SP 2015

ENGL 505

ENGL 505B ::

PRACTICUM IN TEACHING COMPOSITION

COURSE & INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Instructor: Emily Legg
Course: ENGL 50500.004
Office: HEAV 301A
Office Hours: Tuesdays 10:30-12:00 and by appointment
Email: legge@purdue.edu or emilymlegg@gmail.com (email is the best way to contact me)
Course Websites: www.505mentoring.wordpress.com

COURSE DESCRIPTION
Welcome to English 505B, Practicum in Teaching First Year Composition. The 505 series of courses is
designed to provide information, support, theoretical grounding, dialogue, and practice. While our
primary focus is teaching composition at Purdue, we will also discuss the role of writing instruction in
other settings. We will spend time planning for instruction and discussing classroom practices, student
writing, and problems that may arise throughout the semester.
This course is grounded in the idea that teaching is an intellectual activity that can never be mastered.
Whether you have never taught or taught for a number of years, you have things to bring to the course
and things to learn from it. Teaching is one of the few jobs in which you have the opportunity to change
and grow as a professional each semester. We will learn a great deal from one another in this course,
and you will learn from your students.
Like 505A, this course will be informed by principles of rhetoric and their application in pedagogical
theories of teaching writing. 505B will not only help prepare you for day-to-day happenings in your
classroom, but will also help you prepare professionally through the development of course materials,
digital portfolios, observations, and institutional case studies. You will also engage in pedagogical
discourse with scholars in the field of Rhetoric and Composition as well as your fellow classmates. As part
of this engagement, you will have the opportunity to lead and contribute to pedagogical discussions and
respond through blogs and presentations.
The work of the practicumthe assigned readings and activitiesare designed to support your
learning of the field of Composition and your professional development as a teacher of writing. You may
find some of the assigned readings to be directly and immediately relevant, while others may anticipate
possible future experiences. Additionally, you may find limitations or oversight in the approaches or
theories discussed. What I ask you to do is focus on what we can learn from the scholars and teachers
that well read together.

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COURSE GOALS
While this course begins as a primarily informative course, the ultimate goal is to help you develop as a
teacher-scholar who is well-versed in composition studies and able to apply that knowledge to the
development of curriculum as well as your own intellectual development.
Course Goals for 505A and 505B include:
Learn rhetorical principles
Develop working knowledge of composition history and theory
Learn course design principles
Become familiar with pedagogical and educational theories
Create effective teaching activities
Learn effective and fair grading practices
Become acculturated to ICAP
Become familiar with resources
Become familiar with program policies
Meet ICaP technology goals
Understand how ICaP differs from other FYC programs
Understand how teaching composition differs from other teaching
Develop professional habits
By the end of the spring semester of English 505, you should have the following:
Teaching Portfolios
Coherent statement of teaching philosophy
Documentation of others observations of their teaching
Detailed lesson plans of ENGL 106
Professional/course web presence
ICaP Showcase participation
Demonstration of best practices for evaluating student writing
If you fail to demonstrate adequate outcomes, you may not pass ENGL 505 and/or the director of
composition may decide to not approve your teaching reappointment for ICaP (see pages 16-17 of the
TA Manual for more information).

TEXTS
For 505B, we do not have a required textbook. However, there are some sourcebooks that may be
helpful as you continue with your tenure teaching at Purdue. I will request for free copies to be provided
for you in the ICaP office:
Views from the Center: The CCCCs Chair Addresses, 1977-2005. Duane Roen. Bedford St.
Martins. 2006.
The Bedford Bibliography for Teachers of Writing. Nedra Reynolds; Jay Dolmage; Patricia
Bizzell; Bruce Herzberg, Bedford St. Martins. 2012.
Teaching Composition: Background Readings. TR Johnson. Bedford St. Martins. 2008.
Style: The Basics of Clarity and Grace. Joseph M. Williams, Gregory Colomb. Pearson. 2010.
Required pedagogical readings will be provided through Dropbox as a digital coursepack.
Legg :: ENGL 50500.004 :: SP 2015

ATTENDANCE
Attendance is crucial in this class. The class is highly interactive and collaborative. So, if you are not here,
you will not learn. Of course, there are good reasons to miss class. If you must miss class for a
professional activity or due to illness, please let me know in advance. Because our course meets twice a
week, if you miss six classes, you will receive a No Credit for the course. If you do not pass this
course, you will not be allowed to teach first year composition. At that point, though, we may have
larger problems to address, because your lack of attendance will likely signal problems in your teaching.

GRIEF ABSENCE POLICY FOR STUDENTS

Purdue University recognizes that a time of bereavement is very difficult for a student. The University
therefore provides the following rights to students facing the loss of a family member through the Grief
Absence Policy for Students (GAPS). GAPS Policy: Students will be excused for funeral leave and given
the opportunity to earn equivalent credit and to demonstrate evidence of meeting the learning
outcomes for missed assignments or assessments in the event of the death of a member of the students
family.
A student should contact the ODOS to request that a notice of his or her leave be sent to instructors.
The student will provide documentation of the death or funeral service attended to the ODOS. Given
proper documentation, the instructor will excuse the student from class and provide the opportunity to
earn equivalent credit and to demonstrate evidence of meeting the learning outcomes for missed
assignments or assessments. If the student is not satisfied with the implementation of this policy by a
faculty member, he or she is encouraged to contact the Department Head and if necessary, the ODOS,
for further review of his or her case. In a case where grades are negatively affected, the student may
follow the established grade appeals process.

NONDISCRIMINATION
Purdue University is committed to maintaining a community which recognizes and values the inherent
worth and dignity of every person; fosters tolerance, sensitivity, understanding, and mutual respect
among its members; and encourages each individual to strive to reach his or her own potential. In
pursuit of its goal of academic excellence, the University seeks to develop and nurture diversity. The
University believes that diversity among its many members strengthens the institution, stimulates
creativity, promotes the exchange of ideas, and enriches campus life.
Purdue University prohibits discrimination against any member of the University community on the basis
of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry, marital status, parental status, sexual
orientation, disability, or status as a veteran. The University will conduct its programs, services and
activities consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and orders and in
conformance with the procedures and limitations as set forth in Executive Memorandum No. D-1, which
provides specific contractual rights and remedies.

EQUAL ACCESS
If you have a disability or extenuating circumstances that will impact your work in this class and would
like to discuss your needs, please schedule an appointment with me as soon as possible. For some
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accommodations, students with disabilities must be registered with Adaptive Programs in the Office of
the Dean of Students.

VIOLENT BEHAVIOR POLICY

Purdue University is committed to providing a safe and secure campus environment for members of the
university community. Purdue strives to create an educational environment for students and a work
environment for employees that promote educational and career goals. Violent behavior impedes such
goals. Therefore, violent behavior is prohibited in or on any University Facility or while participating in
any university activity.

DECORUM
Your role in this practicum is to actively participate in our shared learning space by coming to class
everyday (unless catastrophe strikes) and being prepared to talk about, respond to, and contribute to
our conversations. Because this is a space for you to bounce ideas off of each other, and to share our
stories of what is happening in our classes, I ask that you be respectful of each others contributions. I do
not expect that we will experience harassment, name calling, or disparaging behavior among members
of our class, nor do I expect visible disengagement with the class activities. Such behaviors will not be
tolerated.
Mobile communication devices, mp3 players, or other electronic devices should not be actively used in
the classroom. While they can be important tools for learning and collaboration, they can also be
distracting, if not for you, then for your colleagues. Please make sure your devices are set to silent mode
and that your online activity is appropriate for public spaces.
If you are not meeting the expectations for decorum and participation in this course, I will invite you to
discuss your participation with me during my office hours. If, after the discussion, you are not meeting
the expectations for class decorum, you will risk failure of the course.

CAMPUS EMERGENCIES
In the event of a major campus emergency, course requirements, deadlines and grading percentages
are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised semester calendar or other circumstances
beyond the instructors control. Relevant changes to this course will be posted onto the course website
or can be obtained by contacting the instructors or TAs via email or phone. You are expected to read
your @purdue.edu email on a frequent basis.

GRADING
The course will be graded on a Credit/No Credit basis, meaning you need to pass the course with a C or
better grade. Nevertheless, I will expect better than C work, because this class is a graduate course.
Here are the assignments for the course and their worth:

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 Observation of another syllabus approach

10%
Recorded observation of each other
10%
Syllabus Approach Profile
20%
Digital Teaching Portfolio
20%
Best Practices presentation
20%
Class Participation
20%
These assignments will be graded Pass/No Pass. You must pass all of these assignments to pass the
course. If you dont pass an assignment, you will be asked to revise until it is passing.

LATE WORK
Late work will be grudgingly accepted. If you need an extra day or two, please tell me or shoot me an email. If you have assignments that are exceedingly overdue (more than 1 week), we will meet to discuss
your completion of the assignment so that you may succeed in this class; however, exceedingly late
assignments are a sign that some other problems exist and ICaP has the right to intervene.

ASSIGNMENTS
The information below provides an overview of our course assignments; however, you can find
additional information, due dates, and grading criteria on the guidelines for each assignment on the
course site.

Syllabus Approach Profile

One of the stated main goals for new TAs in ICaP is to contribute to the development of a
strong teaching community of confident and capable instructors. As students in 505, we can
accomplish this goal by becoming (1) familiar with resources available at Purdue, (2) familiar with
program policies, and (3) acculturated to ICaP. While we have been practicing teaching methods
in our syllabus approach (Digital Rhetorics), ICaP is unique in that there are several syllabus
approaches that all aim to teach first year composition, but from different theoretical
backgrounds and disciplinary spaces. In order to familiarize yourself with ICaP in a way that helps
you contribute to a community of diverse teachers, you will be responsible for profiling a
different syllabus approach within ICaP. You will need to write up a 1 page (single-spaced)
profile of a syllabus approach to share with the class. The profile is due Thursday, February 5th
during class.

Observation of another Syllabus Approach

This semester, you will be observing at least one instructor from a syllabus approach other than
Digital Rhetorics. You should visit an approach that you are interested in and/or doing your
syllabus approach profile on. An observation will help you see the course in action, as well as
gain valuable insight from how others may teach. Before you observe a class, request a copy of
the instructors course policies and syllabus. After each visitation, please provide a summary of
and reflection on the class you visited and what you took away from the visit. This should be 1-2
pages, single-spaced. Focus on the strengths and limitations of the class you observed and how
your observation might influence your own pedagogy. This is due Thursday, March 12.

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Recorded Observation of Each Other

This semester, ICaP is asking mentees to conduct additional observations and record those
observation so that all new TAs can have documentation of their teaching as well as have the
opportunity to observe themselves teaching, which can be a very revealing and useful
pedagogical practice. In order to conduct these observations, you will pair up with one another
and take turns recording and observing a class. If our schedules conflict too much to make this
possible, we will team up with an additional mentor group. Before we begin these observations,
we will have a tech mentoring session to go over recording classrooms and an overview of the
equipment you will use. After you have been recorded, you will write up a 1 page (singlespaced) response about your teaching, what you learned, etc. We will share these reflections
during the last two week of class through our teaching journals as a sort of reflective end to 505.
As such, your recorded observations are due Thursday, April 16.

Best Practices Presentation

During the last two weeks of the semester, you will lead a best practices presentation during our
course (we will sign up for dates). This activity will give everyone more practice at developing
classroom activities to support learning outcomes. You will be responsible for developing a
detailed lesson plan with stated learning outcomes and facilitating 20-30 minutes of activities
that support the stated outcomes. Although the class you will lead will be our 505 cohort, you
should plan activities that would be suitable for a 106 class. If your activity requires additional
prep, such as a reading, you will need to provide these materials at least one week in advance.
The goal is to share our materials, get feedback from our peers, and develop class activities.

Digital Teaching Portfolio

Teaching Portfolios are becoming common spaces for instructors to showcase their
development as teacher-scholars. In 505B, we will spend some time developing our own
teaching portfolios. A crucial part of the Teaching Portfolio will be your Teaching Philosophy.
This document will not only describe the pedagogical principles on which you base your
teaching practices but also offer specific examples from your teaching experiences. We will
spend time in class working on both our portfolios and our philosophies through discussion and
reading examples. This is due Thursday, April 30.

Class Participation
Throughout the semester, we will not only be reading about teaching and discussing our own
teaching, but we will also be practicing various teaching and learning methods in our 505
course. To help build our practices and better understand our own philosophies, we will have a
series of readings and corresponding discussions. For each reading, you will need to write a
response and post it to our class site. This response should engage the readings, participate in
pedagogical discourse, and make connections between your teaching and own scholarly
interests. You should also read through others responses and participate in discussion online.
In addition to responses, each of your will be in charge of leading a reading discussion for our
class (you do not need to do a response the week you lead). Part of your responsibilities will be
to find an additional reading that fits the topics covered in the original reading (feel free to talk
to me about this). This means, we will have two articles to read for each discussion. Your
additional reading will need to be supplied to the class at least one week before you present. To
facilitate discussion, you should create a handout for the class that includes summary, key points,
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resources, discussion questions, background info, etc. If you like, you can send out your
discussion questions beforehand so that others can answer these in their responses. Your
discussion should last around 30-40 minutes.
You will also be asked to participate in 505B in other ways, including attending and potentially
participating in the ICaP Showcase (more info on this as it approaches), being observed at least
once by me during the semester (we will work to set this up sometime mid-semester), setting up
meetings with me to discuss your evaluations from the fall, and regularly attend class.

Legg :: ENGL 50500.004 :: SP 2015