Some sample questions you came up with for the different topics

What we will do in our next class:

More practice taking apart questions = figuring out what to answer; bring questions about theorists

the internet and " learning to read social cues and react accordingly":Hayles, Herring, boyd

How has the internet changed the way we communicate with others

digital technologies, composing process, and teaching writing:  McGee & Ericsson, Eldred, Williams, Selfe

 how have digital technologies changed best practices for teaching writing?

digital spaces and social justice issues: Selfe; Selfe &Selfe, Herring, boyd

literacies and interfaces: Selfe& Selfe, McGee & Ericsson, Williams, [Hayles], boyd

discuss disadvantages of currently available interfaces for (define particular users)

literate practices and digital technologies: McGee & Ericsson, Hayles, Herring, boyd, Eldred

how does Eldred’s principles about choice of technology, ease of use, participation and audience influence changing literate practices associated with digital technologies

Explain how digital technologies have changed the way we use writing for social interactions

Social networking

Email

Blog

Interactions in classrooms

New language

11.30 boyd, Herring and exam questions

List of theorists for second half of the term:

Selfe:  technology and the classroom = how teachers teach it, literacy and access, educator's role, technology is not neutral= potential for technology to exclue users by race, class + gender


Selfe & Selfe: politics of the interface; MS office made for business; metaphors of the interface;
exclusion by language group => coding ASCII ; structure of interface reflects white, middle class male literacies;


McGee & Ericsson: politics of the grammar checker => designed for business not for education; the essay proposed a different set of designers; problems posed by grammar checkers for teaching writing: false senes of security=


Eldred:  4 approaches to teaching writing;  technology asintegral to effective literacy pedagogy; choice of technology, ease of use, participation, audience

Williams: hypertext pedagogy; design model for teaching writing; how hypertext changes composing + composing process

Hayles: hyper attention=> multitasking, aware of multiple inputs, need for stimulation + interaction, active;  deep attention = focused, sustained attention = like reading a Dickens novel

Herring : men v women behavior + value systems related to the internet; politeness (+ and - P, + and - N) = different values for politeness AND for freedom

boyd:  social networking and teenagers; identity creation, social status, [impression management]; social networking connects identity to writing and the features of persistence, searchability, replicability, & invisble audience further complicate identity issues => publics play critical role in development of identity; tensions between public and private



List of topics for exam questions:

the internet and " learning to read social cues and react accordingly":Hayles, Herring, boyd

digital technologies, composing process, and teaching writing:  McGee & Ericsson, Eldred, Williams

digital spaces and social justice issues: Selfe; Selfe &Selfe, Herring, boyd

literacies and interfaces: Selfe& Selfe, McGee & Ericsson, Williams, [Hayles], boyd

literate practices and digital technologies: McGee & Ericsson, Hayles, Herring, boyd

For next class:

I will return your draft research essays with comments.  We will use the class as a workshop for your research essays, and as a review for the final exam.

11.16 Hypertext pedagogy, hyper-attention and deep attention

We started class with a discussion of the mid-term, and how to set up the due dates/assignments for the rest of the term (see the previous post).  I have invited all of you (at your kean email) as editors for a google.doc sign up sheet for a conference on your research essay or anything you might need to talk about.  If the times listed don't work for you, or if you cannot access the document - send me an email.

The study guides for Williams, and for Hayles are posted.

No class Wednesday, November 23:
For class Wednesday, November30:
Read: Politeness in computer culture,    Why youth © social networking sites
Study guide links should be sent to me by Sunday, November 27.

Have a great Thanksgiving and see you in two weeks.

Due dates + planning for the rest of the term

Research paper

Optional submit research question + theorists & some discussion about how they fit:  by Friday Nov 18 for feedback by Nov 23

Draft due: November 30 

include questions/requests for help

Returned by December 5

Final project due: December 14

Final exam:

Focus for exam announced November 30

Review December 7

In-Class final examp december 14

Sample Hypertext compositions

Electronic literature (includes hypertext essays and many other composition, for information about the release - in NYC - of the second volume, see the hompage of the Electronic Literature Organization)

This is the way the world ends a hypertext narrative composed by John Clark, a Kean student from ENG 4081: Introduction to Writing Electronic Literature

Academic hypertext essays at Kairos

For an inside look at the composing process for a hypertext - you might look around the history for entries on Wikipedia.  For example: revision history for entry on hypertext fiction.  Which part of the process from Williams' article do we see here?

11.9 Computers in the classroom + research questions

We spent most of class today talking about how computers re-frame the teaching of writing in college classrooms.  We began by talking about 4 different approaches to teaching writing: in these 4 different approaches teachers focus on writing as a product, writing as a process, writing as critical social construction; writing as a public/networked/interactive practice.  We talked a little about differences in the kinds of assignments teachers might use for the different approaches, and how they might value writing differently.  I suggested you might want to think about how these four different approaches connect to the literacy theorists we have read so far.

The Eldred group presented their study guide - and then we did an experiment to see if we could "read" the language cues that connected to "classroom identities."  So what do you think?

We turned (or I directed ) much of the discussion from this chapter into a kind of reflective assessment on how technology (particularly the group work in google.docs) worked as a writing/learning tool in our class.  In some ways - this reflection underscored the need to take the steps that Eldred set forward in her essay.  At the same time - there were other factors in our classroom that undermined the effectiveness of our use of google-docs to create the study guides.  That was an interesting discussion  - maybe you might be writing some more about this for your final?

We spent the rest of the class talking through possible research questions for your essays.  I am hoping that the "samples" we talked through gave those of you who were listening some clear ideas about how to set up question that will support a strong essay.  If you would like to talk some more about your essay - send me an email to set up a conference.

For next week we will talk about hypertext and hyperattention.

Read: Hayles, posted; Williams, 469

Your midterms are due by Friday midnight.  If I do not recieve the essay by that time - you will receive the grade from your first midterm.

Good luck & see you next week.

11.2: Grammar checkers & Mid-term discussion & Research Essay

We started class with the "Animator v Animation" video - and used it as a prompt to pick up some of the issues raised in the Selfe & Selfe discussion of the politics of the interface.  We speculated about how the videos critiqued the operating system, the programs on the desktop - and the program the chosen one escaped from.  We paid particular attention to the visual representations and what they showed about how users feel about, interpret and re-interpret images/print messages/icons/spatial relationships/actions etc set up in computer spaces.  We observed that in some ways this was a "hybrid" text that connected gaming and composing programs/practices.

The MSGC group then presented an overview of McGee & Ericsson's essay.
As noted in the study guide - some of the essays main points were that:

• grammar checkers were created by computer programmers - NOT writing teachers
• grammar checker's constant interruptions, imposition of authority (taking authority from the composer) and rule-based corrections go against best practices for teaching writing
• grammar checkers and most of MS software is designed for business (rather than teaching) agendas

They asked us to think about what a grammar checker with student writers in mind would look like, and directed us to the author's suggestions about how writing teachers can "deal with" MSGC.

We then participated in an exercise to see what MSGC did and didn't notice in terms of the 20 most frequent errors in college writing, and explored the MS options



 Mid-term exam:  We discussed the mid-term exam - and hopefully we addressed all questions, misgivings and confusions.  As discussed in class, if you were satisfied with your grade for the first essay, you are not required to write this one.  Send the completed exam to the course email as an attachment before class on or before Friday, November 11, at midnight.    I will not accept late essays this time; failure to turn the 11/11. midterm essay in on time will mean your grade will reflect your performance on the first mid-term exam.  .


Research essay:  We reviewed the assignment sheet and talked about how to identify and sharpen a research question.  If you have questions about or would like additional support getting started on your research essay - schedule a conference during my office hours:M 12:15 –3:15 pm; T 4:30– 6:00 pm;  W 1:45 - 3:30; Th 12:15 - 2:00 pm.  N


Notes on the mid-term discussion, and on the research essay discussion (very short) are posted at the end of this entry.
                     
                        

For  next class:

Read:  Eldred (239)
Write: a research question - and a short discussion of how you plan to pursue your research.
Turn in your Mid-term exam by Friday, November 11.

During  class,  we will talke about "Pedagogy in the Computer-networked Classroom" and do the study guide group's activity.  Then each of you will make a short presentation on your research questions - and the class (and I) will provide feedback).

Notes from 11.02.2011 (palindrome day)

3 perspectives on literacies

While there may be overlap in theorists “main” focus – for this exam you can only assign one focus for each theorist.

1.    Focus on writing
Ong = writing as technology, separation/distance; changes thinking

Olson=writing as theoretical model for literacies; part of the thinking process;

Scribner + Cole= experience with particular writing systems results in facility in particular writing practices/thinking practices

2.    Focus on how literacies are used

Scribner + Cole= experience with particular writing systems results in facility in particular writing practices/thinking practices Heath = literacies are social, interpretations created by group interactions/social relationships
Bartholomae = audience explectations, what students wrote to those expectations

3.    Focus on unequal power relationships
Gee
Delpit
Pratt

Organization for essay

Intro – set up theorists to represent each focus = state what different focuses do

For the body of the text, you may organize your discussion in terms of the theorists, or in terms of the three aspects of literacies you were asked to discuss.  Which ever pattern for organization you choose, review your essay to make sure you use the same organization in each section (or close to it).


For example, if you chose to organize your essay by theorists, you would introduce the theorist & identify his/her focus, and then write about the 3 aspects of literacy you were asked to discuss.   Then you would move on to the next theorist (for a pattern as set up below).


Theorist 1

• learning to write,
• interpreting texts, 
• and communicating with others.  

Theorist 2

• learning to write,
• interpreting texts, 
• and communicating with others

Theorist 3

• learning to write,
• interpreting texts, 
• and communicating with others

Then conclusion

If you chose to organize your discussion in terms of the 3 aspects of literacies you were asked to discuss - you would discuss the feature of literacies = and then develop a more in-depth discussion that covers the different ways theorists from each perspective would explain/represent/think about that aspect of literacy.

An organization centered on the three aspects of literacies would be as follows.

learning to write
theorist 1
theorist 2
theorist 3

• interpreting texts
  theorist 1
  theorist 2
  theorist 3

 

• and communicating with others
  theorist 1
  theorist 2
  theorist 3

Conclusion.

Possible research questions and strategies for developing them.

Beginning research question:  What are the advantages disadvantages of an adult literacy learning program?  (good start => but needs to be focused.  This is way too much to take on for a 5-7 page paper).

To narrow your focus => do some background reading:
Look at adult literacy programs

Classify features of those programs in terms of their advantages & disadvantages and think about which particular features you want to write about

DO SOME BRAINSTORMING: Free write, make listes, cluster => any kind of brainstorming in writing that will help you identify and classify different aspects of your topic

Write a series of questions and then think about what you would need to write to answer it.  Consider how well (or whether) you can connect it to the course readings.  

Interface issues

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOXhYqtk_-0&feature=related