Inviting students to determine for themselves what it means to write across the disciplines

Situated in the literature on threshold concepts and transfer of prior knowledge in WAC/WID and composition studies, with particular emphasis on the scholarship of writing across difference, our article explores the possibility of re-envisioning the role of the composition classroom within the broader literacy ecology of colleges and universities largely comprised of students from socioeconomically and ethno- linguistically underrepresented communities. We recount the pilot of a composi- tion course prompting students to examine their own prior and other literacy values and practices, then transfer that growing meta-awareness to the critical acquisition of academic discourse. Our analysis of students’ self-assessment memos reveals that students apply certain threshold concepts to acquire critical agency as academic writ- ers, and in a manner consistent with Guerra’s concept of transcultural repositioning. We further consider the role collective rubric development plays as a critical incident facilitating transcultural repositioning

WAC in FYW: building bridges and teachers as architects

Students entering the first-year writing classroom directly out of high school often tell me that they had to 'write differently for each teacher and class.' Imagine their confusion and apprehension when they are told that one of the objectives of FYW is to prepare them for academic writing across all disciplines! How can teachers incorporate cross-curricular skills into their lessons? More importantly, amongst the already-complex demands on the purposes and goals of FYW courses, how do students learn these techniques that teachers deem 'easily-transferrable'? I argue, first, that the FYW classroom is an ideal location to present students with the individual tools for writing in any discipline. We discuss elements of writing like organization, idea development, thesis statements, citation, and the writing process within our courses as part of the standard curriculum. Therefore, I argue that the multi-faceted roles of FYW teachers include the characteristic of architect, and assert that transforming our lessons into WAC lessons involves the incorporation of examples, standards, and formats from outside disciplines. Mentioning how thesis statements tie together English and Religion papers or how dividing a paper into sections enhances the organization of Biology lab reports and Business reports establishes connections for students. With some simple additions to teachers' lessons, students will find that the writing techniques they learn are just as crucial and useful in both core and major classes. Building these bridges reinforces the lifelong importance of writing and helps students continue to develop their writing skills across and through the college curriculum

Write Free or Die: Vol. 01, No. 01

Research on Student Writing, Page 1 Upcoming Events, Page 1 Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) People, Page 2 Writing Requirement Plus, Page 2 Ask Patty, Page 3 Dangling Modifier, Page 4 Grammar Box, Page 4 Nancy Atwell, Page 5 Past Perfect, Page 6 Faculty Resources, Page

Spartan Daily, May 10, 1991

Volume 96, Issue 66https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/8134/thumbnail.jp

Spartan Daily, August 28, 1998

Volume 111, Issue 2https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/9290/thumbnail.jp

Write Free or Die: Vol. 03, No. 01

Student Writing, Quality vs. Quantity, Page 1 Upcoming Events, Page 1 Writing Committee Members, Page 2 Dangling Modifier, Page 4 Ask Matt, Page 5 Faculty Profile, Page 7 Grammar Box, Page 9 Past Perfect, Page 10 (WAC)ky Resources, Page 1

Sociology Students as Storytellers: What Narrative Sociology and C. Wright Mills Can Teach Us about Writing in the Discipline

The Writing in the Disciplines approach encourages writing instruction in specific majors so that students learn the writing conventions of their discipline. As writing instructors, however, the role of the sociologist is problematic. Not only has standard sociological writing been jargon laden, it has privileged a clinical style of writing. Thus, we ask whether learning sociology also means learning how to write poorly or at least narrowly. Drawing from narrative sociology, we suggest that mainstream sociological writing should be viewed as a writing genre—one of many genres that students, and sociologists themselves, can choose from. Framing sociologists as both truth tellers and storytellers, we invite sociology instructors to consider at least three alternative genres for assignment in the classroom: life stories, fiction stories, and visual stories. Finally, we offer C. Wright Mills as a model for how to think like a sociologist while still writing well

Spartan Daily March 10, 2010

Volume 134, Issue 22https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/1238/thumbnail.jp

Our door is always open : Aligning Literacy LearningPractices in Writing Programs and Residential LearningCommunities

Writing studies has considered college students\u27 literacy development as a chronological progression and as influenced by their off-campus connections to various cultural and professional communities. This project considers students\u27 literacy development across disciplines and university activity systems in which they\u27re simultaneously involved to look at the (missed) opportunities for fostering transfer across writing courses and residential learning communities as parallel—but rarely coordinated—high-impact practices. Rather than calling for the development of additional programs, I argue for building/strengthening connections between these existing programs by highlighting shared learning outcomes focused on literacy skills development and learning how to learn