Week 12: April 19 - 25
"We Know What Works in Teaching Composition."
By Doug Hesse
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This week I have you reading an article by Doug Hesse called "We Know What Works in Teaching Composition" (the link can be found on the course calendar).
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Everyone will complete a Blog or Vlog for this reading. You can think a little more informally about this response. For this blog/vlog, I would like you to think about what Hesse is suggesting in this article. You could focus on the ideas of product or process or his concept of "lore". Consider the suggestions of Hesse and think about how these ideas can and would be reflected in the writing classroom.
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You can choose to complete a microtheme paper for this article. You will need to complete 3 microtheme papers during this course. In this paper, you should consider a more formal approach. Organizational aspects of the paper are important. In the microtheme paper, you should be discussing an idea that you see tied to writing and reading practices in the classroom. Please don't just give a summary of the article, that is way too easy. Think about a theme or issue within the article that centers around classroom practices and how you could relate that to learning and helping students and discuss that. It can launch off of the blog/vlog.
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These papers are 4 pages long in correct MLA or APA format and should cite all of your material properly. Spelling and grammar count, too. You should be quoting and citing in these papers and they should include a separate (not counted towards the 4-page minimum) Works Cited or Reference page.
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Alert about upcoming assignment...
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There have been some questions regarding the creation of a unit for a writing classroom that will be due next week. This is part of your final for our class. This portion will have you working with the idea that will centralize your unit and the scaffolding of assignments to get to your desired writing outcome from your students. I am expecting that you would create a 3 to 4-week design that would move students through different readings and writing projects. You will be using this design in your final paper so, you need to be thinking about how your pedagogy (theory) supports the choices you have made. The unit can be for any grade. Here is a prompt for the final paper to help you:
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Final Project
Due: Friday, May 21st by 5 pm!
The final in our class will be a project where you create a course design for either an elementary, middle-school, high-school, or college writing classroom. You will work on the course design during week 4. This project will also include a pedagogical response that explains why you have utilized the materials you have chosen in your course design. Both the course design and the pedagogical response are due for the final. The same rules apply: correct MLA or APA, in-depth in scope, clean and clear grammar and spelling, and turned in to turnitin.com for compliance with rules of plagiarism. Your course design can be completed through many mediums (website, Word doc, Google Slides, Prezi, Excel Spreadsheet…).
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The Final Course design and pedagogical response are worth 210 points and 21% of your grade.
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