My apologies; grading overwhelmed me and I missed archiving the November 28th chat. I was hoping that, like in the past, the tweets would get collected when I did the December 3rd archive, but it didn't work.
Here is the December 3rd archive for our chat on our holiday plans. This was our last chat of 2012. Hope to see you back in January! Remember, tweet out (or write in the comments) what you'd like to talk about in 2013!
Happy Holidays.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Lee's #NCTE12 Talk
Here is the transcript of my talk. I imagine once everyone else is back from Vegas, I will get a hold of their talks and putting them up here on the blog.
I started teaching various level of Freshman Composition in 2006 in the California State System. I was fortunate enough to have an excellent mentor and resources were made available to us (the contingent writing instructors) that were supportive, but never oppressive. This, as many of us know, is not always the case. I learned a lot “on the job” during those two years, and many of the lessons I still carry with me today; lessons that I won’t repeat here because they are lessons that now appear so obvious to me, but were not at the time because I had never taught a writing course.
As an instructor off the tenure-track and without a formal background in rhet/comp (horrendous, I know!), I was looking for a meaningful way to connect with other people (potentially with more experience/expertise) to learn from in a collaborative way. Being a contingent faculty member and (as many of us do) teaching outside of my area can be an intimidating and marginalizing experience. With a heavy teaching load on top of it, I wanted a quicker way to filter the large amount of research and materials available.
One of the reasons I co-created #FYCchat was to address what I saw as a lack of professional development opportunities for writing instructors, particularly those with little time, formal training, and administrative support. I also created it to connect with like-minded English writing instructors who had embraced the digital; I have colleagues at my current institution who could help me with a traditional writing classroom (again, though, largely through experience and not through formal training), but I wanted to expand my knowledge and my pedagogical approach to include “new” and emergent (sorry, Trent!) forms of writing and communicating, not to mention new ways of engaging with my students.
While I know that organizations like NCTE provide a myriad of publications and support for teachers, as well as the existence of numerous journals and other books dealing with these very issues, it is indeed difficult and overwhelming for someone who is “new” to the field (or forced into it due to financial circumstances of needed a job) to know where or how to begin. Part of why I created #FYCchat was to connect with practitioners who would recommend what to read, as well as other resources and tips that could be quickly and perhaps more easily be integrated into my writing course.
I was particularly inspired by #engchat, where English teachers share best practices, resources, assignments, and provide support for one another. In fact, many of the #edchat ‘s have been developed to address the lack of meaningful professional development opportunities for k-12 faculty - meaningful, relevant, and practical. The testimonies of participants show that many of the participants get more from these weekly hour-long chats (interspersed with tagged tweets sharing resources and offering support during the rest of the week) than day-long or weekend-long PD offered by most schools and school districts.
I wanted to recreate that opportunity for Writing Instructors at the college level. Now, some reflections, if you will permit, that might appear to be off topic, but I think no less relevant to the larger discussion of social networks and social media in the classroom, as well as community formation. That it took a non-Rhet/Comp PhD and a graduate student to create #FYCchat I think shows how far academia still has to come in embracing social media as a tool for teaching and learning. It still feels, to me, like the #FYCchat community is a marginal one, compared to more established listserv communities. This is at once understandable, but also troubling as we have not collectively moved our communities to use and embrace the tools our students are using (or will need to be using).
I also wonder how to grow our community moving forward. Perhaps we lack the legitimacy because both Nicole and I are “outsiders” - a PhD student and a Comparative Literature PhD teaching off the tenure-track. But this is the reality of who teaches the majority of composition courses today in academia: contingent faculty and PhD students. There is still a deep denial of this reality, in part because it is shameful to admit: these core courses, important for students in successfully transitioning into college, are taught by perhaps some of the “least” qualified faculty. The “T Middle Space” that Nicole mentions is so important, but at the same time, problematic insofar as that it is even necessary. The inequities that our system simultaneously reinforces and ignores (or at least attempts to minimize and marginalized) had made it necessary to create third spaces like #FYCchat so that we can learn on our own in ways that best fit with the demands of our jobs, our lives, and our schedules.
But I worry that even one hour a week is too much for many faculty and graduate students teaching FYC. I also worry that perhaps this chat is still seen as being “risky” by the majority of the faculty, in part because of who participates, but also because of where we are holding it, that people are “afraid” to participate. And while the testimonials of those here would attest to the fact that we have all greatly benefited from what we have learned from each other during these chats, perhaps the opportunity costs are seen as too great for what is actually gained. To these questions, I don’t know the answer. Perhaps I need to set up a survey and send it out to the various listservs. Our community may be small (as compared to #engchat) but we are a strong one, and an important one. It’s formation and evolution has forced me to reflect on the inequities within the system of teaching FYC. It also has put into sharp relief how far we have yet to go in higher education in embracing the openness of the web and the utility of social media.
I started teaching various level of Freshman Composition in 2006 in the California State System. I was fortunate enough to have an excellent mentor and resources were made available to us (the contingent writing instructors) that were supportive, but never oppressive. This, as many of us know, is not always the case. I learned a lot “on the job” during those two years, and many of the lessons I still carry with me today; lessons that I won’t repeat here because they are lessons that now appear so obvious to me, but were not at the time because I had never taught a writing course.
As an instructor off the tenure-track and without a formal background in rhet/comp (horrendous, I know!), I was looking for a meaningful way to connect with other people (potentially with more experience/expertise) to learn from in a collaborative way. Being a contingent faculty member and (as many of us do) teaching outside of my area can be an intimidating and marginalizing experience. With a heavy teaching load on top of it, I wanted a quicker way to filter the large amount of research and materials available.
One of the reasons I co-created #FYCchat was to address what I saw as a lack of professional development opportunities for writing instructors, particularly those with little time, formal training, and administrative support. I also created it to connect with like-minded English writing instructors who had embraced the digital; I have colleagues at my current institution who could help me with a traditional writing classroom (again, though, largely through experience and not through formal training), but I wanted to expand my knowledge and my pedagogical approach to include “new” and emergent (sorry, Trent!) forms of writing and communicating, not to mention new ways of engaging with my students.
While I know that organizations like NCTE provide a myriad of publications and support for teachers, as well as the existence of numerous journals and other books dealing with these very issues, it is indeed difficult and overwhelming for someone who is “new” to the field (or forced into it due to financial circumstances of needed a job) to know where or how to begin. Part of why I created #FYCchat was to connect with practitioners who would recommend what to read, as well as other resources and tips that could be quickly and perhaps more easily be integrated into my writing course.
I was particularly inspired by #engchat, where English teachers share best practices, resources, assignments, and provide support for one another. In fact, many of the #edchat ‘s have been developed to address the lack of meaningful professional development opportunities for k-12 faculty - meaningful, relevant, and practical. The testimonies of participants show that many of the participants get more from these weekly hour-long chats (interspersed with tagged tweets sharing resources and offering support during the rest of the week) than day-long or weekend-long PD offered by most schools and school districts.
I wanted to recreate that opportunity for Writing Instructors at the college level. Now, some reflections, if you will permit, that might appear to be off topic, but I think no less relevant to the larger discussion of social networks and social media in the classroom, as well as community formation. That it took a non-Rhet/Comp PhD and a graduate student to create #FYCchat I think shows how far academia still has to come in embracing social media as a tool for teaching and learning. It still feels, to me, like the #FYCchat community is a marginal one, compared to more established listserv communities. This is at once understandable, but also troubling as we have not collectively moved our communities to use and embrace the tools our students are using (or will need to be using).
I also wonder how to grow our community moving forward. Perhaps we lack the legitimacy because both Nicole and I are “outsiders” - a PhD student and a Comparative Literature PhD teaching off the tenure-track. But this is the reality of who teaches the majority of composition courses today in academia: contingent faculty and PhD students. There is still a deep denial of this reality, in part because it is shameful to admit: these core courses, important for students in successfully transitioning into college, are taught by perhaps some of the “least” qualified faculty. The “T Middle Space” that Nicole mentions is so important, but at the same time, problematic insofar as that it is even necessary. The inequities that our system simultaneously reinforces and ignores (or at least attempts to minimize and marginalized) had made it necessary to create third spaces like #FYCchat so that we can learn on our own in ways that best fit with the demands of our jobs, our lives, and our schedules.
But I worry that even one hour a week is too much for many faculty and graduate students teaching FYC. I also worry that perhaps this chat is still seen as being “risky” by the majority of the faculty, in part because of who participates, but also because of where we are holding it, that people are “afraid” to participate. And while the testimonials of those here would attest to the fact that we have all greatly benefited from what we have learned from each other during these chats, perhaps the opportunity costs are seen as too great for what is actually gained. To these questions, I don’t know the answer. Perhaps I need to set up a survey and send it out to the various listservs. Our community may be small (as compared to #engchat) but we are a strong one, and an important one. It’s formation and evolution has forced me to reflect on the inequities within the system of teaching FYC. It also has put into sharp relief how far we have yet to go in higher education in embracing the openness of the web and the utility of social media.
Friday, November 16, 2012
November 14 Archive
I was ill, so I didn't participate, but the chat went on, talking about "What is Rhet/Comp?"
Here is the archive.
Remember, we'll be presenting at NCTE this Saturday, November 17 at 1:15 PM Pacific time. We'll be live-tweeting the event using #FYCchat hashtag along with #ncte12.
Follow along. We will also be publishing all of our remarks here on the blog.
Here is the archive.
Remember, we'll be presenting at NCTE this Saturday, November 17 at 1:15 PM Pacific time. We'll be live-tweeting the event using #FYCchat hashtag along with #ncte12.
Follow along. We will also be publishing all of our remarks here on the blog.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Archive for October 24th Chat
We talked a bit about visual rhetoric. Here is the archive.
Next week, we'll be holding a special chat about our upcoming NCTE panel.
Next week, we'll be holding a special chat about our upcoming NCTE panel.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Archive and Next Topic
After an unplanned, two-week hiatus, we finally had our chat about our classroom tech policies. You can read the archive here.
Next week (October 24), we're going to talking about visual rhetoric. Then (on November 1) we will be doing a chat to prepare for our panel at NCTE.
See you Wednesday night, 9pm Eastern.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Archive for Past Two Chats
Sorry I forgot last week, but in the google doc, you can find the archive (scroll down) from the past two weeks.
Next week, our policies and attitudes towards tech in the classroom.
See you then, Wednesday 9pm Eastern.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Archives from Sept 12 and 5 Chats
Something went very wrong last week when I was collecting the tweet from the Sept 5th chat on opening week activities; when I went back through them, there were some really big holes.
Thankfully, when I ran the spreadsheet this week, it collected not only last night's fantastic chat on digital tools, it also picked up all of the tweets from the September 5th chat. If you scroll down, you will find them all.
Also, I've set up a poll so we can vote for next week's topic. Vote here.
See you next Wednesday!
Thursday, September 6, 2012
September 5 Archives
We had a great conversation about dealing with sensitive topics in the classroom. You can read the archive here.
Not sure yet what next week's topic is going to be. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to include them in the comments or tweet them out using #FYCchat and direct them to me, @readywriting.
Maybe digital tools? What do you think?
Thursday, August 30, 2012
August 19 Archives
Here are the archives from our very productive chat on first-week activities, readings, and writing assignments.
Next week, we will be discussing how to deal with difficult topics in the classroom. With the political season in full swing, as well as the increasingly partisan nature of our society, how do we meaningfully and productively deal with issues such as race, gender, sexuality, religion, ageism, ableism, etc in our classroom? How do we address these concerns when they show up in our students' writing? How can we encourage and foster dialogue?
Looking forward to it. See you next Wednesday.
Next week, we will be discussing how to deal with difficult topics in the classroom. With the political season in full swing, as well as the increasingly partisan nature of our society, how do we meaningfully and productively deal with issues such as race, gender, sexuality, religion, ageism, ableism, etc in our classroom? How do we address these concerns when they show up in our students' writing? How can we encourage and foster dialogue?
Looking forward to it. See you next Wednesday.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Archives for the Aug 22 Chat
Here they are. They are in reverse chronological order, but they are all there.
Next week, we'll be talking about our favorite first week of school activities as ice-breakers and community-builders.
Next week, we'll be talking about our favorite first week of school activities as ice-breakers and community-builders.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
First Chat of the 2012-2013 Academic Year
I hope that everyone as had a great summer.
This Wednesday, August 22, marks the return on #FYCchat. We'll be talking about how to motivate ourselves to get back in front of the classroom.
Remember, it's at 9 PM eastern. Hope to see you there!
This Wednesday, August 22, marks the return on #FYCchat. We'll be talking about how to motivate ourselves to get back in front of the classroom.
Remember, it's at 9 PM eastern. Hope to see you there!
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Archive from the May 2 Chat
Here is the archive about what we learned this past academic year.
Next week, May 9th, will be the last chat of the 2011-2012 academic year. We will be talking about our summer plans.
See you on Wednesday at 9 PM Eastern!
Next week, May 9th, will be the last chat of the 2011-2012 academic year. We will be talking about our summer plans.
See you on Wednesday at 9 PM Eastern!
Friday, April 27, 2012
April 25 Archive
We talked about our favorite texts and textbooks. Here are the archives.
Next week, May 2 (!), we will be discussing what we learned this past academic year, while May 9th will be our last chat before going on a summer hiatus. The topic will be what we plan to do (and what we should do) with our summer "vacations."
See you Wednesday night!
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Archive of the April 18 Chat
We skipped a week (sickness, transit issues), so our chat on Ecocomposition/sustainable composition took place on April 18. Due to technical issues, the archive is only ready today.
Note that the chat begins on Thursday in the spreadsheet because it is on GMT, not Eastern.
So here it is!
Next week, we'll be talking about our favorite textbooks and readings for FYC.
Hope to see you then!
Note that the chat begins on Thursday in the spreadsheet because it is on GMT, not Eastern.
So here it is!
Next week, we'll be talking about our favorite textbooks and readings for FYC.
Hope to see you then!
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Archives from April 4 Chat
As promised, here are the archives.
Next week, we'll be talking about Sustainable Composition. The week after, our favorite textbooks and other readings for class.
Remember, Wednesday night, 9 PM Eastern.
Next week, we'll be talking about Sustainable Composition. The week after, our favorite textbooks and other readings for class.
Remember, Wednesday night, 9 PM Eastern.
Friday, March 30, 2012
New and Improved Archives
Apologies for the delays in archiving and updating things here, but archiving Twitter has been a challenge recently.
There are sort of inaccessible archives here at Archivist, but you can't search or (seemingly) go back in time to look at old tweets. Boo.
Because it was such a big deal, here is the archive of the chat that took place between #ENGchat and #FYCchat. It's in Storify, which I love, but it's a little too labor intensive for me to do every week, especially since after the chat on Wednesday nights, I hit a wall.
But thanks to Mark Sample (who is the expert on these things), I am now in possession of a great little Google Doc script that archives tweets in Google Docs. Seriously. And so, without further ado...
Here, in all of it's full spreadsheet glory, are the archives from the chat on March 28th. Wait, did I say just the chat? I meant, it's an archive of the full week of #FYCchat tweets. They're there. Just look.
I didn't say it was perfect. I'll work out the kinks, but folks, we have an archive again.
There are sort of inaccessible archives here at Archivist, but you can't search or (seemingly) go back in time to look at old tweets. Boo.
Because it was such a big deal, here is the archive of the chat that took place between #ENGchat and #FYCchat. It's in Storify, which I love, but it's a little too labor intensive for me to do every week, especially since after the chat on Wednesday nights, I hit a wall.
But thanks to Mark Sample (who is the expert on these things), I am now in possession of a great little Google Doc script that archives tweets in Google Docs. Seriously. And so, without further ado...
Here, in all of it's full spreadsheet glory, are the archives from the chat on March 28th. Wait, did I say just the chat? I meant, it's an archive of the full week of #FYCchat tweets. They're there. Just look.
I didn't say it was perfect. I'll work out the kinks, but folks, we have an archive again.
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