Fallow ground, a theoretical perspective In “Regenerating Once Fallow Ground:Theorizing Process and Product in 21st-Century Technical Communication Ecologies,” Adrienne Lamberti and David M. Grant write, We ultimately found ourselves needing to repeatedly return to this argument: pointedly theorizing both pedagogy and the purposes of technical communication does not have to squeeze out application in the classroom, but … Continue reading The Practical, the Theoretical
Category: Teaching Fellows
Speaking Plainly
Plain language, in a nutshell There is often only so much one can do in an undergraduate classroom, especially when teaching freshmen and sophomores. Getting them over the hump of passive versus active voice can sometimes feel like a sisyphean task. For every two steps forward, some kid will be lingering five steps back. God … Continue reading Speaking Plainly
Social Justice Advocacy in the Classroom
In her chapter for the book Citizenship & Advocacy in Technical Communication, Sarah Warren-Riley argues for the use of social media in the classroom as a way to teach students how to critique the messaging they see and how to advocate for themselves and others. While Warren-Riley is focused on the technical/professional communication classroom, her ideas are … Continue reading Social Justice Advocacy in the Classroom
Radical Femininity in the Classroom: Pushing Back Against Dominant Narratives
Speaking Truth to Power These days, being a radical feminist carries its own baggage, above and beyond the ancient canard of being “man haters.” Who wants to be associated with TERFs and their ilk, after all? – who, in the opinion of this radical feminist, at any rate, have utterly abandoned the principles of radical … Continue reading Radical Femininity in the Classroom: Pushing Back Against Dominant Narratives
The Pedagogy of Plain Language
Simplicity & Clarity Plain language functions in two ways in the communications classroom: first, it is incumbent upon the instructor to use plain language while instructing students; second, that same instructor must teach their students the use of plain language. Plainlanguage.gov defines it as “writing that is clear, concise, well-organized, and follows other best practices appropriate … Continue reading The Pedagogy of Plain Language
Persuading the BizCom Student about Persuasion
The book Effective Teaching of Technical Communication: Theory, Practice, and Communication discusses the pedagogy of teaching technical communication at the university level; Chapter 16, “Hidden Arguments: Rhetoric and Persuasion in Diverse Forms of Technical Communication” by Jessica McCaughey and Brian Fitzpatrick, examines the persuasive arguments embedded within forms of “objective” technical writing. Jean and Jorts, cats and … Continue reading Persuading the BizCom Student about Persuasion
queering participation
Artwork from Target.com/Pillowfort Embedded in “queer” is the notion of disruption, so what does this mean for participation and our relationship to it as instructors? -Matthew Cox What does it mean to be “queer”? In “Queering Student Participation: Whispers, Echoes, Rants, and Memory,” Matthew Cox defines queer in two main ways: first, as a catch-all term for anyone who’s … Continue reading queering participation
Participation and Feminist Intervention
Subversive Gru Chapter 10 in The Rhetoric of Participation, titled “Participation as Reflective Practice: Digital Composing and Feminist Pedagogy,” begins with the idea that “knowledge making [is] situated and relational,” a central tenet of feminist pedagogy. Jason Palmeri and Abby Dubisar, the authors of this chapter, choose to position their argument in terms of the relationship … Continue reading Participation and Feminist Intervention
Barbara Shaddix 