Category Archives: Teaching Composition

notes from the interblags: post RSA edition

Posted on June 29, 2009 by Michael

Yesterday concluded the RSA Summer Institute, held here at Penn State. Participants from around the country came to discuss rhetoric in either a week-long seminar or a weekend workshop (or for some, both). I was in the Queering Rhetorical Studies … Continue reading →

Posted in Copyright, Internet culture, New Media, Notes from the Interblags, Queer issues and theory, Teaching Composition | Leave a comment

a book report on peter rabbit

Posted on March 4, 2009 by Michael

via Rosa at the Blogora, here’s an amazing Charlie Brown video about the stresses of writing: PS. I love Linus.

Posted in Teaching Composition | 3 Comments

“whopper virgins”

Posted on December 11, 2008 by Michael

From Feminist Philosophers, Here is a 7+ minute video that shows a taste test conducted by Americans in regions of the world where people have never eaten a hamburger. They conducted an experiment to see if these “whopper virgins” would … Continue reading →

Posted in Race, Teaching Composition | 3 Comments

definitions: marriage

Posted on November 17, 2008 by Michael

Tomorrow in class we’re talking about definitions. In particular, there are four ways you might define a term in an essay: formal (like a dictionary) extended, historical, negative (what it’s not), and stipulative (“for the sake of this essay, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Queer issues and theory, Teaching Composition | Leave a comment

584: Weekly Position Paper #9: The Ethos of GTAs: Credibility Appeals vs. Pedagogical Openness

Posted on October 24, 2008 by Michael

Ethos is a term that Krista Ratcliffe employs in Rhetorical Listening both in order to understand how whiteness functions in our society and in order to help teachers understand how they can plan for a course that prepares students to … Continue reading →

Posted in English 584 Rhetoric Writing and Identity (Fall 2008), Teaching Composition | 1 Comment