COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
Participation
Participation involves generating a genuine interest in the threads and themes we are exploring together. This will look different for everyone, but it should include coming to class having completed the required readings and assignments; actively engaging in class discussions and activities; and being open to the ways our shared inquiry might push you, both as a writer and teacher of writing.
Workshop Groups
Throughout the semester, we will regularly meet in “workshop groups”—a steady source of support for your writing in this course. During these meetings, you will discuss ideas, share drafts, and provide feedback on works-in-progress. Because many people feel vulnerable sharing their writing, quality participation will involve reading and responding to your group members’ work in a manner that is thoughtful and respectful.
Weekly Writing Assignments
The culminating project you develop in this course will take shape both in- and out-of-class. Most weeks, there will be a short (one page or less) writing assignment due that either moves this project forward or sets up a relevant activity for the next class. These assignments are part of the ‘process-work’ for this course and will become part of your curated Portfolio that you submit at the end of the term.
Writing / Teaching Experiments
We will regularly engage in “writing experiments”—short activities that let us explore forms and uses of writing that may be unfamiliar to us, or our peers, but that may spark new ways of thinking about teaching and practice. In the second half of the course, you (and a partner) will design and lead the class in a 15–20-minute writing experiment (you’ll see lots of examples in the first half of the semester for inspiration 🙂)
WRITING PORTFOLIO (FINAL ASSIGNMENT)
Your final portfolio will serve both as a curated walk-through of your work from the course, as well as a space for reflection. This can be submitted as a physical or digital portfolio (if the latter, you may need to scan hard-copy documents from class), and it should be divided into three sections:
Independent Project
You will develop a project throughout the course based on your interests, or what would be most useful to you in your current/future position or site of practice. Examples include: designing a writing unit; planning a workshop for your classroom; researching best practices related to a facet of writing instruction; analyzing an existing writing program. The only real stipulation is that the project should engage with course readings and be appropriate for the scope of the class. Please include the following:
Process-work that shows how your project evolved over the semester
Preliminary draft with feedback from your writing group and/or instructor
Revised version of the project, based on feedback
Process letter that reflects on the project’s development, highlights lingering questions, and flags areas that you’d hone further if time allowed (2-4 pages, double-spaced)
Miscellany
In this section, you should include any writing experiments (including the one you lead in class) that were memorable, significant, generative, or challenges. Likewise, you may include excerpts from writing assignments that illustrate how your thinking about writing and teaching has evolved or been affirmed.
Reflective Essay
After curating the above materials, ask yourself: What did a learn—about writing, about myself as a writer or teacher of writing—from the work collected here? What ideas could I adapt for my present/future site of practice? Then, write a reflection that synthesizes insights drawn from this material. This essay should be 6-8 pages, double-spaced, should engage course readings when applicable, and should refer to both your present thinking and future practice.