From colli038@umn.edu Tue Mar 6 15:56:42 2007 From: colli038@umn.edu (Molly Collins) Date: Tue, 6 Mar 2007 09:56:42 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] New topic Message-ID: <002201c76008$08e3f330$115d5486@education.umn.edu> This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0023_01C75FD5.BE498330 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit How do people work with the real language issues that students present in their writing. There is some research that suggests that when students have a lot of grammar issues, they tend to get comments from teachers and peers that focus on grammar issues, rather on the content in their writing. The way I approach this in my classes is to usually have two drafts: a content draft and an editing draft. I am interested in hearing about other successful and not so successful strategies for working with editing and language. Also, it seems like many people have had success with doing interview research with elders. I was interested to hear about some of your successes with this kind of research. We have also had some success with topics like Human Rights and Race, Gender and Social class as focuses for research that do more library research. Any other topics or assignments that really seem to resonate and get students into research and writing? ------=_NextPart_000_0023_01C75FD5.BE498330 Content-Type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

How do people work with the real language issues that students present in their writing.      There = is some research that suggests that when students have a lot of grammar issues, they tend to get = comments from teachers and peers that focus on grammar issues, rather on the content = in their writing.   The way I approach this in my classes is to usually = have two drafts:  a content draft and an editing draft.  I am = interested in hearing about other successful and not so successful strategies for working with editing and language.

 

Also, it seems like many people have had success with = doing interview research with elders.   I was interested to hear = about some of your successes with this kind of research.  We have also had some = success with topics like Human Rights and Race, Gender and Social class as focuses = for research that do more library research.  Any other topics or assignments = that really seem to resonate and get students into research and writing? =

------=_NextPart_000_0023_01C75FD5.BE498330-- From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Tue Mar 13 23:00:48 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Tue, 13 Mar 2007 16:00:48 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] =?ISO-8859-15?Q?Uehling=20Cappuccino=20and=20Writing=20Virtual?= =?ISO-8859-15?Q?=20Caf=E9=20open=20for=20business?= Message-ID: <45F6CAAB.F1C4.0085.0@boisestate.edu> Hi, Karen Uehling here. Laura Gray-Rosendale asked me to host an open "coffee chat" on the Teaching Basic Writing Listserv (TBW-L) this month. A coffee chat allows us to talk about whatever interests you on basic writing. We could talk about-- Getting ready for the CCCC (and I plan to be your *reporter on the spot* in NY) History--of the Conference on Basic Writing (CBW) and institutional histories Ever present classroom issues Current issues--like credit for basic writing, graduate courses in teaching BW, TYCA *Guidelines for the Academic Preparation of Two-Year College English Faculty" What to read just now--what's new? How to get started or keep publishing in basic writing And others*. (For details on this and some links, see my Coffee Chat opening post at http://www.mhhe.com/socscience/english/tbw/Uehling/uehling_module.html) To get us started, I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE WHO WILL BE IN NYC ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, TO ATTEND THE CBW PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP! (Some call it the "precon.") This has long been the high point of CCCC for me. CBW Chairs Susan Naomi Bernstein and Kathleen Baca have organized a superb program titled *Local Conditions/Global Concerns: Basic Writing on the 30th Anniversary of Mina Shaughnessy's Errors and Expectations.* This day-long workshop is presented by NYC folks from Kingsborough and Nassau Community Colleges, Brooklyn, and from City College CUNY (where Shaughnessy taught), including: Rebecca Mlynarczyk, Eileen Ferretti, Marcia Babbitt, Ronna J. Levy, Maria Scordaras, all from Kingsborough Community College; and Asthma Amanat, Michael Burns, Adrianne Costello, Toni D'Onofrio, Michelle Joseph, Reabeka King, John Lyons, Mark Sparrow, all from City College, CUNY; also Kate Garretson (Kingsborough) and Jane Maher, Nassau Community College. In the morning, Kingsborough faculty will focus on how global concerns expressed in Errors and Expectations have now shifted to local conditions at CUNY community colleges; in the afternoon, we're treated to sessions on adult literacy programs in the NYC area offered by the City College faculty, plus Garretson and Maher. The workshop is session W.2, runs 9-5. I called CCCC last week and learned that I it was too late to register over the phone, but there were still openings and I could register onsite*. So I am open for business: Uehling Cappuccino and Writing Virtual Café. (In my non-virtual existence, I love espresso shops and work all the time at Boise coffee houses; give me a hot cappuccino, a laptop, and a good book--and I'm happy.) So please pull up a chair at my table. Pour yourself a cup of your favorite beverage, and let*s talk. --Karen Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Wed Mar 14 00:03:04 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Tue, 13 Mar 2007 17:03:04 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" Message-ID: <45F6D944.F1C4.0085.0@boisestate.edu> "Howard, Joanna" 3/13/2007 4:21 PM >>> Hi Karen, I'll be at the 4C's on Thursday--sorry to miss the Wednesday Workshop. I'd like to get suggestions from you and list members regarding a reading list I am putting together for myself. In preparing my 4C's presentation, I'm reminded that I have vastly more practical experience than theoretical underpinnings for teaching BW. Consequently, I want to create a list of "must reads" for this summer. I'd appreciate titles of books and articles that you all feel belong on the list--along with a sentence or two explaining why it belongs there, so that I can come up with a manageable stack for this summer. Thanks! Joanna Howard Associate Professor of English Montgomery College--Rockville Rockville, MD From bernstsn@email.uc.edu Wed Mar 14 02:28:53 2007 From: bernstsn@email.uc.edu (SUSAN NAOMI BERNSTEIN) Date: Tue, 13 Mar 2007 21:28:53 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" Message-ID: <20070313212853.ADY63561@mirapoint2.uc.edu> Susan Naomi Bernstein, PhD Assistant Professor University of Cincinnati College of Applied Science Center for Access and Transition P.O. Box 210205 Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0205 From bernstsn@email.uc.edu Wed Mar 14 02:29:42 2007 From: bernstsn@email.uc.edu (SUSAN NAOMI BERNSTEIN) Date: Tue, 13 Mar 2007 21:29:42 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" Message-ID: <20070313212942.ADY63606@mirapoint2.uc.edu> Dear Joanna, Karen, and Colleagues, In reference to summer reading-- apologies for cross postings. Take a look at Basic Writing Electronic Journal 6.1 (Spring 2007) for a "Favorite BW Books" list that I compiled from scholar/teacher suggestions. Also see Shannon Carter's article in the same issue, "Graduate Courses in Basic Writing Studies." for her excellent survey of BW graduate courses which includes descriptions of graduate course readings and a bibliography. The link for this issue is http://faculty.tamu-commerce .edu/scarter/BWe2.htm And for all who are arriving at CCCC on Thursday, please consider attending the Conference on Basic Writing Special Interest Group Thursday evening from 6:30-7:30. Feel free to email me if you have additional questions or concerns. Best regards, Susan Naomi Bernstein University of Cincinnati Co-chair of CBW and Co-editor of BWe (with Kathleen Baca) Susan Naomi Bernstein, PhD Assistant Professor University of Cincinnati College of Applied Science Center for Access and Transition P.O. Box 210205 Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0205 From sgoen@sfsu.edu Wed Mar 14 18:03:51 2007 From: sgoen@sfsu.edu (sgoen@sfsu.edu) Date: Wed, 14 Mar 2007 10:03:51 -0700 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" In-Reply-To: <20070313212942.ADY63606@mirapoint2.uc.edu> References: <20070313212942.ADY63606@mirapoint2.uc.edu> Message-ID: HI Naomi, Thanks for sending this link. See you in NY! >Dear Joanna, Karen, and Colleagues, > >In reference to summer reading-- apologies for cross postings. > >Take a look at Basic Writing Electronic Journal 6.1 (Spring 2007) >for a "Favorite BW Books" list that I compiled from scholar/teacher >suggestions. Also see Shannon Carter's article in the same issue, >"Graduate Courses in Basic Writing Studies." for her excellent >survey of BW graduate courses which includes descriptions of >graduate course readings and a bibliography. > >The link for this issue is http://faculty.tamu-commerce .edu/scarter/BWe2.htm > >And for all who are arriving at CCCC on Thursday, please consider >attending the Conference on Basic Writing Special Interest Group >Thursday evening from 6:30-7:30. Feel free to email me if you have >additional questions or concerns. > >Best regards, > >Susan Naomi Bernstein >University of Cincinnati >Co-chair of CBW and Co-editor of BWe (with Kathleen Baca) >Susan Naomi Bernstein, PhD >Assistant Professor >University of Cincinnati >College of Applied Science >Center for Access and Transition >P.O. Box 210205 >Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0205 >_______________________________________________ >Teaching_Basic_Writing maillist - Teaching_Basic_Writing@mailman.eppg.com >http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing > >If you no longer wish to receive this mailing, please go to >http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing to >updat your information. From emwhite@email.arizona.edu Wed Mar 14 19:36:01 2007 From: emwhite@email.arizona.edu (emwhite@email.arizona.edu) Date: Wed, 14 Mar 2007 11:36:01 -0700 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Re: Coffee chat In-Reply-To: <200703141701.l2EH11mT001442@grue.eppg.com> References: <200703141701.l2EH11mT001442@grue.eppg.com> Message-ID: <20070314113601.dnfdlhc08wwc4co0@www.email.arizona.edu> Karen, I just read your lovely intro page and I'm delighted to sit down for coffee with you and everyone. I coordinated the last coffee hour on this list and found it great fun. Just for old times: were you in Ross Winterowd's NEH seminar the year I did a visiting session on writing assessment? It was so long ago I can't bring up any memories aside from the great vitality of the group. I remember Boise State much better from my visits there; a former student, Gail, is, I think still teaching with you and if so do transmit a fond hello to her. I think these informal units are a great way to help weld our community. I am actually writing this from my semi-office at the Museum of Northern Arizona, where I now volunteer part-time to help secure grants. Two lessons from this: writers and writing specialists are in real demand in our communities, particularly if you don't need to be paid. And I'm finding that working with anthropologists, archaeologists, and museum people of all stripes is very interesting and mind-stretching. I can't do too much, though, since I do continue as a part-time visiting professor at the U of Arizona, a 500 mile commute, and worth every mile of it. My grad seminar this term is on Writing Program Administration, an area that encompasses almost everything we do. BTW, I'd like to remind everyone on the list of the WPA summer conference, in Tempe, AZ this June. I'm giving the banquet talk and focusing on the most vexed of all WPA problems: placement. I'm not coming in until Wednesday night for CCCC, but I'll be around, looking for kindred souls. One hint for conference goers: don't miss the Bedford/St. Martin's party. It will have the best food in NY. --Ed White From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Wed Mar 14 20:18:38 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Wed, 14 Mar 2007 13:18:38 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Re: Coffee chat In-Reply-To: <20070314113601.dnfdlhc08wwc4co0@www.email.arizona.edu> References: <200703141701.l2EH11mT001442@grue.eppg.com> <20070314113601.dnfdlhc08wwc4co0@www.email.arizona.edu> Message-ID: <45F7F62E.F1C4.0085.0@boisestate.edu> Ed, thanks for pouring yourself a cup of coffee and sitting down to chat. I'm honored and delighted to hear from you, and I loved the coffee chat you lead last spring--the relaxed, meandering conversation that this forum allows. Yes, I was in Ross Winterowd's seminar that you visited, and I was there that day and remember seeing and hearing you and your name. Gail Shuck's office is just down the hall from mine a few steps, and she is doing a wonderful job here at Boise State heading our varied ESL courses, programs, and also training tutors and teachers of ESL. She has helped me have faith in myself to work with Generation 1.5 type students in BW and given me some strategies for that. Thanks for bringing the WPA conference to our attention and your keynote on assessment. And of course the Bedford party. So what are you reading now, Ed? A book or an article for our summer list? Karen Uehling Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 >>> 3/14/2007 12:36 PM >>> Karen, I just read your lovely intro page and I'm delighted to sit down for coffee with you and everyone. I coordinated the last coffee hour on this list and found it great fun. Just for old times: were you in Ross Winterowd's NEH seminar the year I did a visiting session on writing assessment? It was so long ago I can't bring up any memories aside from the great vitality of the group. I remember Boise State much better from my visits there; a former student, Gail, is, I think still teaching with you and if so do transmit a fond hello to her. I think these informal units are a great way to help weld our community. I am actually writing this from my semi-office at the Museum of Northern Arizona, where I now volunteer part-time to help secure grants. Two lessons from this: writers and writing specialists are in real demand in our communities, particularly if you don't need to be paid. And I'm finding that working with anthropologists, archaeologists, and museum people of all stripes is very interesting and mind-stretching. I can't do too much, though, since I do continue as a part-time visiting professor at the U of Arizona, a 500 mile commute, and worth every mile of it. My grad seminar this term is on Writing Program Administration, an area that encompasses almost everything we do. BTW, I'd like to remind everyone on the list of the WPA summer conference, in Tempe, AZ this June. I'm giving the banquet talk and focusing on the most vexed of all WPA problems: placement. I'm not coming in until Wednesday night for CCCC, but I'll be around, looking for kindred souls. One hint for conference goers: don't miss the Bedford/St. Martin's party. It will have the best food in NY. --Ed White _______________________________________________ Teaching_Basic_Writing maillist - Teaching_Basic_Writing@mailman.eppg.com http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing If you no longer wish to receive this mailing, please go to http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing to updat your information. From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Wed Mar 14 23:14:28 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Wed, 14 Mar 2007 16:14:28 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads"? Message-ID: <45F81F64.F1C4.0085.0@boisestate.edu> As Susan Naomi Bernstein, Co-Chair of CBW, has pointed out, a good starting place to identify "must reads" for the summer is her article in the current issue of BWe: "BWe 2007: Practice, Professional Development, and Favorite Books," (volume 6, number 1), available on the CBW website at http://faculty.tamu-commerce.edu/scarter/BWe2.htm#BWe_2007 The piece is divided into "favorite book for students," "favorite book for professional development," and a category that emerged, "favorite books for students enrolled in Basic Writing pedagogy courses." Each title is followed by a short blurb written by a BW instructor who responded to Bernstein's call on CBW-L for inclusions. The choices run from the familiar Lives on the Boundary, by Mike Rose for students, to the unexpected (and new to me) Montana 1948, by Larry Watson, for students; and for professional development: from Facts, Artifacts and Counterfacts: Theory and Method for a Reading and Writing Course, edited by David Bartholomae and Anthony Petrosky, to Classroom Spaces and Writing Instruction, edited by Ed Nagelhout and Carol Rutz. Be sure to follow the link for the whole list. What are your favorites on this list and what would you add? Pour yourself a cup, sit down, and talk...I'm all ears. I will say more about the new issue of BWe later--lots to read there* Karen Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From Joanna.Howard@montgomerycollege.edu Thu Mar 15 00:44:52 2007 From: Joanna.Howard@montgomerycollege.edu (Howard, Joanna) Date: Wed, 14 Mar 2007 19:44:52 -0400 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads"? References: <45F81F64.F1C4.0085.0@boisestate.edu> Message-ID: <767E25E6EB68944981AA718B93201F800371F6CF@MCMAIL2.mcnte.mc.cc.md.us> Thank you every one for responding--now my summer reading can take some shape and direction. If you're going to be at the 4C's, come to A25 and introduce yourself! Best, Joanna Howard ________________________________ From: teaching_basic_writing-admin@mailman.eppg.com on behalf of Karen Uehling Sent: Wed 3/14/2007 6:14 PM To: teaching_basic_writing@mailman.eppg.com Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads"? As Susan Naomi Bernstein, Co-Chair of CBW, has pointed out, a good starting place to identify "must reads" for the summer is her article in the current issue of BWe: "BWe 2007: Practice, Professional Development, and Favorite Books," (volume 6, number 1), available on the CBW website at http://faculty.tamu-commerce.edu/scarter/BWe2.htm#BWe_2007 The piece is divided into "favorite book for students," "favorite book for professional development," and a category that emerged, "favorite books for students enrolled in Basic Writing pedagogy courses." Each title is followed by a short blurb written by a BW instructor who responded to Bernstein's call on CBW-L for inclusions. The choices run from the familiar Lives on the Boundary, by Mike Rose for students, to the unexpected (and new to me) Montana 1948, by Larry Watson, for students; and for professional development: from Facts, Artifacts and Counterfacts: Theory and Method for a Reading and Writing Course, edited by David Bartholomae and Anthony Petrosky, to Classroom Spaces and Writing Instruction, edited by Ed Nagelhout and Carol Rutz. Be sure to follow the link for the whole list. What are your favorites on this list and what would you add? Pour yourself a cup, sit down, and talk...I'm all ears. I will say more about the new issue of BWe later--lots to read there* Karen Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 _______________________________________________ Teaching_Basic_Writing maillist - Teaching_Basic_Writing@mailman.eppg.com http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing If you no longer wish to receive this mailing, please go to http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing to updat your information. From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Thu Mar 15 23:57:29 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Thu, 15 Mar 2007 16:57:29 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" Message-ID: <45F97AFA.F1C4.0085.0@boisestate.edu> A great source for summer must reads is the basic writing "reading list" Lori Rios of Texas A&M-Kingsville began last spring on comp FAQs: http://comppile.tamucc.edu/wiki/BasicWriting/ReadingList Rios asked CBW members for text suggestions for an online graduate course on teaching BW, especially texts with a more practical (rather than theoretical) focus that would serve students already in classrooms teaching BW students and who want "ideas." This list ranges from classics like Rei Noguchi's Grammar and the Teaching of Writing to Rebekah Nathan's relatively new but soon-to-be-classic My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student. The CompFAQs list is formatted as a user friendly chart of books and articles that includes not only authors, titles, etc., but also space for comments. You can sort by title, author, journal, publication information, or comments. But best of all, we all can add to this ongoing list; the wiki technology allows us to continually document our field as it is developing right now in the ongoing present. We are lucky enough to have the technological tools that can help us accumulate (and create new) knowledge and best practices and document what we know. All we have to do is use these tools, and it's not hard; there's a simple form to fill out: http://comppile.tamucc.edu/wiki/BasicWriting/AddToList So what books or essays do you plan to read this summer? Maybe you'll see something at CCCC or a book fair at your school. Order an espresso or a tea, sit down, talk ... and also add your suggestions at CompFAQs, our electronic library that just keeps developing. Karen Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From kuehling@boisestate.edu Fri Mar 16 21:11:41 2007 From: kuehling@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 14:11:41 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" Message-ID: <45FAA59D020000850000EAB2@hermes.boisestate.edu> Thanks, Marcia, for this valuable list and bringing these books to our attention; this is something I want to explore at some point. I know we are all busy now, but I hope you will eventually post this information on the basic writing "reading list" on CompFAQs at http://comppile.tamucc.edu/wiki/BasicWriting/ReadingList Does anyone else have suggestions on disabilities, especially autism and brain injury? I agree with Marcia about the importance of brain injury with the vets returning from Iraq; I think of the recent documentary about ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff and his wife Lee Woodruff and their experience with brain injury as well as those of veterans; Bob and Lee Woodruff have also been interviewed several times recently about their new memoir In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing. Karen Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 >>> "Marcia Ribble" 03/16/07 11:31 AM >>> Hi Karen, Here's a list of the books I have: Grandin, Temple and Margaret Scariano. Emergence: Labeled Autistic. New York: Warner Books, 2005. ___. Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism. New York: Vintage Books, 2006. ___. Developing Talents: Careers for Individuals with Asperger Syndrome and High- Functioning Autism. Shawnee Mission, KS: Autism Asperger Publishing Co., 2004. ___. Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through the Unique Perspectives of Autism. Arlington, TX: Future Horizons, Inc., 2005. Developing Talents was written with Kate Duffy and Unwritten Rules was written with Sean Barron. The first two books are reprints of earlier books. These are all Fourth Genre books, about Temple Grandin and her emergence from silence. Today she has a PhD and is an animal science specialist at Colorado State U. Grandin has designed one-third of all the livestock handling facilities in the US and lectures widely on autism, according to the blurb about her on the back of the first book. She's an Assoc. Prof. Her metacognitive abilities are astounding, because she's been able to articulate not just about how she thinks, but to understand how those of us who are not autistic think and create a bridge between those different worlds. For example in the beginning of Emergence, she discusses not just her own autism, but also the brain physiology that some experts believe may link autism with dyslexia. I read a few pages so I could give you a notion of what the book is like, and I am already in tears thinking how little we really know about some of our students who struggle with writing. She reminds me of those folks I've worked with who have suffered brain damage, and who have to try to rebuild shattered lives, but who have key elements of their humanity intact still. Antonio Damasio has an important book in which he talks about brain injuries and the effect they can have whether they were caused by stroke, accident, or just the happenstances of pre-birth brain development. His book is The Feeling of What Happens, and he has another new book I haven't read yet. Just put his name in Google for more information about his work. Damasio is both brilliant scientifically and incredibly loving and compassionate toward those with brain damage. We need to look at these issues because there are millions of humans affected by these things each year. Our kids in Iraq, especially, who are coming home with closed head injuries that cause terrible problems with short term memory and learning. See you shortly in NYC! Marcia >From: "Karen Uehling" <~!B*+R^&>>To: <~!B*+R^&>>Subject: RE: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" >Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 08:23:17 -0600 > >Hi, Marcia! >Thanks so much. Can you give us some titles and bibliographic >information? This sounds fascinating and important. So Temple Grandin >must use a kind of memoir/personal essay type approach if "she speaks >about autism from both a personal and a professional perspective." I >would love to know more about these books and about Grandin. (Excuse my >ignorance.) >Karen > >Karen S. Uehling >Associate Professor >Department of English >Boise State University >1910 University Drive >Boise, ID 83725-1525 > >Office: 208-426-1825 >Fax: 208-426-4373 > >>> "Marcia Ribble" 03/16/07 7:51 AM >>> >Hi Karen, >I've just received in the mail a box with four of Temple Grandin's books >on autism. Grandin is not only an expert on autism, but she has been >able >to achieve a PhD despite it. She speaks about autism from both a >personal >and a professional perspective in her books and they are excellent >reading >for >those of us in BW who are likely to encounter students with autism in >our >writing classrooms--often without benefit of knowing the students' >diagnosis. >For me this is part of a growing interest in developmental issues for >many >differently abled students with many different learning styles and >abilities. >I feel so blessed to have my basic writing students in our transitional >classes >for six hours a week, with tutors, in a computer classroom, but I am >seeing >evidence that for some students when they do transfer into regular >classrooms >they just are lost there without that additional support. I am hoping >that >Grandin will give me some insights into how to better support those >students >with the more limited time available in regular classrooms. And I'd >love to >hear >from others of you who have dealt with this problem. >Marcia Ribble > > > >From: "Karen Uehling" <~!B*+R^&>>To:<~!B*+R^&>><~!B*+R^&>>Subject:<~!B*+R^&>>[Teaching_Basic_Writing] Summer "must reads" > >Date: Thu, 15 Mar 2007 16:57:29 -0600 > > > >A great source for summer must reads is the basic writing "reading >list" > >Lori Rios of Texas A&M-Kingsville began last spring on comp FAQs: > > > >http://comppile.tamucc.edu/wiki/BasicWriting/ReadingList > > > >Rios asked CBW members for text suggestions for an online graduate > >course on teaching BW, especially texts with a more practical (rather > >than theoretical) focus that would serve students already in classrooms > >teaching BW students and who want "ideas." > > > >This list ranges from classics like Rei Noguchi's Grammar and the > >Teaching of Writing to Rebekah Nathan's relatively new but > >soon-to-be-classic My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by > >Becoming a Student. The CompFAQs list is formatted as a user friendly > >chart of books and articles that includes not only authors, titles, > >etc., but also space for comments. You can sort by title, author, > >journal, publication information, or comments. > > > >But best of all, we all can add to this ongoing list; the wiki > >technology allows us to continually document our field as it is > >developing right now in the ongoing present. We are lucky enough to >have > >the technological tools that can help us accumulate (and create new) > >knowledge and best practices and document what we know. All we have to > >do is use these tools, and it's not hard; there's a simple form to fill > >out: > > > >http://comppile.tamucc.edu/wiki/BasicWriting/AddToList > > > >So what books or essays do you plan to read this summer? Maybe you'll > >see something at CCCC or a book fair at your school. Order an espresso > >or a tea, sit down, talk ... and also add your suggestions at CompFAQs, > >our electronic library that just keeps developing. > > > >Karen > > > >Karen S. Uehling > >Associate Professor > >Department of English > >Boise State University > >1910 University Drive > >Boise, ID 83725-1525 > > > >Office: 208-426-1825 > >Fax: 208-426-4373 > >_______________________________________________ > >Teaching_Basic_Writing maillist - >Teaching_Basic_Writing@mailman.eppg.com > >http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing > > > >If you no longer wish to receive this mailing, please go to > >http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing to >updat > >your information. From kuehling@boisestate.edu Fri Mar 16 21:21:39 2007 From: kuehling@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 14:21:39 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] BW Sessions at CCCC Message-ID: <45FAA7F2020000850000EACA@hermes.boisestate.edu> Hi, all... A search under the “focus” category of the CCCC online searchable program netted 16 BW sessions, and I’ve listed them below briefly, with just the colleges mentioned rather than names. Please write in with more details and/or bring other BW sessions to our attention. Let us know what you are doing at CCCC and what sessions you think are especially important. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2007 1. The Conference on Basic Writing Preconference "Local Conditions/Global Concerns: Basic Writing on the 30th Anniversary of Mina Shaughnessy's Errors and Expectations" Session: W.2 on Mar 21, 2007 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM: Comment: described earlier on TBW-L—HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 2007 2. Writing the Dissonance: Using collaborative texts to enhance service learning Session: A.02 on Mar 22, 2007 from 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM University of Minnesota 3. The Liberian Civil War and the Writing Classroom Session: A.09 on Mar 22, 2007 from 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM Rhode Island College 4. A study of high stakes testing practices: CUNY and beyond Session: B.16 on Mar 22, 2007 from 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM LaGuardia Community College 5. Teacher, Student, Research: shifting identities in the learning-centered community college Session: B.26 on Mar 22, 2007 from 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM Kapi'olani Community College 6. Situated Student Writing and Basic Composition Session: C.14 on Mar 22, 2007 from 1:45 PM to 3:00 PM Manhattanville College, Hofstra University, Tisch School of the Arts Acting 7. "I am my language": Representing and Misrepresenting Deaf Writers Session: D.09 on Mar 22, 2007 from 3:15 PM to 4:30 PM Rochester Institute of Technology 8. Plagiarism: ESL and Deaf Students Session: E.20 on Mar 22, 2007 from 4:45 PM to 6:00 PM Rochester Institute of Technology Chair 9. Conference on Basic Writing Special Interest Group (SIG) Session: TSIG.16 on Mar 22, 2007 from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM Comment: Wonderful, informal discussion, chance to network and meet like-minded others and offer suggestions for next year’s CCCC—HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FRIDAY, MARCH 23, 2007 10. The Power of Ethnographic Research: Investing Basic Writing Students in Research-based Composition Session: F.22 on Mar 23, 2007 from 8:00 AM to 9:15 AM University of Wyoming 11. Basic Economics: The Logical, Pathetic, and Ethical Identities of Basic Writing Session: G.35 on Mar 23, 2007 from 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM California State Polytechnic University Chair 12. "Illegal" Crossings: Challenging the academy's ambivalence toward ""under served" and basic writing students. Session: I.05 on Mar 23, 2007 from 12:30 PM to 1:45 PM University of Cincinnati 13. The Self-Identity of Basic Writers: Reading and Writing the Academy Session: I.19 on Mar 23, 2007 from 12:30 PM to 1:45 PM Lehigh University 14. On Getting What You Asked For: Consequences and Compromises of Institutionalizing a Mainstreaming Pilot Project Session: K.20 on Mar 23, 2007 from 3:30 PM to 4:45 PM University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 15. Teachers of Writing to the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Session: FSIG.15 on Mar 23, 2007 from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM Gallaudet University SATURDAY, MARCH 24, 2007 16. Identifying, or Being Identified, as "At-Risk": Ways Basic Writers and First-Graders Forge Academic Identities Through a Service-Learning Partnership Course Session: L.13 on Mar 24, 2007 from 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM Cluster: Ohio State University Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From Joanna.Howard@montgomerycollege.edu Fri Mar 16 22:25:27 2007 From: Joanna.Howard@montgomerycollege.edu (Howard, Joanna) Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 17:25:27 -0400 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] BW Sessions at CCCC References: <45FAA7F2020000850000EACA@hermes.boisestate.edu> Message-ID: <767E25E6EB68944981AA718B93201F800371F6D5@MCMAIL2.mcnte.mc.cc.md.us> I'll be discussing BW in the A25 session, but I think we were organized under two-year colleges. Best, Joanna Howard MC-Rockville ________________________________ From: teaching_basic_writing-admin@mailman.eppg.com on behalf of Karen Uehling Sent: Fri 3/16/2007 4:21 PM To: teaching_basic_writing@mailman.eppg.com Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] BW Sessions at CCCC Hi, all... A search under the "focus" category of the CCCC online searchable program netted 16 BW sessions, and I've listed them below briefly, with just the colleges mentioned rather than names. Please write in with more details and/or bring other BW sessions to our attention. Let us know what you are doing at CCCC and what sessions you think are especially important. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2007 1. The Conference on Basic Writing Preconference "Local Conditions/Global Concerns: Basic Writing on the 30th Anniversary of Mina Shaughnessy's Errors and Expectations" Session: W.2 on Mar 21, 2007 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM: Comment: described earlier on TBW-L-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 2007 2. Writing the Dissonance: Using collaborative texts to enhance service learning Session: A.02 on Mar 22, 2007 from 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM University of Minnesota 3. The Liberian Civil War and the Writing Classroom Session: A.09 on Mar 22, 2007 from 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM Rhode Island College 4. A study of high stakes testing practices: CUNY and beyond Session: B.16 on Mar 22, 2007 from 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM LaGuardia Community College 5. Teacher, Student, Research: shifting identities in the learning-centered community college Session: B.26 on Mar 22, 2007 from 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM Kapi'olani Community College 6. Situated Student Writing and Basic Composition Session: C.14 on Mar 22, 2007 from 1:45 PM to 3:00 PM Manhattanville College, Hofstra University, Tisch School of the Arts Acting 7. "I am my language": Representing and Misrepresenting Deaf Writers Session: D.09 on Mar 22, 2007 from 3:15 PM to 4:30 PM Rochester Institute of Technology 8. Plagiarism: ESL and Deaf Students Session: E.20 on Mar 22, 2007 from 4:45 PM to 6:00 PM Rochester Institute of Technology Chair 9. Conference on Basic Writing Special Interest Group (SIG) Session: TSIG.16 on Mar 22, 2007 from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM Comment: Wonderful, informal discussion, chance to network and meet like-minded others and offer suggestions for next year's CCCC-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FRIDAY, MARCH 23, 2007 10. The Power of Ethnographic Research: Investing Basic Writing Students in Research-based Composition Session: F.22 on Mar 23, 2007 from 8:00 AM to 9:15 AM University of Wyoming 11. Basic Economics: The Logical, Pathetic, and Ethical Identities of Basic Writing Session: G.35 on Mar 23, 2007 from 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM California State Polytechnic University Chair 12. "Illegal" Crossings: Challenging the academy's ambivalence toward ""under served" and basic writing students. Session: I.05 on Mar 23, 2007 from 12:30 PM to 1:45 PM University of Cincinnati 13. The Self-Identity of Basic Writers: Reading and Writing the Academy Session: I.19 on Mar 23, 2007 from 12:30 PM to 1:45 PM Lehigh University 14. On Getting What You Asked For: Consequences and Compromises of Institutionalizing a Mainstreaming Pilot Project Session: K.20 on Mar 23, 2007 from 3:30 PM to 4:45 PM University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 15. Teachers of Writing to the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Session: FSIG.15 on Mar 23, 2007 from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM Gallaudet University SATURDAY, MARCH 24, 2007 16. Identifying, or Being Identified, as "At-Risk": Ways Basic Writers and First-Graders Forge Academic Identities Through a Service-Learning Partnership Course Session: L.13 on Mar 24, 2007 from 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM Cluster: Ohio State University Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 _______________________________________________ Teaching_Basic_Writing maillist - Teaching_Basic_Writing@mailman.eppg.com http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing If you no longer wish to receive this mailing, please go to http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing to updat your information. From kuehling@boisestate.edu Sat Mar 17 02:30:42 2007 From: kuehling@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 19:30:42 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] BW, Shaughnessy, & CUNY history/issues--CCCC sessions Message-ID: <45FAF062020000850000EB0E@hermes.boisestate.edu> I think it’s important to take advantage of the city where we meet, and NYC has so much BW history. We celebrate in NY the 30th anniversary of the publication of Mina Shaughnessy’s Errors and Expectations, based on her work at City College, CUNY; at the same time, there are recent historical/political events that impact BW NY, such as the 1999 report of the Mayor's Advisory Task Force on CUNY, recommending a "nationally normed" writing test as prerequisite to the first college level writing course. I located two sessions that speak directly to these histories and issues: a featured session and a BW roundtable. [From the 2007 CCCC searchable program]: FRIDAY, MARCH 23, 2007: FEATURED SESSION New Scholars Talk Back: The City University of New York and the Shaughnessy Legacy Thirty Years Later Session: G.00 on Mar 23, 2007 from 9:30 AM to 10:45 AM This roundtable explores the City University of New York's multiple institutional identities within the Shaughnessy's legacy. Shaughnessy taught basic writing at CUNY's City College in the 1970s, against the backdrop of CUNY's experiment with open admissions and the national call for a more accessible higher education. Thirty years later, CUNY is still associated with the rich historical moment out of which Shaughnessy wrote. However, our students are no longer those of 1977-and neither are our teachers. Since 1977, CUNY has experienced extraordinary changes: shifts in demographics, growing corporatization and globalization, increasingly conservative economic and social policies. CUNY is the nation's largest urban public university, educating a quarter of a million students from 170 different countries, speaking 110 different native languages. Comprising 17 undergraduate colleges spread over the five boroughs of New York, CUNY is by necessity tied to the political, economic, and social realities of this city and this nation. At the same time, these issues play out differently at each of the colleges, with their own distinct demographics and local identities. It is now time to re-examine the relationships between CUNY's historical commitment to open admissions and the continued emergence of conservative accountability agendas, and to consider the ways in which we re-conceive legacies of scholarship in order to assert new directions, politically and pedagogically, for literacy instruction at CUNY. Here, new scholars will describe the ways their work talks (back) to the Shaughnessy legacy and the ways their institutions have responded to the debates over writing instruction that have marked our field for the past three decades. CUNY also wishes to sponsor a party for all CCCC attendees (I wonder if this came to be… --KSU)? Participants: Judith Summerfield, City University of New York Peter Gray, Queensborough Community College Mary Soliday, City College of NY Mark McBeth, John Jay College/CUNY Jessica Yood, Lehman College/CUNY Linda Hirsch, Hostos Community College/CUNY Cheryl Smith, Baruch College/CUNY Crystal Benedicks, Queenborough Community College/CUNY THURSDAY, MARCH 22: BW ROUNDTABLE A study of high stakes testing practices: CUNY and beyond Session: B.16 on Mar 22, 2007 from 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM Our motivation for undertaking this project was stimulated by the high stakes test that CUNY uses to place students into Basic Writing or Freshman Composition classes. Roundtable offers … critical look at the infrastructure of large composition programs and the ways in which faculty address the demands for high standards while also serving the needs of increasingly diverse groups of students under the pressures of city and state legislation to meet politically determined standards. .. why these different systems have or have not adopted testing as the primary assessment tool. …. alternative models of assessing exit standards from Basic Writing and Composition classes … evaluat[ion of] the contentious debates about the validity, reliability, and fairness of these talk effectively about standardized assessment. Roundtable participants from LaGuardia Community College: Marisa Klages J. Elizabeth Clark Gordon Tapper Heidi Johnsen Gail Green-Anderson Lenore Beaky Background and history In Spring 2005, six members of the English department at LaGuardia Community College (part of the City University of New York system) undertook a research project to examine the complicated relationship between high stakes testing and the future of composition studies in the context of public colleges and universities. Standardized high-stakes skills testing began at CUNY in 1976, after an Open Admissions policy had been in effect since 1970. CUNY was at pains to insert "accountability" and "standards" into its admissions process. Therefore three tests were established-the Writing Assessment Test, Reading Assessment Test, and Mathematics Assessment Test (the CWAT, CRAT and CMAT)-to be administered to students upon application for admission and if not passed then, again at the point at which students had attained their 60th credit. Unlike the CMAT and CRAT, the CWAT was designed by CUNY faculty but was not administered by individual faculty as a result of their coursework. The CWAT did not block admission to CUNY senior colleges, but failure would result in placement in remedial or developmental courses. In some colleges, these tests were established as exit tests from the remedial/developmental courses, mostly to the regret of faculty who taught the courses. However, this policy was not uniform. Following a changing of the guard among CUNY trustees and the publication in 1999 of the report of the Mayor's Advisory Task Force on the City University of New York, which recommended the adoption of a "nationally normed" writing test as a prerequisite to the first course in college level writing, the current ACT exam was implemented, replacing the CWAT. Passage of this exam is required for admission to a senior college or to be waived from a remedial/developmental writing course, as well as exit from that same remedial/developmental writing course. The ACT is a standardized high-stakes test unconnected to the curriculum of any writing course offered by the colleges. Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Thu Mar 22 16:22:33 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 09:22:33 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] CCCC 2008 Message-ID: <46024AD9020000850000F032@hermes.boisestate.edu> I am here at the CCCC and yesterday was treated to a wonderful CBW full-day workshop. In the morning the Kingsborough Community College faculty described their fully integrated and developed reading-writing courses and the many support groups that make that happen. After brief introductions, we could choose two different tables to sit with leaders and learn more. In the afternoon, CUNY faculty, graduate students, and others offered a wonderful poster presentation on adult literacy efforts in NYC, and then Jane Maher spoke about her work teaching adult women in prisons. Details to come. Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Mon Mar 26 17:30:17 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2007 10:30:17 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] CCCC 2007 Message-ID: <4607A0B8020000850000F29C@hermes.boisestate.edu> Hi, I'm back from the CCCC, but I got sick at the CCCC--I ended up with "the flu" and I'll be out of commission for at least a week, so I won't have much energy to post. I encourage those who were at the CCCC in NYC to post their perceptions--best BW sessions? Good sessions that impinge on BW? Details on the CBW workshop described below? Please send you reactions, even if very brief. Thanks, Karen Uehling I am here at the CCCC and yesterday was treated to a wonderful CBW full-day workshop. In the morning the Kingsborough Community College faculty described their fully integrated and developed reading-writing courses and the many support groups that make that happen. After brief introductions, we could choose two different tables to sit with leaders and learn more. In the afternoon, CUNY faculty, graduate students, and others offered a wonderful poster presentation on adult literacy efforts in NYC, and then Jane Maher spoke about her work teaching adult women in prisons. Details to come. Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 From Laura.Gray-Rosendale@NAU.EDU Tue Mar 27 00:41:50 2007 From: Laura.Gray-Rosendale@NAU.EDU (Laura Gray-Rosendale) Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2007 16:41:50 -0700 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] CCCC 2007 In-Reply-To: <4607A0B8020000850000F29C@hermes.boisestate.edu> References: <4607A0B8020000850000F29C@hermes.boisestate.edu> Message-ID: <003901c77000$53c07060$0300a8c0@eng.nau.edu> Karen: So sorry to hear that you are sick. There are some nasty bugs going around. I was not able to be present for as much of the CBW Workshop as I hoped. But, the most interesting thing to me was Jane Maher's talk about working with basic writing students who are living in prisons. I thought she was so articulate and raised such important issues about the real daily struggles that her students experience. Did anyone else hear her talk & have a similar reaction? Best wishes, Laura -----Original Message----- From: teaching_basic_writing-admin@mailman.eppg.com [mailto:teaching_basic_writing-admin@mailman.eppg.com] On Behalf Of Karen Uehling Sent: Monday, March 26, 2007 9:30 AM To: teaching_basic_writing@mailman.eppg.com Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] CCCC 2007 Hi, I'm back from the CCCC, but I got sick at the CCCC--I ended up with "the flu" and I'll be out of commission for at least a week, so I won't have much energy to post. I encourage those who were at the CCCC in NYC to post their perceptions--best BW sessions? Good sessions that impinge on BW? Details on the CBW workshop described below? Please send you reactions, even if very brief. Thanks, Karen Uehling I am here at the CCCC and yesterday was treated to a wonderful CBW full-day workshop. In the morning the Kingsborough Community College faculty described their fully integrated and developed reading-writing courses and the many support groups that make that happen. After brief introductions, we could choose two different tables to sit with leaders and learn more. In the afternoon, CUNY faculty, graduate students, and others offered a wonderful poster presentation on adult literacy efforts in NYC, and then Jane Maher spoke about her work teaching adult women in prisons. Details to come. Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373 _______________________________________________ Teaching_Basic_Writing maillist - Teaching_Basic_Writing@mailman.eppg.com http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing If you no longer wish to receive this mailing, please go to http://mailman.eppg.com/mailman/listinfo/teaching_basic_writing to updat your information. From yobei@hotmail.com Fri Mar 30 20:41:57 2007 From: yobei@hotmail.com (Laura Stone) Date: Fri, 30 Mar 2007 19:41:57 +0000 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Teaching open response writing Message-ID:



Dear Members,

 

I am currently working on a unit to teach open response writing to fifth grade students.  On our end of the year test in Kentucky, students have on-demand writing questions to answer in each content area.  I have observed that our students have particular problems with organization and providing supporting ideas.  If anyone has experienced a similar situation or would have any input, please email me.

 

Thank you,

Laura Stone


Watch free concerts with Pink, Rod Stewart, Oasis and more. Visit MSN Presents today. From KUEHLING@boisestate.edu Sat Mar 31 03:36:24 2007 From: KUEHLING@boisestate.edu (Karen Uehling) Date: Fri, 30 Mar 2007 20:36:24 -0600 Subject: [Teaching_Basic_Writing] Reading Circles Message-ID: <460D74C8020000850000F662@hermes.boisestate.edu> Well, I'm feeling much better and would like to comment on the CBW workshop now. I was lucky enough to attend Ronna Levy's demonstration table in the morning--she teaches at Kingsborough Community College in NY, and I got to learn about her "reading circles" approach which is adapted from Harvey Daniels' VOICE AND CHOICE IN THE STUDENT-CENTERED CLASSROOM. Levy divides her developmental students into small groups of 4 or 5--each is assigned a role to prepare for a reading circle discussion. After a piece is assigned, each student must complete a handout that offers a number of roles: "discussion director," "literary luminary," "word wizard," & "content connector." Each of these roles requires certain specific tasks. For instance, the discussion director poses at least three questions in regard to the big ideas of the reading. The literary luminary identifies specific passages for further study, etc. Sometimes all of the students complete the entire handout. The handouts then guide small group discussion of the piece as Levy circulates. The final category of the handout is "reflections"--to be filled out after a class discussion. Levey just responds to these in an informal (written) conversational manner and I assume checks off that the student completed the work. Levy's dissertation is based on this method. I was very impressed. This technique is similar to one I have used with more advanced students and graduate students: assigning each to lead a discussion of an assigned text on Blackboard, using the discussion board feature. My assignment has a complex structure of required items, and students sign up to lead a piece of their choice during a week when they will have time to be a leader. All the students are required to participate in these online discussions. Perhaps I will adapt the reading circles approach to Blackboard work for basic writing; I will definitely try it in class. Did anyone else see the learning circles demonstration? Would love to get your reaction or your comments on other CBW workshop events or CCCC sessions.... Karen Karen S. Uehling Associate Professor Department of English Boise State University 1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725-1525 Office: 208-426-1825 Fax: 208-426-4373