Exploring College Writing
Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum
Contributing Author
Dan Melzer [+–]
California State University
View Website
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Exploring College Writing: Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum is a rhetoric for first-year and sophomore composition courses that uses a constructivist, ethnographic approach to introducing students to academic reading, writing, and researching. This text will be especially useful to composition instructors who wish to provide students with both a general overview of academic discourse and an introduction to the purposes, audiences, and genres of writing across disciplines. This textbook works from the premise that the best way to initiate students to academic discourse is to have them explore academic literacies using an ethnographic, fieldwork approach to their own institution. Students are cast in the role of researchers, exploring their own experiences as college writers and investigating writing in General Education and in their prospective majors. The book provides instructors and students sequences of engaging and exploratory “Writing to Learn” and “Learn by Doing” activities and formal, extended writing projects that ask students to interview professors, analyze writing assignments, and reflect on their own reading, writing, and researching processes and histories. These writing projects connect to students’ interests, experiences, and goals and provide them with a sense of purpose and audience for writing.
The organization of Exploring College Writing moves students from reflection to investigation. Part I of the book provides a broad introduction to academic reading, writing, and researching and introduces students to the rhetorical situation, genres, and common college thinking and writing strategies. Part I presents students with prompts that ask them to explore the similarities and differences between high school and college literacy and reflect on their own literacy histories. Part II asks students to think critically about their reading, writing, and researching processes and to explore strategies for college reading, writing, and researching processes. Part II includes prompts that ask students to explore college reading, writing, and researching processes and practice academic research and making academic arguments. Part III introduces students to writing across the curriculum and the idea of disciplines and discourse communities. Part III asks students to investigate the reading, writing, and researching assigned in the General Education and major courses at their campus and to consider discipline-specific ways of writing and thinking. Unlike other textbooks Exploring College Writing uses authentic student and professional texts from across disciplines in a variety of genres such as lab reports, scholarly book reviews, ethnographies and case studies to guide and inspire the writing process.
Series: Frameworks for Writing
Table of Contents
Prelims
Editor’s Preface [+–] xiii – xiv
SOAS and Birkbeck College, University of London
Professor Martha C. Pennington is Professorial Research Associate in Linguistics at the School of Oriental and African Studies and Research Fellow in Applied Linguistics and Communication at Birkbeck College, both University of London. She holds a Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of Pennsylvania and is the editor-in-chief of the journal, Writing & Pedagogy and of two book series: Frameworks for Writing (Equinox) and Innovation and Leadership in Language Teaching (Brill). She has published in Modern Language Journal, TESOL Quarterly, Language Teaching Research, Journal of Second Language Writing, System, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, and other journals on the teaching of writing, English teacher education, bilingualism, and second language phonology. Among her books are Welcome to My World: A Writing Course (Equinox, 2014, co-authored with Theresa M. Welford) and Introduction to Bilingualism and Multilingualism: People and Languages in Contact (Wiley Blackwell, 2014).
Exploring College Writing: Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum is a rhetoric for first-year and sophomore composition courses that uses a constructivist, ethnographic approach to introducing students to academic reading, writing, and researching. This text will be especially useful to composition instructors who wish to provide students with both a general overview of academic discourse and an introduction to the purposes, audiences, and genres of writing across disciplines. This textbook works from the premise that the best way to initiate students to academic discourse is to have them explore academic literacies using an ethnographic, fieldwork approach to their own institution. Students are cast in the role of researchers, exploring their own experiences as college writers and investigating writing in General Education and in their prospective majors. The book provides instructors and students sequences of engaging and exploratory “Writing to Learn” and “Learn by Doing” activities and formal, extended writing projects that ask students to interview professors, analyze writing assignments, and reflect on their own reading, writing, and researching processes and histories. These writing projects connect to students’ interests, experiences, and goals and provide them with a sense of purpose and audience for writing. The organization of Exploring College Writing moves students from reflection to investigation. Part I of the book provides a broad introduction to academic reading, writing, and researching and introduces students to the rhetorical situation, genres, and common college thinking and writing strategies. Part I presents students with prompts that ask them to explore the similarities and differences between high school and college literacy and reflect on their own literacy histories. Part II asks students to think critically about their reading, writing, and researching processes and to explore strategies for college reading, writing, and researching processes. Part II includes prompts that ask students to explore college reading, writing, and researching processes and practice academic research and making academic arguments. Part III introduces students to writing across the curriculum and the idea of disciplines and discourse communities. Part III asks students to investigate the reading, writing, and researching assigned in the General Education and major courses at their campus and to consider discipline-specific ways of writing and thinking. Unlike other textbooks Exploring College Writing uses authentic student and professional texts from across disciplines in a variety of genres such as lab reports, scholarly book reviews, ethnographies and case studies to guide and inspire the writing process.
Acknowledgements [+–] xv – xviii
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Exploring College Writing: Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum is a rhetoric for first-year and sophomore composition courses that uses a constructivist, ethnographic approach to introducing students to academic reading, writing, and researching. This text will be especially useful to composition instructors who wish to provide students with both a general overview of academic discourse and an introduction to the purposes, audiences, and genres of writing across disciplines. This textbook works from the premise that the best way to initiate students to academic discourse is to have them explore academic literacies using an ethnographic, fieldwork approach to their own institution. Students are cast in the role of researchers, exploring their own experiences as college writers and investigating writing in General Education and in their prospective majors. The book provides instructors and students sequences of engaging and exploratory “Writing to Learn” and “Learn by Doing” activities and formal, extended writing projects that ask students to interview professors, analyze writing assignments, and reflect on their own reading, writing, and researching processes and histories. These writing projects connect to students’ interests, experiences, and goals and provide them with a sense of purpose and audience for writing. The organization of Exploring College Writing moves students from reflection to investigation. Part I of the book provides a broad introduction to academic reading, writing, and researching and introduces students to the rhetorical situation, genres, and common college thinking and writing strategies. Part I presents students with prompts that ask them to explore the similarities and differences between high school and college literacy and reflect on their own literacy histories. Part II asks students to think critically about their reading, writing, and researching processes and to explore strategies for college reading, writing, and researching processes. Part II includes prompts that ask students to explore college reading, writing, and researching processes and practice academic research and making academic arguments. Part III introduces students to writing across the curriculum and the idea of disciplines and discourse communities. Part III asks students to investigate the reading, writing, and researching assigned in the General Education and major courses at their campus and to consider discipline-specific ways of writing and thinking. Unlike other textbooks Exploring College Writing uses authentic student and professional texts from across disciplines in a variety of genres such as lab reports, scholarly book reviews, ethnographies and case studies to guide and inspire the writing process.
To the Reader [+–] 1 – 10
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
A “Learn-by-Doing” Approach to Academic Literacies Outstanding Features Content and Organization Writing Activities and Projects Introduction to the topics to be discussed in the book and methods employed.
Part I: An Introduction to College Writing
1: Expectations for College-Level Writing [+–] 11-54
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
In this chapter, we’ll focus on some general features of college writing and explore the question, What is college-level writing? After we’ve explored this question, you should feel more prepared for college writing. Topics include: What is College-Level Writing; What is “First-Year” Writing?; Student Writing Case Study: First-Year Writing; Examples of Student Writing from First Year Writing Courses; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 1
2: College Writing Situations [+–] 55-105
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
In this chapter, we’re going to explore some features of any college writing situation – what writing specialists call the rhetorical situation. Topics include: The Rhetorical Situation and College Writing; Genres as Responses to Rhetorical Situations; Common College Rhetorical Strategies; Contrastive Rhetoric: Language Diversity and College Writing; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 2
Writing Projects for Part I [+–] 106-111
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Writing Project I.1: Literacy History Narrative; Writing Project I.2: Writing Inventory; Writing Project I.3: Academic Writing Rhetorical Analysis
Part II: Exploring Academic Reading, Writing, and Researching Processes
3: Academic Writing Processes [+–] 115-166
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
This chapter will help you gain a better understanding of your own writing processes and give you some useful strategies for college writing processes that will make you a more confident and successful college writer. Topics include: Exploring Academic Writing Processes; Getting Feedback; Creating a Writing Portfolio; Collaborating: Group Writing Projects; Document Design; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 3
4: Academic Reading Processes [+–] 167-206
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Expectations for College-Level Reading; College Reading is Critical Reading; Reading and Writing Connections; Exploring Academic Reading Processes; Common College Reading Purposes; Reading Visual Images; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 4
5: Academic Researching Processes [+–] 207-255
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Expectations for College-Level Research; Differences between High School and College Research; Academic Research as Inquiry; Exploring Academic Researching Processes; Understanding and Avoiding Plagiarism; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 5
Writing Projects for Part II [+–] 256-265
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Writing Project II.1: Reading, Writing, and Researching; Writing Project II.2: Reading, Writing, and Researching; Writing Project II.3: Researched Academic Argument Portfolio
Part III: Exploring Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum
6: Introduction to Writing across the Curriculum [+–] 269-315
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Disciplines and Discourse Communities; Reading, Writing, and Researching in General Education Courses; Reading, Writing, and Researching in the Major; Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 6
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Writing and Critical Thinking in the Natural Sciences; Reading in the Natural Sciences; Researching in the Natural Sciences; Student Writing Case Study: Geology; Examples of Student Writing in the Natural Sciences; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 7
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Writing and Critical Thinking in the Social Sciences; Reading in the Social Sciences; Researching in the Social Sciences; Student Writing Case Study: Sociology; Examples of Student Writing in the Social Sciences; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 8
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Writing and Critical Thinking in the Arts and Humanities; Exploring Genre in the Arts and Humanities: The Performance Review; Reading in the Arts and Humanities; Researching in the Arts and Humanities; Student Writing Case Study: Literature Examples of Student Writing in the Arts and Humanities; Review of Key Ideas in Chapter 9
Writing Projects for Part III [+–] 487-492
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Topics include: Writing Project III.1: Writing Assignments across the Curriculum; Writing Project III.2: Interview with a College Professor; Writing Project III.3: Academic Discourse Community Mini-Ethnography
References
References [+–] 493 – 500
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Exploring College Writing: Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum is a rhetoric for first-year and sophomore composition courses that uses a constructivist, ethnographic approach to introducing students to academic reading, writing, and researching. This text will be especially useful to composition instructors who wish to provide students with both a general overview of academic discourse and an introduction to the purposes, audiences, and genres of writing across disciplines. This textbook works from the premise that the best way to initiate students to academic discourse is to have them explore academic literacies using an ethnographic, fieldwork approach to their own institution. Students are cast in the role of researchers, exploring their own experiences as college writers and investigating writing in General Education and in their prospective majors. The book provides instructors and students sequences of engaging and exploratory “Writing to Learn” and “Learn by Doing” activities and formal, extended writing projects that ask students to interview professors, analyze writing assignments, and reflect on their own reading, writing, and researching processes and histories. These writing projects connect to students’ interests, experiences, and goals and provide them with a sense of purpose and audience for writing. The organization of Exploring College Writing moves students from reflection to investigation. Part I of the book provides a broad introduction to academic reading, writing, and researching and introduces students to the rhetorical situation, genres, and common college thinking and writing strategies. Part I presents students with prompts that ask them to explore the similarities and differences between high school and college literacy and reflect on their own literacy histories. Part II asks students to think critically about their reading, writing, and researching processes and to explore strategies for college reading, writing, and researching processes. Part II includes prompts that ask students to explore college reading, writing, and researching processes and practice academic research and making academic arguments. Part III introduces students to writing across the curriculum and the idea of disciplines and discourse communities. Part III asks students to investigate the reading, writing, and researching assigned in the General Education and major courses at their campus and to consider discipline-specific ways of writing and thinking. Unlike other textbooks Exploring College Writing uses authentic student and professional texts from across disciplines in a variety of genres such as lab reports, scholarly book reviews, ethnographies and case studies to guide and inspire the writing process.
Author Index
Author Index [+–] 501 – 502
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Exploring College Writing: Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum is a rhetoric for first-year and sophomore composition courses that uses a constructivist, ethnographic approach to introducing students to academic reading, writing, and researching. This text will be especially useful to composition instructors who wish to provide students with both a general overview of academic discourse and an introduction to the purposes, audiences, and genres of writing across disciplines. This textbook works from the premise that the best way to initiate students to academic discourse is to have them explore academic literacies using an ethnographic, fieldwork approach to their own institution. Students are cast in the role of researchers, exploring their own experiences as college writers and investigating writing in General Education and in their prospective majors. The book provides instructors and students sequences of engaging and exploratory “Writing to Learn” and “Learn by Doing” activities and formal, extended writing projects that ask students to interview professors, analyze writing assignments, and reflect on their own reading, writing, and researching processes and histories. These writing projects connect to students’ interests, experiences, and goals and provide them with a sense of purpose and audience for writing. The organization of Exploring College Writing moves students from reflection to investigation. Part I of the book provides a broad introduction to academic reading, writing, and researching and introduces students to the rhetorical situation, genres, and common college thinking and writing strategies. Part I presents students with prompts that ask them to explore the similarities and differences between high school and college literacy and reflect on their own literacy histories. Part II asks students to think critically about their reading, writing, and researching processes and to explore strategies for college reading, writing, and researching processes. Part II includes prompts that ask students to explore college reading, writing, and researching processes and practice academic research and making academic arguments. Part III introduces students to writing across the curriculum and the idea of disciplines and discourse communities. Part III asks students to investigate the reading, writing, and researching assigned in the General Education and major courses at their campus and to consider discipline-specific ways of writing and thinking. Unlike other textbooks Exploring College Writing uses authentic student and professional texts from across disciplines in a variety of genres such as lab reports, scholarly book reviews, ethnographies and case studies to guide and inspire the writing process.
Subject Index
Subject Index [+–] 503 – 503
California State University
Dan Melzer (BA University of Florida; PhD Florida State University) is an Associate Professor of English and the University Reading and Writing Coordinator at California State University, Sacramento, where he teaches and coordinates the Writing Across the Curriculum Program and acts as the campus representative on issues of reading and writing across the disciplines. Dan serves on the Editorial Board of Writing Spaces and is the News and Information Editor of The WAC Clearinghouse. He is also a Board member of the International Writing Centers Association and the Northern California Writing Centers Association. Dr. Melzer has published in a number of edited collections and in journals such as College Composition and Communication, Language and Learning Across the Disciplines, The WAC Journal, Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology and Pedagogy.
Exploring College Writing: Reading, Writing, and Researching across the Curriculum is a rhetoric for first-year and sophomore composition courses that uses a constructivist, ethnographic approach to introducing students to academic reading, writing, and researching. This text will be especially useful to composition instructors who wish to provide students with both a general overview of academic discourse and an introduction to the purposes, audiences, and genres of writing across disciplines. This textbook works from the premise that the best way to initiate students to academic discourse is to have them explore academic literacies using an ethnographic, fieldwork approach to their own institution. Students are cast in the role of researchers, exploring their own experiences as college writers and investigating writing in General Education and in their prospective majors. The book provides instructors and students sequences of engaging and exploratory “Writing to Learn” and “Learn by Doing” activities and formal, extended writing projects that ask students to interview professors, analyze writing assignments, and reflect on their own reading, writing, and researching processes and histories. These writing projects connect to students’ interests, experiences, and goals and provide them with a sense of purpose and audience for writing. The organization of Exploring College Writing moves students from reflection to investigation. Part I of the book provides a broad introduction to academic reading, writing, and researching and introduces students to the rhetorical situation, genres, and common college thinking and writing strategies. Part I presents students with prompts that ask them to explore the similarities and differences between high school and college literacy and reflect on their own literacy histories. Part II asks students to think critically about their reading, writing, and researching processes and to explore strategies for college reading, writing, and researching processes. Part II includes prompts that ask students to explore college reading, writing, and researching processes and practice academic research and making academic arguments. Part III introduces students to writing across the curriculum and the idea of disciplines and discourse communities. Part III asks students to investigate the reading, writing, and researching assigned in the General Education and major courses at their campus and to consider discipline-specific ways of writing and thinking. Unlike other textbooks Exploring College Writing uses authentic student and professional texts from across disciplines in a variety of genres such as lab reports, scholarly book reviews, ethnographies and case studies to guide and inspire the writing process.
ISBN-13 (Hardback)
9781845537807
Price (Hardback)
£100.00 / $130.00
ISBN-13 (Paperback)
9781845537791
Price (Paperback)
£35.00 / $44.95
ISBN (eBook)
9781781790274
Price (eBook)
Individual
£35.00 / $44.95
Institutional
£550.00 / $700.00
£35.00 / $44.95
Institutional
£550.00 / $700.00
Publication
01/12/2011
Pages
528
Size
244 x 169mm
Readership
undergraduates, postgraduates and writers
Illustration
30 figures
