don't have the stigma of going to the writing center; tutors have access to the tutoring histories of their students; tutors don't need to develop rapport or worry about social chemistry; and students have access to tutoring (at UMUC) every day of the year.
The Effective Writing Center uses avatars from Character Builder to deliver instructional content on their website, but they want to expand their use of the avatars and create one for each adviser. (They need to purchase an additional license from Character Builder to do this.) The advisers will then be able to record audio feedback with Audacity or Dragon N.S. and have their avatar deliver the feedback online. They want to expand their use of avatars and use them to "read" the feedback that is sent to students.
These presenters insisted that writing centers need to adopt more online instruction because students want more online instruction and may turn to for-profit, online schools such as University of Phoenix. These presenters tried to paint a doomsday scenario for brick-and-mortar writing centers, but I was not persuaded. First, institutions like The University of Iowa are not necessarily competing for the kinds of students who will go to U. of Phoenix. Also, many students still prefer face-to-face tutoring. However, many deans of institutions are undoubtedly concerned about these institutions that offer degrees online.
The discussion turned to the Croquet project, which is a consortium of schools who are developing a virtual world that will be like Second Life, but for education institutions. Currently Duke is involved with this project.
Presentation 2:
Purdue's New Online Writing Center Website
The assistant director of the Purdue OWL discussed how they conducted extensive usability testing of their website by interviewing many people about their experiences with their new designs.
(Stay tuned for the trolley stuff...)
Yesterday I walked past the filming of a movie. While I was walking down Canal Street, I saw a trolley car that was pushing a car down the tracks. The occupants of the car were screaming and smoke was pouring out of the car. I was wondering why all the streets were closed. Later, when I came out of a mall, I noticed the trolley being pulled back into the place (the car was still attached).
They only offer electronic tutoring. Students go to the website and submit a draft online that is tracked in a ColdFusion database. Students receive feedback from "advisers" who record an introductory statement with Audacity or Dragon Naturally Speaking in which they introduce themselves and talk briefly about the advice they are going to provide. The textual commentary the tutor provides is based on a template that all advisers at the EWC use.
The presenters cited these advantages of tutoring online: the advice they provide can be more carefully crafted in an e-mail message; students don't have the stigma of going to the writing center; tutors have access to the tutoring histories of their students; tutors don't need to develop rapport or worry about social chemistry; and students have access to tutoring (at UMUC) every day of the year.
The Effective Writing Center uses avatars from Character Builder to deliver instructional content on their website, but they want to expand their use of the avatars and create one for each adviser. (They need to purchase an additional license from Character Builder to do this.) The advisers will then be able to record audio feedback with Audacity or Dragon N.S. and have their avatar deliver the feedback online. They want to expand their use of avatars and use them to "read" the feedback that is sent to students.
These presenters insisted that writing centers need to adopt more online instruction because students want more online instruction and may turn to for-profit, online schools such as University of Phoenix. These presenters tried to paint a doomsday scenario for brick-and-mortar writing centers, but I was not persuaded. First, institutions like The University of Iowa are not necessarily competing for the kinds of students who will go to U. of Phoenix. Also, many students still prefer face-to-face tutoring. However, many deans of institutions are undoubtedly concerned about these institutions that offer degrees online.
The discussion turned to the Croquet project, which is a consortium of schools who are developing a virtual world that will be like Second Life, but for education institutions. Currently Duke is involved with this project.
Presentation 2:
Purdue's New Online Writing Center Website
The assistant director of the Purdue OWL discussed how they conducted extensive usability testing of their website by interviewing many people about their experiences with their new designs.
(Stay tuned for the trolley stuff...)
Yesterday I walked past the filming of a movie. While I was walking down Canal Street, I saw a trolley car that was pushing a car down the tracks. The occupants of the car were screaming and smoke was pouring out of the car. I was wondering why all the streets were closed. Later, when I came out of a mall, I noticed the trolley being pulled back into the place (the car was still attached).
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Getting Ready...
'm greatly looking forward to the all-day workshop entitled "Writing Center Realities." Some of the presenters are involved with high-profile writing centers, such as Purdue's OWL, which in addition to serving the university community also is dedicated to serving the entire world. Tammy Conrad-Salvo will be presenting on how they have redone their website (owl.english.purdue.edu).
I also notice that Michelle Eodice will be talking about action research, which is a genre that I've learned a little about over the past several years. Action researchers want to work with teachers and tutors to implement new instructional strategies. In education this is getting more popular because of how people want to connect research to improved practice. Michelle Eodice co-authored a book about writing centers that draws on the theories of Etienne Wenger. Wenger described communiteis of practice as groups that have mutual engagement, shared repertoire, and joint enterprise. The community of practice can be a helpful lens for analyzing a group of learners because the theory emphasizes the negotiation of identity in social interaction. Writing teachers, for example, want their students to negotiate writerly identities through participation in activities.
I have a funny story about Wenger, though. In his book he includes an example about who participates in a family. (For Wenger, participation is big because it is through participating in communities that we can negotiate how we relate to groups.) He writes that the family dog can participate in a family, but a goldfish cannot. I have never forgotten that poor, non-participating fish.
ANYWAY...back to writing centers. This workshop will have talks on social justice, technology, tutor training, assessment of writing centers, and more. This is pretty normal for writing centers because people take up many issues....
Looking through the rest of the program, I find many many sessions on technology. Peoplare are talking about the teaching of composition online, how students use online sources, how we can develop new theories of hypertextual writing. I need a clone to go around to all these sessions...
I also notice that Michelle Eodice will be talking about action research, which is a genre that I've learned a little about over the past several years. Action researchers want to work with teachers and tutors to implement new instructional strategies. In education this is getting more popular because of how people want to connect research to improved practice. Michelle Eodice co-authored a book about writing centers that draws on the theories of Etienne Wenger. Wenger described communiteis of practice as groups that have mutual engagement, shared repertoire, and joint enterprise. The community of practice can be a helpful lens for analyzing a group of learners because the theory emphasizes the negotiation of identity in social interaction. Writing teachers, for example, want their students to negotiate writerly identities through participation in activities.
I have a funny story about Wenger, though. In his book he includes an example about who participates in a family. (For Wenger, participation is big because it is through participating in communities that we can negotiate how we relate to groups.) He writes that the family dog can participate in a family, but a goldfish cannot. I have never forgotten that poor, non-participating fish.
ANYWAY...back to writing centers. This workshop will have talks on social justice, technology, tutor training, assessment of writing centers, and more. This is pretty normal for writing centers because people take up many issues....
Looking through the rest of the program, I find many many sessions on technology. Peoplare are talking about the teaching of composition online, how students use online sources, how we can develop new theories of hypertextual writing. I need a clone to go around to all these sessions...
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Conference on College Composition and Communication
I will be attending the Conference on College Composition and Communication in New Orleans on April 1-5. Kyle has asked me to blog this conference and write about the sessions that are related to teaching with technology. Now, I have a hard time believing that most of you would be interested in reading about composition theory and how technology mediates people's writing processes, so I will do my best to be relevant, insightful, and inquisitive. To keep things lively, I may drop in some gems from my favorite lunchtime reading (such as this great one: "horrific, horrendous, horrible, horrid"--The words are listed in decreasing degree of horror).
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Working on my stuff
Today I came across an article in Computers and Community: Teaching Composition in the 21st Century about the social effects of computers in the classroom. The Sage Handbook on E-Learning REsearch also has a lot of things about it. These are two resources I need to continue looking into.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Well, here goes.
I am going to read the plays in the complete works of William Shakespeare. I'll begin with the earliest plays, as defined in the Riverside Shakespeare. Look here for my insights and questions as I read these works.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
First Post
Hello! This is Sam's blog where you can read about bardolatry and other things he's into.
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