CCR 632: Composition On and Off the Page

Fall 2013, Wednesdays 5:15-8:05 p.m., HBC 020

Patrick W. Berry, pwberry@syr.edu, office: HBC 235
office phone: 315-443-1912
office hours: Tuesdays, 9:00-11:00 a.m. and by appointment
http://patrickberry.com/ccr632fall13

Course Overview
This course focuses on how researchers and teachers of writing pedagogies need to look beyond
the page to historical and social contexts, to people in process, and to our increasingly global
landscape. It also explores how notions of multimodality are challenging what it means to teach
composition. What is the role of response in the teaching of writing? What about listening? What
does it mean to teach writing across the curriculum in the twenty-first century? What can we learn
from the teaching of basic writing? These are some of the questions that we will cover in situating
our own pedagogical values with and against those of other scholars in the field.
Course Texts
Kelly Ritter and Paul Kei Matsuda. Exploring Composition Studies: Sites, Issues, and Perspectives. Logan:
Utah State UP, 2012 (recommended).
Mary Soliday. Everyday Genres: Writing Assignments Across the Disciplines. Carbondale: Southern Illinois
UP, 2011 (required).
Other course readings are available on Blackboard.

1)

2)
3)

4)

Requirements
Papers in response to readings (approximately 2 to 3 pages). See schedule for details. Bring two
paper copies of your responses to class and send them to me by email as well. Well begin each
class with your sharing one copy with a partner and one copy with me. Also, bring print or
electronic copies of readings to each class.
Attend Rhetorical Listening and Composition Colloquium and Workshop Series
(Wednesdays, October 2, October 30, and November 13: 2:15 p.m.-3:45 p.m.)
Mid-semester presentation (10 minutes) at Writing Program symposium that explores the
theory/history/practice divide in composition studies. The symposium, entitled We Make the
Road by Walking: Exploring the Theory/History/Practice Divide, will take place on Friday,
October 11, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in HBC 227.
Serve as leader of discussion on assigned readings for one class. During your presentation, you will
introduce one supplemental article-length reading to the class. You and I will meet once before you
lead the discussion.

5) Teaching statement.
6) Writing project (approximately 15 to 20 pages or the digital equivalent). Details will be forthcoming.

7) Online portfolio that includes an introduction to your portfolio; your writing project, teaching
presentation, and teaching statement; and several other writings from the semester.
Grades
Your grade for the course will be based on an overall assessment of your work. I will consider your
portfolio, participation, and engagement with the readings through your weekly writings.
Special Needs and Situations
If you believe that you need accommodations for a disability, please contact the Office of Disability
Services (ODS), http://disabilityservices.syr.edu, located in Room 309 of 804 University Avenue,
or call (315) 443-4498 for an appointment to discuss your needs and the process for requesting
accommodations. ODS is responsible for coordinating disability-related accommodations and will
issue students with documented disabilities Accommodation Authorization Letters as appropriate.
Since accommodations may require early planning and generally are not provided retroactively,
please contact ODS as soon as possible.
Syracuse University and I are committed to your success and to supporting Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This means that in general no individual who is otherwise qualified shall
be excluded from participation in, be denied benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under
any program or activity solely by reason of having a disability.
Academic Integrity
The Syracuse University Academic Integrity Policy holds students accountable for the integrity of
the work they submit. Students should be familiar with the Policy and know that it is their
responsibility to learn about instructor and general academic expectations with regard to proper
citation of sources in written work. The policy also governs the integrity of work submitted in
exams and assignments as well as the veracity of signatures on attendance sheets and other
verifications of participation in class activities. Serious sanctions can result from academic
dishonesty of any sort. For more information and the complete policy, see the Academic Integrity
Policy at http://academicintegrity.syr.edu/.
Religious Observance
SUs religious observances policy, found at http://supolicies.syr.edu/emp_ben/religious_observance.htm,
recognizes the diversity of faiths represented among the campus community and protects the rights
of students, faculty, and staff to observe religious holy days according to their tradition. Under the
policy, students are provided an opportunity to make up any examination, study, or work
requirements that may be missed due to a religious observance provided they notify their instructors
before the end of the second week of classes. For fall and spring semesters, an online notification
process is available through MySlice/Student Services/Enrollment/My Religious Observances from
the first day of class until the end of the second week of class.

Course Schedule
1.

Introductions (August 28)

Review course requirements; participate in writing process activity; review discussion list;
and discuss.
Donald M. Murray. Teach Writing as a Process Not Product. Cross-Talk in Comp Theory:
A Reader. Ed. Victor Villanueva and Kristin L. Arola. Urbana: NCTE, 2011. 3-6.
Jessica Restaino. Labor and Endlessness: Necessity and Consumption in the First
Semester. First Semester: Graduate Students, Teaching Writing, and the Challenge of Middle Ground.
Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 2012. 22-52.

2.

Understanding the Writing Process in Composition Studies (September 4)

Lisa Ede. Situating Composition: Composition Studies and the Politics of Location. Carbondale:
Southern Illinois UP, 2004. 47-80. 122-56.
Sharon Crowley. Composition in the University: Historical and Polemical Essays. Pittsburgh: U of
Pittsburgh P, 1998. 187-214.
Discussion leader: Jana
Assignment due: Write a 2- to 3-page response essay describing where you stand in relation
to the arguments put forth by Ede and Crowley.

3.

Literacy Crises and Basic Writers (September 11)

Mina P. Shaughnessy. Introduction to Errors and Expectations: A Guide for the Teacher of Basic
Writing (1977). The Norton Book of Composition Studies. New York: Norton, 2009. 387-96.
Steve Lamos. The Mid-1970s: Literacy Crisis Meets Color Blindness. Race, Racism, and
University Writing Instruction in the Post-Civil Rights Era. Pittsburgh: U of Pittsburgh P, 2011.
56-85.
Min-Zhan Lu. Redefining the Legacy of Mina Shaughnessy: A Critique of the Politics of
Linguistic Innocence (1991). The Norton Book of Composition Studies. New York: Norton,
2009. 772-82.
Linda Alder-Kassner and Susanmarie Harrington. Creation Myths and Flash Points:
Understanding Basic Writing through Conflicted Stories. Exploring Composition Studies: Sites,
Issues, and Perspectives. Ed. Kelly Ritter and Paul Kei Matsuda. Logan: Utah State UP, 2012.
13-35.

Discussion leader: Geghard

Assignment due: Write a 2- to 3-page response essay that discusses your understanding of
basic writing and its place within higher education.
Draft a 2- to 3-page preliminary teaching statement (600-900 words). You might find it
helpful to look online to see how other scholars in the field represent their teaching.
4.

Writing and Genre (September 18)

Mary Soliday. Everyday Genres: Writing Assignments Across the Disciplines. Carbondale: Southern
Illinois UP, 2011.
Assignment due: Write a 2- to 3-page response essay describing your understanding of genre
and its implications with regard to your pedagogy.
Discussion leader: Tessa

5.

Writing and the Potential for Social Transformation (September 25)

Myles Horton and Paulo Freire. We Make the Road by Walking: Conversations on Education and
Social Change. Philadelphia: Temple UP, 1990. xv-xxxvii. 97-143.
Tony Scott. Students Working. Dangerous Writing: Understanding the Political Economy of
Composition. Logan: Utah State UP, 2009. 131-79.
Discussion leader: Romeo
Assignment due: Submit a draft of your symposium presentation to Steve and me and post a
2- to 3-p age open response to Blackboard.

6.

Writing, Embodiment, and Narrative (October 2)

Sondra Perls workshop, Wednesday, October 2, 2:15-3:45 p.m., 500 Hall of
Languages; meeting with Perl from 10:30-11:30, 304 Tolley. These events will be in
lieu of our normal class meeting.
Sondra Perl. Felt Sense: Writing with the Body. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2004.
Sondra Perl. Facing the Other: The Emergence of Ethics and Selfhood in a CrossCultural Writing Classroom. Narration as Knowledge: Tales of the Teaching Life. Ed. Joseph
Trimmer. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook, 1997, 173-90.
Sondra Perl. Research as a Recursive Process, forthcoming
Discussion leader: Tamara

Assignment due: Open response on Perls work.

7.

Perspectives on Teaching from Syracuse Faculty (October 9)

Lois Agnew. Teaching Propriety: Unlocking the Mysteries of Political Correctness.
College Composition and Communication 60 (2009): 746-64.
Krista Kennedy and Rebecca Moore Howard. Collaborative Pedagogy, Paper to
Digital. A Guide to Composition Pedagogies, 2nd edition. Eds. Gary Tate, Amy Rupiper
Taggart, Kurt Schick, and H. Brooke Hessler. New York: Oxford University Press. In
press, 2013.
Margaret Himley. Facing (Up to) the Stranger in Community Service Learning. College
Composition and Communication 55 (2004): 416-38.
Stephen Parks. Strategic Speculations on the Question of Value: The Role of Community
Publishing in English Studies. College English 71.5 (2009): 506-27.
Kevin Browne. Rhetoric and the Stoning of Rachel Jeantel. Enculturation (9 July 2013):
http://enculturation.gmu.edu/rachel-jeantel
Discussion leader: Theresa
Assignment due: Open response to the readings; submit revised teaching statement to share
with class.
We Make the Road by Walking: Exploring the Theory/History/Practice Divide
symposium on Friday, October 11, from 9:30-12:30 in HBC 227.
Description: Finding time to reflect on our pedagogical practices and consider how they
connect with our histories and theories is critically important. Yet such reflection is often
overlooked once we are fully immersed in our teaching. In We Make the Road by
Walking, educators Paulo Freire and Myles Horton began a dialogue on how they found
ways to reconcile their histories and theories with their practices. This symposium will
operate in that spirit and will feature short presentations from CCR students on how they
are making sense of their own practices.

8.

Rethinking Pedagogy (October 16)

Nancy Sommers. Responding to Student Writing. College Composition and
Communication 33.2 (1982): 148-56.
Peter Elbow. Ranking, Evaluating, and Liking: Sorting Out Three Forms of Judgment.
College English 55.2 (1993): 187-206.

James P. Purdy and Joyce R. Walker. Liminal Spaces and Research Identity: The
Construction of Introductory Composition Students as Researchers. Pedagogy 13.1 (2013):
9-41.
Doug Downs and Elizabeth Wardle. Reimagining the Nature of FYC: Trends in Writingabout-Writing Pedagogies. Exploring Composition Studies: Sites, Issues, and Perspectives. Ed.
Kelly Ritter and Paul Kei Matsuda. Logan: Utah State UP, 2012. 123-144.
Discussion leader: Jess
Assignment due: Open response to the readings. Respond to teaching statements.
9.

New Media, Digital Literacies, and Pedagogy (October 23)

Class meets in HBC 227
Collin Gifford Brooke. New Media Pedagogies (forthcoming).
Bump Halbritter and Julie Lindquist. Time, Lives, and Videotape: Operationalizing
Discover in Scenes of Literacy Sponsorship. College English 75.2 (2012): 171-98.
Anne Frances Wysocki and Johndan Johnson-Eilola. Blinded by the Letter. 1999. CrossTalk in Comp Theory: A Reader. Ed. Victor Villanueva and Kristin L. Arola. Urbana: NCTE,
2011. 717-38.
Discussion leader: Chad
Assignment due: Write a 2- to 3-page response essay in which you reflect on why and how
literacy sponsorship connects with composition. Post a 1-page abstract of an idea for
your final paper, including possible sources.

10.

Feminism and Composition (October 30)

Gesa Kirschs presentation, Wednesday, October 30, 2:15-3:45 p.m., 500 Hall of
Languages; follow-up discussion by Kirsch with our class from 4-5 p.m. in
HBC 020. These events will be in lieu of our normal class meeting.
Gesa E. Kirsch and Jacqueline J. Royster. Feminist Rhetorical Practices: In Search of
Excellence. College Composition and Communication 61.4 (2010): 640-72.
Gesa E. Kirsch and Joy S. Ritchie. Beyond the Personal: Theorizing a Politics of Location
in Composition Research. College Composition and Communication 46.1 (February 1995): 7-29.
Gesa E. Kirsch. Perspectives: From Introspection to Action: Connecting Spirituality and
Civic Engagement. College Composition and Communication 60.4 (2009): W1-W15.

Assignment due: Open response to the readings.

11.

Cross-Language Relations (November 6)

Special guest: Seth Davis, CCR doctoral student
Carmen Kynard. Literacy/Literacies Studies and the Still-Dominant White Center.
Literacy in Composition Studies 1.1 (2013):
http://www.licsjournal.org/article/literacyliteracies-studies-and-the-still-dominant-white-center/

Paul Kei Matsuda. Teaching Composition in the Multilingual World: Second Language
Writing in Composition Studies. Exploring Composition Studies: Sites, Issues, and Perspectives.
Ed. Kelly Ritter and Paul Kei Matsuda. Logan: Utah State UP, 2012. 36-51.
A. Suresh Canagarajah. A Rhetoric of Shuttling between Languages. CrossLanguage Relations in Composition. Ed. Bruce Horner, Min-Zhan Lu, and Paul Kei Matsuda.
Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 201. 158-79.
Elaine Richardson. English-Only, African American Contributions to Standardized
Communication Structures, and the Potential for Social Transformation. CrossLanguage Relations in Composition. Ed. Bruce Horner, Min-Zhan Lu, and Paul Kei Matsuda.
Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 201. 97-112.
Discussion leader: Karrieann
Assignment due: Think about the ideas advanced in the readings and select one pedagogical
method that you can employ to support multilingual writers.
12.

Rhetorical Listening, Silence, and Praxis (November 13)

Krista Ratcliffe presentation, Wednesday, November 13, 2:15-3:45 p.m., 500 Hall of
Languages; follow-up discussion by Ratcliffe with our class from 4-5 p.m. in
HBC 020. These events will be in lieu of our normal class meeting.
Krista Ratcliffe. Defining Rhetorical Listening. Rhetorical Listening: Identification, Gender,
Whiteness. Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 2005. 17-46.
Krista Ratcliffe. Introduction and Eavesdropping: A Tactic for Listening to Scholarly
Discourse. Rhetorical Listening: Identification, Gender, Whiteness. Carbondale: Southern Illinois
UP, 2005.
Assignment due: Open response to the readings.

13.

Multimodality, Disability, and Intellectual Property (November 20)

Special guest: Allison Hitt, CCR doctoral student

Jody Shipka. A Multimodal Task-Based Framework for Composing. College Composition

and Communication 57. 2 (2005): 277-306.
Melanie Yergeau, Elizabeth Brewer, Stephanie Kerschbaum, Sushil K. Oswal, Margaret
Price, Cynthia L. Selfe, Michael J. Salvo, and Franny Howes. Multimodality in Motion:
Disability & Kairotic Spaces. Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy 18.1 (Fall
2013): http://kairos.technorhetoric.net/18.1/coverweb/yergeau-et-al/index.html
Andrea A. Lunsford, Jenn Fishman, and Warren M. Liew. College Writing, Identification,
and the Production of Intellectual Property: Voices from the Stanford Study of Writing.
College English 75.5 (2003): 470-92.
Discussion leader: Lindsey
Assignment due: Complete draft due.
Thanksgiving break (November 24-December 1)
14.

(December 4) Reading from final papers.