Imagine that you enter a parlor. You come late. When you arrive, others have long preceded you, and they are engaged in a heated discussion, a discussion too heated for them to pause and tell you exactly what it is about…You listen for a while, until you decide that you have caught the tenor of the argument; then you put […]
During our second day of classes this semester, I made an early attempt to inspire my writing students. I hope to have set a tone about the spirit of writing, the spirit of invention, the potential permanence of both. Through the projector, I displayed the following quote and correlative images: “If you would not be forgotten, As soon as you […]
As an educator, I’ve always tried to get my students, in both middle school and college alike, to engage fully in the writing process. I let my students choose their own topics whenever possible so that they will be connected to and interested in the process. Incidentally, I still feel a little bad for the parents of one of my […]
This year marks an anniversary for us: this is the 5th annual Transitioning to College Writing Symposium! In planning for this post, I began by reflecting on past symposia, and the path they have taken toward having a theme and this year, a call for participants. It’s fascinating to consider the journey the symposia have taken since 2011, our inaugural […]
Kathi R. Griffin, Instructor of English and Director of the Richard Wright Center for Writing, Rhetoric, and Research – Jackson State University During our first discussion of a reading in Comp I this fall, a student asserted, “I’m entitled to my opinion!” and his classmates whipped their heads in my direction: “Yes, you are,” I said, and they relaxed, “but,” […]