Other Rhetoric and Composition Commons^™

Eng 110 Rhetorical Situation Worksheet, Catrina E. Vininski, Missy Watson

Open Educational Resources

This rhetorical situation worksheet asks students to analyze a text based on the rhetorical situation. Students must identify the significance of the context for which the text was published, the author of the text, the genre, the audience, the purpose, the argument, and the evidence that the author uses to support their claims. This can be used for course readings, films, or other types of texts that you assign over the course of the semester.

Eng 110 Language And Literacy Narrative And Rhetorical Analysis, Catrina E. Vininski, Missy Watson

Open Educational Resources

The assignment gives students the option to either write a narrative based on their own experience with language and literacy, utilizing aspects of the rhetorical situation, or write a rhetorical analysis based on a text of their choice while applying the rhetorical situation. Both options include an overview of the assignment, along with requirements and a rubric. This is intended to be taught in the middle of the semester, after the instructor has already thoroughly explained the rhetorical situation and students have been given the opportunity to apply their learning.

Queering Composition Pedagogy: Camp-Informed Teaching Within Florida's Censorship, Isabelle V. Karleskint

Feminist Pedagogy

This social justice strategy article examines composition teaching within Florida colleges and universities over a seven-year period of intense political and social change. These institutions carry different levels of protection from Florida's censorship and anti-LGBTQIA+ laws. Using principles from Susan Sontag's 1964 "Notes On Camp," the author examines strategies for navigating these boundaries and creating safe, inclusive spaces for students while flying under the oppressive state government's 'radar.' This article found that teaching which includes multimodality, popular culture, digital learning, inclusive content, and identity politics can 'camp' pedagogy, with benefits to students and low risk to faculty. However, it also …

Author(Iz)Ing Literacy: A Rhetorical/Historical Analysis Of Literacy For College Readiness In Kentucky From Kera To The Common Core (And Beyond)., Susannah Kilbourne

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation traces the economy of documents representing literacy for college readiness through an analysis of the interplay of literacy theory, literacy policy, and policy documentation. Specifically, this dissertation examines how college-level literacy is defined in Kentucky through a network of related documents. With Latour’s Actor-Network Theory serving as a theoretical frame, this dissertation tracks not only the vast and interconnected system of compositions operating as articulations of college-level literacy but also the presence (or absence) of rhetoric and composition’s compositions within the network of relations defining literacy for college readiness. This dissertation is divided into five chapters. Chapter One …

Writing For The Humanities And The Arts, Olivia Wood

Open Educational Resources

This is the syllabus, course calendar, and grading contract used for Olivia Wood's section of ENGL 210: Writing in the Humanities and the Arts at City College in Spring 2023. Students write opinion editorials in the first unit, research a genre of their choosing and create a "genre guide" to help others write in that genre during the second unit, and then complete a multimodal project in the third unit, perhaps using their own or a classmate's genre guide to assist them.

Linguistically Diverse Writers And The Shaping Of A Scholarly Ethos: Rhetorical Listening As A Strategy In Composition Pedagogy, Ashlynn T. Rader

West Chester University Master’s Theses

This thesis project advocates for a more inclusive approach to writing instruction, challenging traditional pedagogical practices that have historically excluded marginalized groups from fully participating in academic discourse. This project highlights the ways that Aristotelian interpretations of ethos continue to inform and shape contemporary writing pedagogy, despite their potential outdatedness in the context of the 21st-century composition classroom. By examining the Conference of College Composition and Communication's policy resolution entitled Students' Right to Their Own Language, this project recognizes the presence of linguistically diverse writers and their historical, ongoing struggle for academic legitimacy. Furthermore, this project proposes rhetorical listening …

Dewey In The Digital Age: Experiential Composition And Reflection As Transformation, Danielle Shumaker Page

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This thesis explores the act of composing as a transformational, ongoing event and offers digital reflection as a tool for first-year writing students to evaluate their own writing practices. I analyze student vlogs produced in response to an assignment that asked students to produce digital reflections on their work as writers across the process of completing a final course project. My findings suggest that adapting experiential learning principles, digital and non-digital, into composition classroom design creates and facilitates writing experiences that are immersive and transformational. Crucial to designing learning occasions is the process of active reflection upon what the writer …

Queer Rhetorical Agency In Fort Lauderdale Tourist Lgbtq+ Advertisements, Jordan I. Guido

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

The following case study focuses on the implicit and explicit rhetorical messages in LGBTQ+ focused travel advertisements following Waitt and Markwell’s (2014) observations of LGBTQ+ advertisements increasingly gaining prominence within the mainstream promotional material. The case study investigates the queer messaging within Fort Lauderdale’s national 2015-2017 Hello Sunny Campaign; heralded for its groundbreaking LGBTQ+ and Trans representation. The scholarship that informs this study are at the intersections of composition and rhetoric, queer composition, and queer tourism studies. The methodology for the case study includes a rhetorical analysis incorporating a new materialistic lens. The two promotional images were analyzed for their …

Fiqws Composition: People, David Stoler

Open Educational Resources

A week by week syllabus that includes instructions for student groups to create an on-line "guide book" instead of a basic portfolio.

Moving Beyond Grades: A Shift In Assessing First-Year Composition, Matthew Goldman

English (MA) Theses

In Spring 2020, I conducted an I.R.B. approved study with the students in my English 103: Writing About Writing course. I wanted to determine how students felt about the two grading models—a qualitative-grading system vs a modified form of contract grading that I called a participation-based system—at two separate points in the semester. Early on I gave students a survey gathering data about their past experiences with both models. Prior to enrollment in my course, none had experienced a participation-based classroom, but everyone was familiar and comfortable with grading rubrics. The survey had 21 questions and gauged concepts from the …

The Prince -- Brief Synopsis -- Powerpoint, Zach Davidson

Open Educational Resources

This is a very brief PowerPoint covering some key ideas in Machiavelli's THE PRINCE.

Rhetorical Genre Theory And Whiteness, Greg W. Childs

IdeaFest: Interdisciplinary Journal of Creative Works and Research from Cal Poly Humboldt

No abstract provided.

The Mysterious Incident Of The Missing Title: Why Did Titular Concern Vanish From Composition Studies?, John Lamothe

Publications

How much time, if any, do first-year writing instructors spend in class discussing the importance of titles on their students’ papers? Without looking at a mountain of lesson plans or interviewing a plethora of instructors from across the country, it is impossible to know what is and what isn’t commonly taught in first-year composition courses. Admittedly, introductory writing and research classes can vary greatly from institution to institution and even from instructor to instructor within the same department. However, judging by an examination of current First-Year Composition textbooks, Rhet/Comp scholars place little importance on discussing the effect of titles on …

How To Win Papers And Influence Professors: Creating Positive First Impressions Through Effective Titles, John Lamothe

Publications

By the time you finish reading this first sentence, you’ve already started forming a first impression about this article. In fact, you really started forming it after reading the title. With the words, “How to Win Papers and Influence Professors,” a spoof on the popular Dale Carnegie book, “How to Win Friends & Influence People,” I already began establishing a tone and setting up expectations for you, the reader. Whether you realized it or not, you had a reaction to that title. This shouldn’t come as a great shock. It’s human nature to form quick first impressions; we’ve all been …

Fiqws Fall 2018: Phase 2 Assignment Prompt The Exploratory Essay, Sabina Pringle, Missy Watson

Open Educational Resources

This phase two writing assignment prompt for FIQWS 10003 - HA1 WCGI History & Culture and FIQWS 10103 - HA1 Composition for WCGI History & Culture (fall 2018) provides guidelines for writing an Exploratory Essay in which students will consider the ideas of course readings and compose an essay that demonstrates their engagement with those ideas. The rhetorical purpose of this assignment is for students to demonstrate the ways in which their thinking about language and literacy has developed so far in the course, using evidence based on interpretations, ideas, and examples as well as passages from four or five …

A Matter Of Value: Creative Writing Strategies And Their Transference To Composition, Brandy Dawn Clark

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Creative writing and composition seem to be taken, at least in the academic world, as separate and unequal entities. While there are many questions in the research and answers in the research as to why creativity is important, its practical application in the composition classroom is not readily discussed because there is not unanimous agreement as to if creative writing even belongs in the composition classroom. Practical application of creative writing in the composition classroom gives teachers the opportunity to see why it is important, to see why it is valuable, and to incorporate it into already meticulous class standards. …

Best Practice: Bringing The Elements Of Effective Practice To The College Writing Classroom, Jonathan Montgomery Green

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Studies of college writing students suggest that many students associate writing ability with innate talent rather than sustained, deliberate practice. As a result, these students may lack the motivation to improve their writing abilities, leading to a vicious cycle in which they come to increasingly resent writing as a curricular and extracurricular activity. This dissertation argues that the elements of effective practice as outlined by cognitive psychology are equally applicable to writing as they are to skills such as music and that convincing students of the “practice-ability” of writing may improve their motivation to improve their writing abilities.

The dissertation …

Teaching College Writing To High School Students: A Mixed Methods Investigation Of Dual Enrollment Composition Students' Writing Curriculum And Writing Self-Efficacy, Erin Dena Scott-Stewart

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to use a quantitative survey to assess the relationships between the credit pathways students choose to earn first-year, first-semester (FYFS) university writing credit (i.e. dual enrollment, Advanced Placement, university courses, and ACT/SAT exemptions) and several writing experiences and outcomes, including writing curriculum, self-efficacy, self-regulatory strategy use, and course performance. The same survey was also used to explore relationships between these writing experiences and outcomes and preexisting student characteristics (i.e. race/ethnicity, gender, and parents’ education). For dual enrollment (DE) students only, the following aspects of the participants’ writing experiences were also investigated using …

Final Ma Portfolio, Mary O'Hara

Master of Arts in English Plan II Graduate Projects

This portfolio contains four essays primarily focused upon composition and rhetoric.

On The Same Page: Theory, Practice & The Ela Common Core State Standards, Jessica Lauer

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This research sought to examine how writing was happening in high schools. States across the country, including Michigan, began implementing the Common Core State Standards in 2010. The standards place a heavy focus on informational texts particularly as a student reaches high school. The standards also suggest that writing should be a shared responsibility among teachers, acknowledging the importance of cross-disciplinary writing skills. Using a grounded theory approach to analyze the semi-structured interviews conducted with eight English teachers in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, this research revealed a disconnect between theory and practice when it comes to how educational standards …

Reimagining The Stacks: Classroom Technology And Library Collaboration For Writing In The Disciplines, Jossalyn Larson, Daniel C. Reardon

Journal of Student Success in Writing (Archived)

This article details the process by which one university redesigned a first year writing course to better promote discipline-specific and best-practice research techniques. The program offers experiential learning activities through scholarly collaboration, using library staff as mentors, producing an open-access peer-reviewed student journal, and emphasizing face-to-face interaction of peer research communities. It has the potential to establish for students in high school, community colleges and universities that research writing is fundamentally about joining and contributing to a conversation.

Embodied Narratives In Video Games: The Stories We Write As We Play, Patrick John Harrington Sichter

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This article explores the nature of narrative in video games, and how it can be applied to the contemporary classroom to help teach literature and composition. Specifically, it is concerned with the idea of embodiment in video games. First proposed by theorist James Gee, embodiment is a word describing the phenomenon wherein a player inhabits the character that s/he plays. This article takes the idea of embodiment a step further, by introducing the idea of the embodied narrative, the idea that players do not only embody their characters, but those characters’ stories as well, and are composing unique, personal …

The Professional Writer's Many Personae: Creative Nonfiction, Popular Writing, Speechwriting, And Personal Narrative, Rosemary Girard

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This book discusses in detail four genres of professional writing that are interwoven but also distinct: creative nonfiction, popular writing, speechwriting, and personal narrative. As such, it is organized in four chapters—one for each genre of professional writing. Each chapter is then broken down further into three sections—research, rhetorical analysis, and creative work. The research sections of each chapter are didactic, providing an understanding of what the genre is, what unique characteristics it has, and how a writer might go about writing a piece in that style. The rhetorical analysis sections look critically at a published piece of writing in …

Rereading Romanticism, Rereading Expressivism: Revising "Voice" Through Wordsworth's Prefaces, Hannah J. Rule

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Contentious Conversations, Missing Voices: The Ongoing Debate About Style, Megan Yates Grizzle

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As I began to investigate the concept of style in Composition curriculums, I quickly realized two things: style is difficult to define, and student input about style is virtually absent from the previous scholarship on style theory and pedagogy. This project, therefore, does not seek to end the debate about style. It seeks to do exactly the opposite. I want to extend the ongoing conversation about style even further, this time to include student voices. My project seeks to triangulate discussions about style to include voices from scholars, practitioners, and students. Students are too often an afterthought, receiving instruction based …

The Apprenticeship Of Laurell K. Hamilton: How Aspiring Writers Learn To Write, Chelsea Ann Pierce

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

How do aspiring writers learn to write? Laurell K. Hamilton’s blog records and presents her thorough apprenticeship to readers. This thesis is a case study of the writing process that she documents on her blog. The results reflect aspects of composition theory including formula deviation, character persona construction, audience function and awareness, diverse research possibilities, revision and motivation strategies, digital literacy and technology acquisition, and the blog as a genre. Hamilton also develops and contributes her own writing process theories. The study reveals that both aspiring and professional writers both adhere to common established composition theories and create their own …

The Effects Of Service-Learning On Student Writing And Research, Kimberly Anne Pierce

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Several researchers have investigated the outcomes achieved by service-learning; however, the primary focus of many of these studies is on student engagement or the development of civic outcomes. Edward Zlotkowski and Paul Feigenbaum have argued that researchers should look beyond these benefits to discover how service-learning might enhance course work and academic goals. Despite the calls for further research, studies investigating the academic outcomes of service-learning are limited, and those focused on writing outcomes are fewer still. This study, building off the concerns of Zlotkowski and Feigenbaum and utilizing student interviews and artifact analysis, investigates how service-learning affects student writing …

Writing With An English As A Second Language (Esl) Student, Sara Mulcahy

Undergraduate Review

This paper explores the pedagogies and practices of teaching writing to English-as-a-second-language (ESL) students. With growing numbers of ESL students entering colleges and universities, it is important to be aware of the challenges facing ESL students. Equally important is awareness of what methodologies and practices work best when assisting ESL students with their writing. This paper serves as a final report for a service learning project that consisted of one-on-one workshops with a Japanese ESL student. This final report draws on various secondary sources and primary research in order to explore the writing development of this particular ESL student. It …

The Headless Paragraph: Back-Forming Topic Sentences, Dan Gleason

Writing Bootcamp Unit

This exercise is designed to give students practice in creating and understanding topic sentences. Rather than asking students to create their own paragraphs headed with topic sentences, this exercise gives students the paragraphs and asks them to synthesize the topic sentences from the content provided. Such back-formation can help students grasp that a topic sentence does not merely start the paragraph, but also organizes and summarizes its key content.

Authorial Intent In The Composition Classroom, Ian Barnard

English Faculty Articles and Research

This article examines the disjunction between, on the one hand, critical theory’s critique of the privileging of authorial intent in protocols of textual interpretation, and, on the other hand, continued obeisance to authorial intent in composition textbooks and pedagogy. By unpacking the implications of this disjunction, I show the limitations that the reification of authorial intent creates for composition pedagogy and student writing. I conclude by suggesting how bracketing authorial intent in the composition classroom might enhance composition pedagogy and student writing, while also challenging fundamental epistemologies of the field.