Techno-Rhetoric Cafe

I find myself focusing my energies in my Basic Writing classes on helping students not only become better writers, but also to build confidence in their writing. On a regular basis, I encounter students, both L1 and L2, who fear writing because of a fear of the countless red-marked grammar errors they must correct when [...]

Teachers of writing struggle every day to help their students overcome the belief that they are “bad writers.” Teachers of Basic Writing struggle even more with this problem because of the stigma automatically attached to the class they teach. Students of Basic Writing register for a class that, I believe, should require a supplemental class [...]

I’m finishing up my doctoral coursework with a class in Basic Writing Pedagogy. We’re two weeks into the semester and I’m already finding myself needing to write about this. So, I’m adding a series to the blog that focuses a bit less on technology and a lot more on the situation of Basic Writers in [...]

In my last post, I was talking about the changes I have made to motivate my students to speak with our Writing Consultants about their essays. I wanted to come back and reflect on how I have changed their relationship with the Writing Center through my own relationship with the Writing Center.
Getting to Know the [...]

When I first stepped into the classroom this morning, one of my students told me that she had completely scrapped an essay draft after her visit to the Writing Center yesterday. This was wholly her decision, although one supported by her Writing Consultant. She came in with a draft she was much happier with and [...]