Rhetoric of landscape architecture and interior design discourses: preparation for cross-disciplinary practice

In the current reform context, the uniqueness of local disciplinary practices is being forgotten in the race towards cross-disciplinary practice. The rhetoric of the pedagogic discourses of landscape architectural students and interior design students is described as part of a doctoral study undertaken to document practices and orientations prior to cross-disciplinary collaboration. We draw on the theoretical framework of Bernstein and the rhetorical method of Burke to study the grammars of 'landscape' representation employed within these disciplinary examples. We offer a method of investigating how prepared final year students may be for working in a cross-disciplinary manner. The discursive interactions of their work, as illustrated by four examples of drawn images and written text, are described. Comparisons of these examples show both similarities and differences in the students' grammars of representation within their disciplines. Furthermore, however, the findings suggest a progressive weakening of the grammars of the pedagogic discourses that apply to the concepts and procedures of both disciplines. This poses some key issues for educators. It is argued that while weak grammars foster students' deeper understanding of concepts, they also weaken the pedagogic identity and autonomy of their discipline. Strong grammars resist domination and subordination, ensuring the ongoing relative autonomy of a discipline

Learning from lecturers: What disciplinary practice can teach us about ‘good’ student writing

This study brings together the methodology of corpus linguistics and the framing of academic literacies in an exploration of Chinese and British students’ undergraduate assignments in UK universities. I consider how student writing, particularly that of non-native speakers (NNSs),1 is traditionally framed as deficient writing within corpus linguistics, and discuss how an academic literacies approach challenges this assumption. One finding revealed through the analysis is the Chinese students’ significantly higher use of tables, figures, images (collectively termed “visuals”), formulae and writing in lists, in comparison with the British students’ writing, and the chapter provides data on this from Economics, Biology, and Engineering. Detailed exploration of individual assignments in Engineering together with interview data from lecturers in the three disciplines suggests that high use of visuals, formulae, and lists rather than writing mainly in connected prose is a different, yet equally acceptable, means of producing successful assignments. This is in marked contrast to the usual focus within English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classes on traditional essays written in continuous prose. In this paper I argue that writing teachers could usefully draw on an academic literacies approach as a way to expand their ideas of what constitutes “good” student writing and to transform their pedagogical practice in a way that recognizes student diversity rather than deficit

Comment: Multi-Disciplinary Practice and Conflict of Interest

My comments as part of this panel focus on the attitude of proponents of multi-disciplinary practice toward conflict of interest. Before turning to that topic, I would like to offer a general observation about the debate on multi-disciplinary practice as well as a suggestion for improving the quality of that debate

A History and Explanation of Montana Disciplinary Practices

A History and Explanation of Montana Disciplinary Practice

Multidisciplinary Practices: Reality Or Illusion

A Multi-disciplinary practice is a practice or partnership formed between a lawyer and a non-lawyer, usually between a lawyer and an accountant.  As the lines blur between many of the services rendered by an attorney and an accountant, the multi-disciplinary practice becomes appealing.  Common ground has been found in tax matters, financial planning, elder law, and employment matters.  However, many impediments must be overcome to enable this form of practice to flourish.  These impediments, from both the legal and accounting profession, are discussed.  Analysis of the Codes of Professional Conduct and state statutes suggests that the challenges may be difficult to overcome

Using Lectio Divina as an in-class contemplative tool

This manuscript discusses the author’s experience implementing a secularized version of Lectio Divina, a medieval monastic contemplative reading practice, in an introductory philosophy classroom. Following brief discussion of Lectio Divina’s history and a description of how the practice was modified for the classroom, I discuss three benefits (increased attention to cognitive and noncognitive reactions to the text, willingness to engage with the material in novel ways, and the opportunity to engage in independent disciplinary practice) and three potential challenges (the time required, student engagement, and the practice’s perceived religiosity) arising from the exercise. Following this, I discuss potential modifications to the exercise that instructors may wish to consider, namely strategies for addressing students’ status as novice meditators, focusing textual selections on course materials, and having students engage in some aspects of the practice as homework

Making a mess of academic work: experience, purpose and identity

Within the policy discourse of academic work, teaching, research and administration are seen as discrete elements of practice. We explore the assumptions evident in this 'official story' and contrast it with the messy experience of academic work, drawing upon empirical studies and conceptualisations from our own research and from recent literature. We propose that purposive disciplinary practice across time and space is inextricably entangled with and fundamental to academic experience and identity; the fabrications of managerialism, such as the workload allocation form, fragment this experience and attempt to reclassify purposes and conceptualisations of academic work. Using actor-network theory as an analytical tool, we explore the gap between official and unofficial stories, attempting to reframe the relationship between discipline and its various manifestations in academic practice and suggesting a research agenda for investigating academic work