Spring 2008

"Writing a Philosophy of Teaching: Teaching a Philosophy of Writing"

On the 22nd, we would like to hear from all of our colleagues in the program—and so we would ask each of you to reflect on how you have written about the teaching of writing in light of more recent classroom experience. You may, if it pleases, take up, but are certainly not limited to, any of the following questions. How have you made active your ideas of the role of the student, to the students themselves? How have you written about the role of the instructor, and how do you actuate your conceptualized ideas for the students? How have you articulated, in a Statement of Teaching Philosophy, those foundational or core ideas of what it means to practice writing?

For any question you decide to address, we would ask you to contemplate the following: What have you learned about yourself as a teacher of writing as you compare your writing about teaching with your experiences in the classroom teaching writing?

Fall 2007

How Shall I Write the (Modest) Proposal?

The Composition and Rhetoric Colloquium will hold its third meeting on Friday, November 30 from 3:30-5:30 in room 7191.

Focusing on the question "How Shall I Write the (Modest) Proposal," Scot and I decided to turn the spotlight on those members of our department who find themselves at this crucial stage of their dissertation work, those who are writing or have written their proposals. By examining this aspect of our graduate work, we have asked three of our colleagues, Annette Vee, Cydney Alexis, and Corey Mead, to share their thoughts and work on how they have been negotiating and have successfully negotiated this process.

What Should First-Year Composition Be?

Click for podcast of invited speaker presentations.

The Composition and Rhetoric Colloquium will hold its second meeting on Friday, October 19 from 3:30-5:30 in room 7191. Focusing on the question, "What Should First-Year Composition Be?" this colloquium aims to address some recent proposals and debates, both here and in the field at large, surrounding the required first-year course. By posing this question, we (in part) have in mind Doug Downs and Elizabeth Wardle’s recent CCC essay, “Teaching About Writing, Righting Misconceptions: (Re) Envisioning ‘First-Year Composition’ as ‘Introduction to Writing Studies,’” in which they argue for a radical re-visioning of FYC from its present focus on academic discourse to a more narrow, disciplinary-specific introduction to writing studies. Like others in the field (David W. Smit and Sharon Crowley, e.g.), Downs and Wardle perceive a fundamental disconnect between the
pedagogical and discursive practices commonly employed in many FYC programs and the mounting research and theory that questions—and at times outright contradicts—such practices. Their solution, motivated by and dependent upon some form of vertical undergraduate curriculum in composition-rhetoric, seeks to remedy this tension and, in the process, carve out a more
legitimate and ethical space for FYC, and the field as a whole, in the modern university.

On the 19th, we will hear from seven (!) colleagues in the program—Mary Fiorenza, Tim Laquintano, Rick Hunter, Kate Vieira, Matthew Capdevielle, Brad Hughes, and Marty Nystrand—who will offer their own brief responses to Downs and Wardle's article and/or the question itself more broadly considered. Following their presentations, we will open the floor to questions, comments, and discussion. For the sake of a productive discussion, we ask that everyone take a look at the article before the colloquium and bring any questions, comments, or suggestions it raises for you about first-year writing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

"What is the place of rhetoric in composition?"

Click for podcast of invited speaker presentations.

The Composition and Rhetoric Colloquium will reconvene this year on Friday, September 28 from 3:30-5:30 in room TBA.

Focusing on the question, "What is the place of rhetoric in composition?" this colloquium aims to address some of the problems, debates, and questions that arise when we, at UW and in the field at large, pair the terms "rhetoric" and" composition." By posing this question, we (in part) have in mind a 2003 issue of the online journal Enculturation wherein the editors invited a number of scholars in the field to respond to this same question. Their responses, still available online (see link below), sparked a lively and at times heated discussion here and in programs across the country. For our part, we would like to use this issue of Enculturation as a jumping off point for a more local conversation regarding rhetoric's place in UW's comp-rhet curriculum.

On the 28th, we will hear from five colleagues in the program—Adam Koehler, Dave Stock, Chrissy Stephenson, Mike Bernard- Donals, and Morris Young—who will offer their own brief responses to that Enculturation issue and/or the question itself more broadly considered. Following their presentations, we will open the floor to questions, comments, and discussion. For the sake
of a productive discussion, we ask that everyone take a look at this issue of Enculturation before the colloquium and bring any questions, comments, or suggestions these papers raise for you about rhetorical study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. (We are discussing with the possibility of integrating the colloquium readings into the Comp-Rhet Bookclub. More information
to come.)

SPRING 2007

Roundtable on the Comp-Rhet program's preliminary examinations.

The event takes place this Friday, March 30, 2007 from 3-5pm in rm. 7191 HC White Hall. Informal comments from faculty members and past takers of the "new" exam will be featured, followed by a q&a session.

Refreshments will be served. Hope everyone will be there. More information to follow.

"What One Composition Teacher Learned from Travels Across the Curriculum"

Kate Vieria and Brad Hughes
Tuesday, February, 20, 2007
3:30pm
6176 HC White

FALL 2006

Professional Development Series:

Tuesday, November 28, 2006 - 4-5:30pm, Place, TBA
"Academic Service and Networking: A Faculty Roundtable "
Presenters: Michael Bernard - Donals, Deborah Brandt, Cecilia Ford and Brad Hughes

"Composition, Rhetoric and In(ter)vention"

Presenters: Melanie Hoftyzer, Professor Rob Asen and Professor Susan Zaeske

Friday, October 20 2006
6191 HC White, 3:00-5:00 pm

Understanding the Job Market: Composition and Rhetoric Perspectives

Friday, September 29, 2006
3: 15 -5:00 pm
Room 6191

Invited Speakers: Michael Bernard-Donals & Melissa Tedrowe

"Re-visioning Writing Classrooms as Ethical Spaces."

Friday, September 15: 3-4:30pm, Room 6191

Please come out for our first Composition and Rhetoric Colloquium of the year. Our presenter will be our old Friend/Colleague, Dr. Jennifer Griffith. Jennifer's colloquium presentation is titled "Re-visioning
Writing Classrooms as Ethical Spaces."

An abstract of Jennifer's presentation is attached for those who are interested, and her talk comes from data gathered in the process of writing her dissertation entitled, "Writing Ethics: Person, Proximity,
and Responsibility in a First-Year Composition Classroom" which she defended this past summer.

SPRING 2006

"Writing Across Borders" Video and Discussion

Wednesday, February 22nd, HCW 6191, 2:15 - 3:45

Some of you may have seen this video (the title of which we stole for the colloquium!) when Brad Hughes showed it last year. This 30 minute film gives insight into the experiences of ESL writers on college campuses. After the showing, Lucy Moore and Rasha Diab will lead a discussion.

Globalization and Local Language Issues: the Cases of Singapore and Peru -- Wednesday, March 8, HCW 7191, 3:30 - 5:00

For this event, Peter Decosta and Michele Back, graduate students in second language acquisition, will present their work on the global and local language issues. Peter will speak about language policy in Singapore, and Michele will present her research on Spanish, Quechua, and English in Peru. We hope that these presentations will open up a conversation about what the global spread of English means for the teaching and study of writing.

Institutional and Curricular Issues in "Basic Writing"--Friday, March
31st, 3:30 - 5:00 HCW 7191

This event will explore incarnations of "basic writing" at UW Milwaukee, MATC, and here at UW Madison. Professor Bruce Horner from UW Milwaukee will discuss his program to mainstream basic writing; Bernie Hoes, a graduate student in education, will speak about his experiences teaching writing at MATC; and Lucy Moore, an ESL instructor here, will present on issues facing ESL writers at UW Madison.

In addition to the Writing across Borders events, we are also anticipating a colloquium featuring David Fleming's, Mira Shimabukuro's,and Rasha Diab's research on first year composition. Their talk will be entitled, "Facing 'Chaos and Old Night': The 1969 Abolition of Freshman English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison." It is tentatively scheduled for April 14th 3:30-5:00, HCW 7191.

"Facing 'Chaos and Old Night': The 1969 Abolition of Freshman English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. " April 14th 3:30-5:00, HCW 7191

The speakers are David Fleming, Mira Shimabukuro, and Rasha Diab.

Tuesday, May 2, 3:00-5:30, 6176 HC White

Please join us to Listen and Celebrate. Our two dissertators who will be finishing this year, Rhea Lathan and Alice Robison, will speak. Then we get to eat, drink, and be merry.

Rhea Lathan
" Another Day's Journey: A Case of African American Adult Literacy Action on The South Carolina Sea Islands 1957-1962".

Alice Robison
" What Writing Instructors Can Learn From Videogame Designers"

Rhea Lathan will soon be an assistant professor in the Writing Rhetoric and American Culture's Department. East Lansing Michigan. Rhea is presenting work from her dissertation.

Alice Robison will soon begin a 2-year postdoc in the Comparative Media Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she will continue her research on new media literacies and videogames for teaching and learning. Alice is presenting a recently-published book chapter on the connections between videogame design and literacy pedagogy.

It is fitting that the last Comp/Rhet Colloquium in a series called "Writing Across Borders" shows how our colleagues have crossed disciplinary borders with such excellent results.

Hope to see all of you there.

Kate Vieira and Shifra Sharlin

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