Syllabus

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND GOALS

In this section of Teaching Composition, we will be reading about the major histories and pedagogies in composition studies. The primary goal of this course is to provide you with a theoretical foundation for your teaching of writing. But, whether you will be teaching composition, literature, creative writing,  or another class, you will find that research in composition studies offers approaches that are multidisciplinary and useful in any classroom.

Composition studies is a quickly growing field, and it will be impossible to cover its entire history or any one pedagogy in any depth. So we are taking a survey approach to allow you to further explore areas of interest to you and your teaching and research needs in the future. The syllabus is structured to cover a different pedagogy every week, with readings ranging from historical, seminal texts to recent additions and innovations in that area. In addition, because Illinois State’s Writing Program was the first public university to have all its composition classes taught in networked, computer classrooms, I have tried to include a technology-based reading every week.

A secondary goal of this class is to acculturate you into the academic profession of composition studies so that you might better understand the culture in which compositionists work. Although entire classes can be taught on this subject (see, e.g., Dr. Robillard’s 590 seminar this semester), our focus will be on the every day ways in which writing scholars immerse themselves in the field. While I do not expect all or any of you to become compositionists (despite that, in the current English studies climate, you would practically be guaranteed a tenure-track job should you choose to pursue this course), our exploration of the field’s professional development resources shouldinvite you to find similar resources in your own fields of study.

IMPORTANT ITEMS

  • English 402.01 (Teaching Composition)
  • meeting location: Stevenson 408/410, Tuesdays, Fall 2008
  • course URL: http://www.ceball.com/classes/402
  • my office: Stevenson 421g, hours tbd
  • best contact method: cball@ilstu.edu

TEXTS

The following are books that you need to get on your own (both are available through the bookstore):

The following (in part or whole) will be made available to you through online media, in-class viewing, or on the password-protected Digital Reserves page.

We will be using some specialized audio-visual equipment that I will provide you as part of your class enrollment, at no extra charge. You are responsible for this equipment when using it. If you break it, lose it, or have it stolen while under your care, you are responsible for replacing it by semester’s end.

NEEDS & ACCOMMODATIONS
Any student needing to arrange a reasonable accommodation for a documented disability should contact Disability Concerns at 350 Fell Hall, 438-5853 (voice), 438-8620 (TTY) by the start of the second week of class.

WHAT I EXPECT and VALUE

You are here because you want to be in this program. So am I. I embrace the English studies model of this program, which means that I value how all aspects of an English department come together to form our understanding of the fields in which we learn and work. Whether you find your major interests in creative writing, literature, children’s literature, rhetoric, composition, technical writing, publishing, TESOL, English education, linguistics, or some combination thereof (as I do with digital media), together we gladly learn and teach while here at Illinois State!

I have several expectations for you while in this class. You should:

  • come to every class,
  • make time to read everything assigned,
  • be open to pursuing a topic of interest to you in more depth,
  • complete your assignments on time and with creativity and care,
  • provide thoughtful discussion in and out of class,
  • conduct yourself in ways suitable to your class colleagues and myself, and
  • do excellent work, because there are too many English graduates trying to get jobs for you to bother with anything less than excellence.

I value

  • thought-out (or at least informed) questions rather than off-the-cuff opinions, although you will have a place to do both in this class,
  • your bringing connections to light between classroom discussions and your prior experiences and theoretical understandings,
  • risk and creativity and multidisciplinarity and self-learning and helpfulness, and
  • aha moments, which can turn into great discussions, projects, or (later) internships, theses, and dissertations.

Overall, I expect you to push yourselves to learn, a process which can take many forms.

From me, you should expect:

  • an interest in your scholarly work in this class and its connections to other classes you are taking,
  • an enthusiasm for teaching about the field of composition, which includes history, theory, praxis, professional development, and other areas of import to English studies, and
  • a personalized approach to teaching,
  • an ability to go with the flow and to create learning scenarios that may sometimes seem quirky (what I call a Happenings pedagogy), and
  • a desire to help you connect with composition studies in a way that suits you.

MAJOR ASSIGNMENTS

(1) A professional development blog specific to this class in which you keep

  • precis (may include informal responses & questions) of weekly readings
  • semantic mappings of the weekly readings (which may turn into PraxisWiki submissions)
  • summaries of your profdev participation (listservs, blogrolls, conference reviews, etc.)
  • journal & textbook reviews (with CompPile archive submission)
  • Take 20 interview & response videos
  • links to classmates’ blogs so that you can comment on their blog posts

(2) In-class presentations

  • a journal review (also posted to your blog)
  • a textbook review (also posted to your blog)
  • your leadership of one day’s discussion of the readings

(3) Teaching philosophy (also posted to your blog)