SCHEDULE
Academic Calendar
Academic Calendar
- WEEK 1 | FRIDAY, August 30th
- Introductions and Setting Goals: What is a Writing Fellow now that you are one? What do you hope to do? What were your experiences with WFs in your classes like?
- Syllabus.
- Describe your writing process.
- Fears/anxieties—let’s make a list!
- Setting up and using your ePortfolio; DigiSpace access.
- Instructor assignments, expectations for readings, decorum, etc.
Assignments:
- Read: Gillespie and Lerner, chaps. 2 & 3. For your Journal # 1 compare the strategies Gillespie and Lerner list to your own. In your response, roughly 400-500 words, consider the following prompts:
- What strategies could you add to theirs and share with your fellow Fellows?
- Under what writing situations or conditions have they been helpful?
- Similarly, which specific writing challenges do they help you address?
- What really sticks with you about these 2 chapters—what will you take into a tutoring session?
WEEK 2 | FRIDAY, September 6
1.The Writing Process & The Tutoring Process: Discuss Gillespie and Lerner, chaps. 2 & 3—journal playback.
- Some thoughts on strategy re: Ch. 2:
*Planning/strategies; drafting/strategies; revising/strategies; editing/strategies
*Visual process
- What should a session look like? Let’s walk through it
* Thoughts on Ch 3.
- What strategies have you employed?
- Contact with Instructor? Officer Hours, meet, etc.
*What kind of assignments have you been discussing and what might your role be?
- Tutor log—Google doc: share with me and instructor.
- ePortfolio check-in and general questions.
Assignments:
- Read and take notes on the sample student essay. Prepare to discuss its strengths and weaknesses and your approach to working with this student.
- For the purposes of discussion, treat it as a draft you are peer reviewing and provide specific feedback in the margins
- Why Can’t College Graduates Write Coherent Prose?
Read and let’s talk about this article. See if you can make note of 3-4 things that might be interesting to talk about for next time.
WEEK 3| FRIDAY, September 13st
- How’s it going? What are some of the challenges? Meeting with students yet? What are your anxieties about being a Fellow?
OR
Meet a veteran Writing Fellow!
- Make sure to create/send tutoring log to me and the instructor.
- Sample Student Writing: Discuss areas of concerns. Global/local concerns.
- Practice articulating questions to guide revision: How would you explain these concerns to me, John Q. Student? What would my next steps be in a tutoring session?
- Why Can’t College Graduates Write Coherent Prose? Playback.
Resources: Sample APA formatted paper:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/18/
Sample MLA formatted paper:
Assignments:
Read Gillespie and Lerner, chap. 6 “Tutoring Practice” and bring one of your own current writing assignments or a sample of past work for mock-tutoring.
WEEK 4 | FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20th
- Gillespie and Lerner, chap. 6 “Tutoring Practice” Journal playback
- Practice Tutorial—pp. 82-83
Who is the tutor, the (difficult) writer, the observer?
2-3 min: Preconference talk and questions about the assignment
7ish min: Read paper aloud
3 min: Tutor to gather thoughts
10 min: Good questions and back-and-forth with tutor/writer
5-10 min: Observer to comment on what happened (see questions on p. 83)
- Why Can’t College Graduates Write Coherent Prose? https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2017/08/11/why-cant-college-graduates-write/?utm_term=.fbe96dd2966d
(if time or lightening round)
Assignments:
- Post your reflection on the mock-tutoring session, journal # 4.
- Journal # 5: What’s on your mind as we move into week 5? Fellows-led discussion for next class.
WEEK 5 | FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 27th
- Reflection from mock tutoring (Journal #4 playback)
- What’s on your mind? Fellows-led discussion. (Journal # 5 playback)
- Brainstorming, drafts, pushing deadline…
- Drafting process
Assignments:
1.Read Gillespie and Lerner, chap. 8 “Reading in the Writing Center” and post journal #6
- What are you noticing about your tutees’ reading strategies?
- What is the relationship between their reading and drafting?
- Which strategies have you tried out or will you try out why?
- Take a look at the examples starting on p. 109—have you experienced any of these?
2. Sample lab report—read and annotate. How would you work with a student to improve this draft?
WEEK 6 | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30th
- Journal playback: Reading in the Writing Center”
- Lab report—how might we provide feedback to an anxious student?
- What’s on your mind—fellow driven conversation.
- Fellow-Fellows: Observe, report, playback
Assignment:
WEEK 7 | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11th
No class—Fall Long Weekend
WEEK 8 | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18th
- What’s on your mind? What’s coming. Paper and symposium.
- Journal 7 playback: Think about the meetings you’ve had with your faculty partners so far this term…
Assignments, let’s start in class*:
*2. For 15 uninterrupted minutes, write about all of the experiences and growth moments you’ve had so far this term. You might think about things you’ve learned, conversations we’ve had in class, interactions with students or as an embed with your instructor, etc. (You could do this collectively today).
Next, revisit this (likely) messy 15 minutes of writing. NOW, take note of the most interesting and important things that stick out to you as you reflect on your experience as a WF at the 50-yard line of the semester. In other words: What have you learned? What did you not expect? What can you say about your growth and experience since our first class and these initial questions from day 1: What is a Writing Fellow now that you are one? What do you hope to do?
Collaborate with at least one other member of the class to create a 3-5 minute podcast. Please, no more than 3 people in a group.
PATH ONE: Podcasts should have intro music, outro music; one way to easily do this is to record your podcast and upload it to YouTube. Most of my first-year students can and have made podcasts easily this way.
OR
PATH TWO: You could visit the DigiSpace and they could easily guide you through the making of your podcast.
OR
PATH THREE: Follow the PODCASTING FROM THE 50-YARD LINE, RESOURCES.
Post on your ePortfolio as Journal # 9. Be ready to talk about process and product.
WEEK 9 | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25th
- Journal # 8 playback—ch. 12 “Interdisciplinary and On-Line Tutoring.”
- Podcasting from the 50-yardline., Journal # 9
- Dos and Don’ts: You’re more than ½-way through your Practicum and you’ve been interacting with students during your class meetings and tutoring sessions. Let’s make a list of 3-5 DOS and 3-5 DON’TS about being a writing tutor to share with the class next time.
- What’s on your mind this week?
Assignments:
- Read Gillespie and Lerner, chap. 13 “What if…”. Write Journal #10 about a particular challenge you’re experiencing, or a strategy that seems to be working well, in your meetings with students or in class visits. We’ll compare notes and comments and talk about ways of resolving the problem or extending your successes. Begin drafting a set of guidelines for tutors.
- To prepare for or presentation/paper project: B R A I N S T O R M!!!
You’ve read a great deal on writing tutoring and theory this term: what aspects of writing tutoring might you like to dig deeper into? You might find that Journal # 11 (above) helps to inform your sense of interest. Be ready to “pitch” an idea to the class next time.
WEEK 10 | FRIDAY, Nov. 4th
- “What if…”. Write Journal #10—playback.
- Journal # 11: playback—what idea do you want to pitch?
- 4. Let’s talk final project.
Assignments:
KEY DATES:
November 15: Part 1-Presentation
November 22: Part 1-Presentation
Final class: Peer review Pt 2-paper
Finals week: Part 2-Essay due
WEEK 11 | FRIDAY, November 8th
- Journal # 12 playback—walk us through an outline
- Final Project, Part 2
- Fellows-led discussion: What’s on your mind?
- Presentation day: 11/15 or 11/22
Assignments:
- Prepare for presentation.
KEY DATES:
November 15: Part 1-Presentation
November 22: Part 1-Presentation
Final class: Peer review Pt 2-paper
Finals week: Part 2-Essay due
WEEK 12 | FRIDAY, November 15th
- Presentations 1-5
- Fellows-led discussion: What’s on your mind?
Assignments:
- Prepare drafts of final paper for peer review
- Prepare for presentations next class (6-9)
WEEK 13 | FRIDAY, November 22
- Presentations 6-9
- Surveys
- Fellows-led discussion: What’s on your mind?
Assignments:
- Prepare drafts of final paper for peer review–>send your drafts to me and your peer group by Tuesday, Dec. 3 @ noon.
FINAL Journal: