Assignments

INTRODUCTION

I won’t be giving grades for individual assignments, as that’s not the point of graduate education. Smaller assignments (precis, mappings, PraxisWiki submissions, blog comments, profdev summaries, leading discussion) function like class participation in that you need to complete them well and on time. Those exercises are mostly for your benefit, so I don’t need to necessarily read or see them all along the way, but I will be checking occassionally (and without warning) to see if you’ve done them. I will respond to the larger assignments (the blog itself, reviews, videos, and the teaching philosophy), as is possible, for you to revise, if needed, before the exam date. Below, I will post descriptions, due dates, and preferred turn-in media for each assignment. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Small Assignments

  • precis with reading responses (due by noon Tuesday of class; posted to your blog)
  • semantic mappings of the readings (due noon Tuesday of class; posted to blog)
  • a profdev summary (in any medium) of your participation in one of the following:
  • an academic listserv (for 8 weeks; lurking is OK)
  • blogrolls (following between 2-3 academic blogs, depending on the author, for 8 weeks)
  • a conference (attending 4-6 sessions plus networking/meals/social events)
  • comments on your classmates blog posts (as assigned)
  • your leadership of one day’s discussion of the readings

Big Assignments (or Medium-Assignments that Feel Big)

  • a blog specific to this class and designed to function like a portfolio for class assignments
  • a journal overview (3 years of one journal), posted to your blog, with
  • multimedia component (handout, powerpoint, video, website, etc.)
  • 3-minute presentation
  • CompPile archive submission of your chosen journal
  • a textbook review (posted to your blog and summarized in a 2-minute presentation)
  • a PraxisWiki submission (based on any assignment from class)
  • collaborative video interview of a writing studies scholar, based on Take 20 questions (posted to your blog) OR
  • your personal video response to the Take 20 questions (posted to your blog)
  • teaching philosophy (any medium, posted to your blog)

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ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTIONS (in order of being assigned)

Teaching Philosophy
due by 8am Thursday, December 11

A teaching philosophy is a statement about your pedagogical goals and beliefs. When used in a job application for a tenure-track academic position, it is usually 2 pages single-spaced. That length is a base-point for you; however, your teaching philosophy for this class is a draft of the one you will need later in your academic career and so I encourage you to consider using multiple, different media when composing your philosophy. You may decide to compose a 1-2 minute video that showcases your teaching/philosophy in action; or an audio file that explains it; or a website that enacts it; or a game/animation that allows users to discover it, etc. The choice is yours, but keep in mind that I am asking for the intellectual equivalent of two single-spaced pages, so don’t kill yourself making a game with 10 quests. Keep it reasonable.

Typically a Teaching Philosophy has an intro that defines/describes your pedagogy. Sometimes people name it something; like I call mine a “Happenings” pedagogy and draw on Geoff Sirc’s work in my miniature lit review that supports that paragraph. (Keep in mind that my TP is *very* informal and I can talk more about why and to whom I was addressing my “manifesto” in class. I do not recommend, if you’re writing yours, for it to be as informal, unless there’s a dang good reason for it.) Philosophies usually have some citations (although they don’t have to), but they don’t have a TON of citations. Remember you only have the equivalent of two pages. The middle of the TP usually has one or two very specific paragraphs/examples of your philosophy in action — iow, how do you implement your TP in a particular class you have taught/are teaching. Give an example based on a specific day in class or a specific assignment. The last part of the TP is a short conclusion paragraph that sums up what the students get out of your TP and that indicates how they learn based on the goals of those classes (although there are various ways to conclude a TP; this is one way). Here is a reading from the Strategies for Teaching FYC book, all about teaching portfolios (which you may find useful, in part, when preparing your blog portfolio) and, importantly for this assignment, examples of Teaching Philosophies by other graduate students.

You will have time in class on November 18 for us to discuss drafts of your TPs. The TPs should be uploaded to your blog by the due date above, which is also the due date for your final portfolio/blog.

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Video Interview
due by beginning of class December 2

For this assignment, you have two choices:

  • interview yourself, or
  • interview a teacher in the dept (or another dept)

This interview will result in a 3-minute (approximately) edited video of your interviewee, which you will upload to YouTube and embed in your class blog. We will cover how to use the cameras, video-editing software, and uploading to YouTube in class on November 4.

The goal of this assignment is to have your interviewee reflect on their theories, methods, and practices of teaching writing. You will ask your interviewee a set of 3-5 questions (to be provided in advance of the interview) based on the Take 20 DVD questions (or related questions that you write). Your chosen questions should include a mix of short-response and long-response questions. Short response questions are those that, on the Take 20 DVD, are answered in soundbytes (a short phrase). Long responses are those that are answered in several sentences/minutes. You should have at least two long response questions in your set, although you may have more.

You will request an interview and a time with your interviewee and coordinate this time with your classmates who will be sharing the camera with you. Make sure to arrive on time, have your questions prepared (and sent to the person in advance so they can formulate their responses and sound smart). Make sure you notify your interviewee in advance that you will be filming the interviews, so you need to ask their permission and also get them to sign a permission form to distribute their likeness as part of this class project. The permission forms are available here.

When you interview your person,

  1. get them to sign the permission form,
  2. make sure to use a tripod and have batteries in the camera,
  3. tell them when you’re turning the camera on,
  4. have a “getting comfortable” conversation with them while the camera is on,
  5. ask them to respond to your questions in the form of a whole sentence,
  6. re-assure them that if they feel like they “messed up”, they can start their sentence over at the beginning or mid-way (you might suggest that they take a breath before restarting so the intonation sounds like they picked up where they left off, which will make your editing job easier), and
  7. thank them for their time and tell them when they can see the edited video.

You should film for no more than 10-15 minutes, as your editing time will increase (and be infinitely more difficult) the more footage you capture. Plan for a 30-minute interview from set-up to take-down.

Once you’ve collected your footage, dump it to a computer, and begin your editing process. Your final video should be around 3 minutes in length (and absolutely no more than 5 minutes), with a title/introduction of the person you are interviewing and credits that include your name and year, as well as mention of any other resources/collaborators you used. No soundtrack is necessary other than the interviewee’s voice unless you want to get fancy. (But don’t let it interrupt the rhetorical purpose of the interview.)

Compress/Export/Share the video to a “web” version and upload to YouTube. Make sure that you describe the purpose of the video when you place it on YouTube. Then embed in a post or page in your blog with a short introduction to the video and a list of questions you asked.

RESOURCES

You can find some video-editing resources on my Eng 239 class Resource page.

Like I said in class, I cannot provide you with a direct link to the codec you need to install to import the FlipVideo’s AVI file format into MovieMaker because it’s going to depend on what version of Windows you are running and what version of Media Player you have installed. If you don’t know how to figure this information out, you can do three things:

  • Look under Help> About (or similar terms) in your version of Media Player, where it will usually tell you what version you’re running.
  • Try Googling a phrase such as “How do I find out what version Media Player I’m running” and follow whatever reliable instructions you find.
  • Call the ilstu help desk (google their phone number from the ilstu webpage) and ask them.

Yes, this is partly a test in being self-sufficient with your computer. You must become functionally literate in doing basic troubleshooting if you want to be an engaged citizen these days. I learned the hard way (which was on my own), so I’m giving you tips for learning how to learn it.

After you figure out what version(s) you have, you can go to this page and download (and then install) the correct codec:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/AllDownloads.aspx

I have to assume that these are the right links, based on my research, since I do not have access to a PC this weekend to test. If one of y’all finds out it works, let the others know please.

I’ve been looking for a similar install for OSX, but am still working on it.

If all else fails,

  1. you can upload an AVI file to zamzar.com and have them convert it for you, or
  2. download the Firefox add-on for ripping movie files (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/8189), then put your AVI file on your student server space/webspace (your home directory webspace available through your ULID login), and then open firefox, go to the URL where your video is located (this is too much instruction for me to write here, but I can show you in class next week), and rip the video from your URL using the Firefox plug-in.
  3. Or if you have Quicktime Pro, you might be able to convert using that as well.

Am still working on solutions, but it’ll be the end of next week before I come up with anything. You should proceed and try some of the above instead of waiting on me.

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PraxisWiki Submission
due by December 9

  • individual due dates may vary depending on what you submit and when you’re ready to submit
  • these are written/linear pieces, although multiple media is always encouraged in Kairos
  • you need to CC me on the submission email to the Praxis Co-Editors to get credit for this assignment. The date you email the editors is the date I will count this assignment due.

From the Kairos submissions webpage:

PraxisWiki is a repository of useful and provocative information and ideas for scholars and teachers at the intersections of rhetoric and technology. It invites synopses and discussions of published materials, definitions of important concepts, sketches of major figures and their works, sample syllabi and assignments along with their rationales, teaching narratives and classroom activities, and preliminary discussions of research and projects.

Contributors must submit a text of at least 500 words or provide a substantial revision of an existing PraxisWiki page for review. Upon acceptance, contributors will be given open access to editing and adding content in PraxisWiki, and pages will be monitored and adjusted as necessary by the Praxis team. Submissions are welcome on an ongoing and should include a minimum of five keywords. Please contact Praxis Editors Envera Dukaj and Alex Reid at kpraxis@technorhetoric.net with any questions.

So, your assignment is to submit something related to class to the PraxisWiki. (We’ll talk in class about how to query the co-editors.)

Examples: Writing a brief summary/overview of a collection of articles we’ve read in class that you think fit well together and include the precis you wrote. A biography on one of the major figures we’ve read. A definition of some term we’ve discussed in class. etc. Lots of possibilities here.

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Journal Review
due November 18 December 2

This assignment has two parts, both of which require you to read one journal in writing studies, over a period of 3-4 years (depending on how many issues are published each year and how many articles each issue contains; i.e., you should be reading no more than about 60 articles total over the 3-4 years of your journal choice). It is your responsibility to choose a journal you have access to — either an open-access online journal, one available through our library, or one you have (or can get) personal copies of. Once you find a journal (and I approve it), you need to read everything in those volumes/issues and do the two parts listed below:

  1. CompPile indexing. CompPile is a major resource for the field of writing studies in that it indexes journals, books, resources, syllabi, allsortsofthings from 1932 to the present. Of course, a resource that BIG needs help, which is where you come in.
    • Pick a journal listed in CompPile and make sure you have access to it.
    • Read the Volunteer Guidelines and download the preformatted entry template linked from that page.
    • As you read through the journal issues, add to the template (one row for each journal article) following the indexing guildelines CompPile provides on the above page. Let me know if you have questions, please. You are required to fill out every section including search terms and annotations for each full-length article (not book reviews or response pieces or announcements) from every journal issue you read. If an article has an abstract, use it for the annotation. If it doesn’t, you’re required to write one (100-150 words-ish).
    • This portion of your assignment will be complete when you email me a copy of your fill-in template by November 18. I will compile everyone’s and send them to Glenn Blalock, who heads the Volunteers at CompPile. Your names will be attached and you will get credit on the CompPile website, although I need to check on details about this. You should list this assignment under your Service (national) heading on your CV.
  1. Review presentation. For the CompPile part of the assignment (see above), you will have already noted titles of articles, abstracts, authors, dates, etc. Using that data, here are some questions you should ask about your journal and include in the journal review presentation (you don’t have to answer all of them, but you should get at the main ideas here):
    • Who is the audience for this journal? Can you find the subscription #s? How does this journal represent the “field”?
    • What is (are) the theoretical focus of the journal? Is that represented in single issues (including articles, cover, backmatter) and across issues? What are the methodologies used and how are they articulated in the articles? (iow, what is the organization and style used within each article?)
    • What trends in writing studies are being presented? What’s included and what’s left out of this journal? (Being left out doesn’t necessarily imply an oversight – as there may be another journal that covers the missing area.) How does the focus of this journal (mis)represent the field?
    • How are issues organized? Include considerations of cover image/homepage to frontmatter/TOC to backmatter (ads, CFPs, news/updates, indices, etc.).
    • Who is the editor and how does that person’s scholarly identity affect article coverage? If the editor changed, is there a noticeable shift in theoretical and/or stylistic representations?
    • What are the special topics and how do they represent the authors and (guest) editors take on that topic?
    • Who’s writing in this journal? Who are the authors and where else have they published? What rank are they? (For that matter, what rank is the journal?) How often do they publish in this or similarly ranked journals? Are the articles single-authored or collaborative?

    Take the answers you get from analyzing the journal using these questions and in the media of your choosing, compose a summary presentation for the class. The presentation should be no longer than 5 minutes in class, although you can post supplemental (longer) material to your blog, if you want. You are NOT REQUIRED to write anything other than what you hand out to classmates (or visually present to help us remember the key ideas/themes). For “grading” purposes, I’ll be looking at the CompPile templates and the in-class presentation, although I am happy to comment on/respond to any supplemental materials, if you ask.

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Textbook Review
due November 18 December 2

You will choose a textbook appropriate to a writing class from one of the major textbook publishing companies: Bedford, Pearson, Longman, Norton, Houghton-Mifflin, Wadsworth, MacMillan, etc. Search the companies’ websites/publishing lists and order an exam copy of the textbook you want to review. When it comes in, read/skim the entire book and be able to summarize in a 2-3 minute presentation the following questions:

  • In what theoretical lens(es) that we’re reading about in class would you situate this book? Does the textbook (readings, assignments, heuristics, etc.) accurately convey the scope of the lenses being used? What examples from the book (sections, ideas, assignments, tone, etc.) suggest that it covers the lens it intends? What is left out from that lens and why?
  • Who is the author(s) and what else do you know about them? Does this textbook jive with their scholarly identity so far as you can tell?
  • How is the book designed and why? iow, what organization does it provide? If you have an instructor’s copy, does it include an intro that suggests ways to use/read the book? What other organizations/uses of the book could you imagine for your own writing classes?
  • For what kind of class could you use this book? What level of undergraduates? What range of classes?
  • Would it be appropriate for the kind of 101 class you’re teaching now? Could you see your 101 class being modified in the future to use (part of) this book? How or how not?
  • What information would you like the book to include that it doesn’t currently?
  • What is the cost of the book? How does it present information? Are there supplemental materials and if you have access to them, how do they support the book?
  • Imagine you are an undergraduate student being asked to buy/use this textbook. In what ways would you find it useful/not (on its own, without the context of a teacher… I know this is an arhetorical question to ask, but wait for the next one…)? What would you find interesting about this textbook? How would you use this textbook outside of classtime (not outside the scope of the class, just at home, when you’re doing homework for the class)?
  • As a new teacher (or imagine you are), what do you find useful about this book? What not?
  • What other questions and/or ways of analyzing this textbook can you think of?

Keep in mind that the purpose of this assignment is to have you understand that even though textbooks are often derided, they are often considered a necessary (as of now) component to teaching writing, especially at the first-year level, and so your purpose is not to bash the books but to situate them within the field based on the information they include. For the presentation, you should have some take-away (handout, visual, PowerPoint, poster, whatever medium you want) for the class, and that take-away should be posted to your blog. You are NOT REQUIRED to write anything other than what you hand out to classmates (or visually present to help us remember the key ideas/themes). For “grading” purposes, I’ll be looking at the take-away and your in-class presentation of the material.

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ProfDev Summary
due November 18 December 2

You will choose one of the following three professional development participatory “events” and compose a summary of the event in any medium you choose is appropriate. Your summary should be posted/linked to your blog by the beginning of class on November 18th. You will be responsible for reading everyone’s profdev posts and commenting on them (noting tips, reactions, similarities to your events/summary, other information that relates, additional profdev resources, etc.) You will need to comment by the last week of class. (I will be checking the responses during exam week.) Below is specific information to complete your summary of these profdev events. Unless I approve otherwise, the profdev event you pick should be related to writing studies, particularly composition and rhetoric, although it may be a related discipline like cultural studies, with my approval.

an academic listserv. Pick one listserv to subscribe to and read it for 8 weeks. Lurking is OK; you do not have to post anything to the listserv, although you might want to. Post your summary to your blog AS A PRIVATE POST (send me the pw via email). To summarize the list for this assignment, you will need to

  • provide an abstract/descriptive overview telling us the purpose of the list,
  • summarize the major players on the list (who posts a lot, or who posts impactful posts that lots of people respond to), find some bio information on them to figure out who they are and hypothesize why they might be a major player given their academic identities.
  • summarize the major threads (perhaps using Subject lines) and discuss how OT (off-topic) threads do or don’t get and why
  • include an estimation of how many people might be on the list (knowing that some lists that may have, say, 25 major players might have 300+ lurkers that you never hear from)
  • discuss the tone/formality of the list and hypothesize how that relates to the discussion topic
  • compile as many extra-listserv profdev resources that you can from information people post on the list. iow, what CFPs, job ads, journals, books mentioned, websites, conferences, people does this list relate to. Think of this part as a cultural mapping of the field as it relates to the list.
  • include mention of an item/information you were expecting to find and did, or didn’t, and one thing that surprised you
  • discuss how the listserv relates to writing studies theories we’re discussing in class
  • include a summary about the benefits of the list as one form of professional development in the field (pros/cons)

Examples: TechRhet, WPA, WCenter, ATTW, CPTSC, WAC, H-Rhetor, H-Digirhet, etc. Google them to find out how to subscribe.

blogrolls. Pick 1-3 academic blogs, depending on the author (get my approval), and read them for 8 weeks. You do not have to comment on the blogs unless you want to. To summarize the blogs for this assignment, you will need to do everything listed under the academic listserv subheading (in the bullet points), modified for the genre of academic blogs (i.e., instead of summarizing major threads using Subject lines, as you would in a listserv, you would summarize the most-posted-to categories in the blog, etc.; major players would be the blog authors themselves, so you’ll be more responsible for bios and unerstanding the individual authors’ research/purposes [if it's not a group blog] in the case of blogs).

Examples: The following have won academic blogging awards in digital writing studies the last few years. Their blogrolls are usually a good place to start to find blogs in the field you want to follow: Alex Reid: “Digital Digs”, Elizabeth Losh: “VirtualPolitik”, Clancy Ratliff: “CultureCat: Rhetoric and Feminism”, Collin Brooke: “Collin vs. Blog”, Jenny Edbauer: “Stupid Undergrounds: I Found It on the Street”. There’s plenty of others, so search around. You can set up RSS feeds so that new posts automatically arrive in your inbox (depending on your mail program), or use a blog aggregator like Google Reader, Bloglines, etc. Ask if you need help.

a conference. Attend one conference. Go to 4-6 (depending on the conference length, of course) sessions and write up 100-word conference reviews for each session you attend. (Please see the CCCC Reviews for examples of what a conference session review is.) Plus attend at least one networking/meal/social event during the conference. (The social event doesn’t have to be sponsored by the conference, fyi. It can just be people who are at the conference hanging out.) You will need to do everything listed under the academic listserv subheading to summarize your conference event, with changes made for the different genre/place experience (e.g., the “major threads” thing would relate to conference presentation titles/session titles, not to paper titles within individual sessions — of course those will/should relate to each other). Major players might be noted by who has a major speaking role, who’s name you hear bandied about during sessions or networking events, who people seem to be congregating around or, alternately (if they think the person is *too* impt, lol) staying away from and/or talking about in hushed tones.

Examples this fall: NCTE, Watson, GPACW, MaWPA, IATE, the Beat conference in Chicago, etc. (Other conferences writing studies people might go to but that aren’t this fall include: C&W, CCCC, MLA, Illinois English Articulation conference, WPA, RSA, etc.)