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This article was written by Lawrence Musgrove, an associate professor of English and foreign language at Saint Xavier University in Chicago, Illinois. In the article he talks about a lot of the same problems that we have been touching on in class with concerns to first year English composition classes. After a quick discussion of the issues with English composition, he goes into his proposal for a solution. He first conjured up a metaphor between writing and driving. Bad driving has very concrete consequences, and Musgrove thinks that writing should, too. His proposal is centered on professors issuing students "writing tickets" that can be cleared up by attending workshops, seminars, revising their paper, or any other writing task their professor deems sufficient. While reading the responses posted after his article, I noticed that his ideas drew attention from all sorts of different people. People from all different professions and backgrounds (high school students, business men, elementary teachers, etc) had a variety of things to say. Some people loved his idea, and others heavily disputed it. I found that the responses generated were as resourceful as the article itself.

This isn't a scholarly source but it is actually kind of interesting. A grad student that will be teaching freshman comp is asking for advice on how to structure and teach the class. A lot of the questions he has are similar to the things that we've been discussing in class, like how to make the work relevant, how to get the students interested. The comments and suggestions people left had a lot to do with the importance of grading rubrics, teachers leaving comments on the students' papers, etc. Also, suggestions highlight being clear to your students with regards to expectations and then explaining reasons for the grades they get. I think this is a good webpage to look at just to see how other people are thinking about freshmen comp and teaching in general. It's interesting to see other people's perspectives.

The amount of different types of social networking existing in today's students' lives is gigantic, also fascinating for me. I find it important and interesting to think about many different aspects of social networking, its effects on our lives. I am also interested in looking at how people's writing can reflect their true identity at that particular point in their lives. So, this article, which is based on a research project, seemed relevant to me. Basically, it examines and discusses 5 things: a) what SL (Second Life) is; b) how SL fits the definition of a Web 2.0 technology; 3) how SL can be beneficial in composition classrooms; 4) brief review of the research methodology; and 5) how identity and otherness can be viewed in a virtual world and the writing that comes from that. The author says: "SL is a medium that challenges students and gives them experiences, and ultimately confidence, helping to make their writing more engaging to read and more enjoyable for them to write". As I was reading this article, it was interesting to look at SL as an example of liminal spaces for those who are newbies and feel as outsiders. Will they always feel and be viewed as "others"? Will this affect the writing they will do? To what degree is composition linked to literacy today? Can we predict its future and take measures accordingly?

The authors discussed to common occurrence of teachers "bending over backwards" for their NNS (Non Native Speaking) students, especially when evaluating surface errors. The study in this article seemed well orchestrated. It presented a variety of English teachers with six compositions: two from native English speakers, two from Danish speakers, and two from speakers of Thai. These students however were not real and the "student profile" assigned to each composition was constantly rotated. The results found that NES (Native English Speakers) were judged more harshly because "they should know better". The northern European, the Danish, students were pretty neutral. The Asian, the Thai, students were given the most leniency. I found this article interesting because it gives insight to the impact that teachers' grading has on the development of ESL students' writing proficiency.

Luberda's essay is a preliminary overview of his experiment in applying cognitive science to writing. Luberda suggests that the most applicable elements of cognitive science for teaching writing and composition come from linguistics. He also suggests that in teaching writing and literature, students may be accustomed to learning terms, dates, facts, and test-taking, while others receive a vague understanding of literature. In light of the teaching structures he used, the writing and analytical skills the students acquired were independent of the literature in their course. In using the cognitive approach, Luberda structured writing and literature courses within the context of differentiating relations between language change and writing acquisition. In reading the positive results of Luberda's experiment, I noticed a few implications for teaching writing. One advantage of applying linguisitics and the cognitive approach is that students learn why they write the way they do and raises awareness to the writing structures they use. The other advantage is the ability for students to "say what I mean" and incorporate accuracy in their writing when communicating meaning. This would mean that even when students are intentionally manipulating writing structures within various genres, they are learning to communicate "what I mean" without being submissive to directness. There was one negative result of the experiment where a student stated "I don't believe this course has helped me improve my writing skills. In high school I was taught how to write analyze books and then write papers about them using solid grammar, intense vocab, thesis statement and a well thought out conclusion. I do not believe I learned how to improve my papers. I am still on the same level of writing as I was in high school." I find this to be interesting in relation to teaching writing because it suggests that cognitively, we strive to use writing structures differently or advance our writing by chan

I found this guide quite interesting since it broke down several areas of a composition course suggesting what could be down in each instant of the classroom curriculum. > I focused more so on peer groups and peer revision. (starting at pg. 12) The article mentions that students could bring in multiple copies of their paper so the entire class can read it (in groups and/or individually) and further discuss it in its entirety together. > I really enjoyed this idea especially since I've practiced it in some of my classes here at Chico. However, the only drawback would be of course the expenses and extent of resources the student/teacher/school has. However, this practice could help with distinct revision instead of quickly overlooking an assignment (peer revision is sometimes not taken seriously by students for them to care enough) on the projector slide and/or taking home a fellow peer's paper home to "revise." Also in revising as a group rather than pairs helps students actually gain different perspectives and open doors to their own knowledge received and practiced within the exercise. Along with such a revision process... can come about peer discussions. Sometimes, teachers forget to put into practice discussions following peer reviews. This allows students to further understand where the comments are coming from and how they can take away information to their advantage in revising the assignment.

I read chapter 3, "The Bourgeois Subject and The Demise of Rhetorical Education" from the book "Composition in the University" by Sharon Crowley. In this essay Sharon Crowley makes a specific assertion on the status of the practice in teaching rhetoric in universities, namely, relating to the development of the bourgeois subject. The essay begins with a general discussion of the relevance of historical development to the point of contemporary rhetorical education. Differentiating from the practice of education of rhetoric in the ancient tradition, which focuses more on oral and discursive skills to be in a given bound discourse, contemporary rhetorical education focuses more on literary views, which is governed, and reflective of, the overall picture of the bourgeois subjectivity.

This is a video I found on YouTube discussing freshman composition. The video's main focus is to get the students' perspective on the class and to discover what it is that they are wanting to get out of the class and how they view the class in general. The students that were interviewed explained how it is hard to be themselves in their writing and they get caught up in trying to make their writing cater to what the teacher wants. One student, discussing her writing, says she feels she has to "alter it to fit the teacher" and that in class, they aren't writing for themselves but writing "for the teacher." The video goes into detail about the purpose of freshmen composition, it gives examples of all sorts of paper assignments and guidelines that the teacher wants to be followed. Students were then interviewed on their perspectives and noted that the guidelines were helpful and kept them on track. Others felt it could be a little stifling and hard to be themselves in a paper. The video went on to explain how writing is different from any other class because it is an example of the students' own identity, their ideas. There's a sense of vulnerability to it that is not seen in other classes like math or history for example. I found this to be interesting, I wish the video had gone into a little more depth but I liked seeing the freshmen's perspectives. It would have been better if more students were interviewed too. Definitely something worth checking out though!

I first encountered this article when taking 470 course, and this week I have looked it through thoroughly, as it seems to me that it contains some significant information concerning the nature of bilingual writing. Losey affirms that written codeswitching is significant for bilingual students as it provides opportunity for them to fully express themselves. According to the author, the writing identity of a bilingual is constructed by the constant correlation of the two language worlds; therefore, it is not only natural but also necessary for him / her to codeswitch in order to express his / her individuality. This idea correlates with the article "Heritage Language Literacy: Theory and Practice" by Chevalier, where the author considers that bilinguals do not possess the whole range of written registers because they codeswitch in the situation when monolinguals change their writing style. However, Losey does not see codeswitching as disadvantage like Chevalier does. His point of view is closer to another article "Writing back and forth: the interplay of form and situation in heritage learners' composition" that I reviewed during the previous week. The author of that article explains that the productive writing in bilingual schools implies shifts between two cultures and languages in order to create a new non-standard way of expressing one's thoughts. Losey goes even further. He does not only considers codeswitching possible in the classroom settings ("an unsurpassed opportunity for bilinguals", "a successful strategy for enhancing communication, promoting natural literacy acquisition in both languages, valuing students' cultural and linguistic backgrounds", though "its use in the classroom runs counter to linguistic and cultural norms and must be guided by an informed and sensitive instructor"), but, after analyzing writing patterns of the 47 personal letters exchanged between young individuals, he also determines the form and functions of the written codeswitching

This site contains the summary of another article related to how technology and composition have shifted in the classroom. It begins with the pencil, then the typewriter and then the computer, and how these various advancements in classroom technology have affected learning.

This article analyzes the linguistic dynamics of the stylistic literary voice, its bound-factors, and its application. There is definitely a much more technical approach to defining the stylistic voice; but it is actually quite interesting to read about the way in which voice is a matter of "appropriateness", instead of "grammaticality". Joybrato also uses poetical references to strengthen and accentuate his linguistic evaluations; furthermore, his dichotomies of 'literary stylistics' reveal an aspect of writing that cannot necessarily be easily seen. He even mentions the applications of today's technologies and their capacious depth of containing writing. This is article is beneficial to those trying to identify their, and/or helping others, realize their own entity of the stylistic literary voice they contain within their literary composition/cognition. Although the article slightly wanders into the plains of prolixity, I would still recommend extrapolating the information that catches your eye.

This article discusses "how emotions affect the composing process" in academic writing. The author argues that writing assignments that demand "critical thinking and identity shifts" cause anxiety for students, hence why they cannot fully engage in "critical analytic writing" under these conditions. The author suggests instructors need to better understand these conditions in order to help students succeed in academic writing. ENGL 431 would find this article useful because the students we are observing are at stage in life in which identity and self-discovery is central. Therefore, tutors, mentors, and instructors may be able to use these factors to draw connections between "discourse and emotion." Also, if tutors, mentors, and instructors found a way to make themselves more relate-able the students would feel more comfortable in the classroom setting. In turn, by making academic writing, in some way about the students they would feel more comfortable about academic writing assignments.

The article I found articulates the beneficial attributes of tutoring, mentoring, and faculty assistance in the "alleviation of writing anxiety." There is also discussion on embellishing the self-efficiency university students when writing essays.There authors also use gender as a precursor in determining the differences between the efficacy of writing among males and females. In addition to analytical gender studies, the authors also integrate other academic variables such as GPA's and literary composition as a "recreational activity." There is even breathing exercises, methods for relaxation, and interventional aid to students who completely reprehend writing all together. This is article is definitely pertinent to the academically overstressed life of university students; especially, students enrolled in an English course. At a certain point, we all experience unpalatable junctures of unwanted anxiety, that by any means, impedes our ability to academically perform. It is very similar to the dynamics of examination anxiety. A student may have acknowledgments that exceed the finite boundaries of an exam, but cannot access their superior level of comprehension because of their cognitively, suppressive test anxiety. The word "test," "examination," or "dissertation" have become connotatively dreadful; however, replacing these words with academic euphemisms such as "long quiz" or "filling paper words project" could potentially reduce oppressive, academic anxiety-in a sense. Judging by all of the diagrams of everyone's writing process, I'd say the extraneous variety of distractions can all result from, or even cause, anxiety.