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Training & Development
Teaching in the Writing Program involves a significant training component. We best serve our students by putting the best possible teachers in their classrooms. We accomplish this by providing our graduate Teaching Associates (TOs) with the support and resources they need to grow and develop as teachers. Below are the main components of our extensive teacher training and development program.
Summer Orientation
As a way to introduce new TOs to the Writing Program and College Writing, an orientation is held every year the week before the beginning of Fall semester (this year, it's August 29 - September 1, 2011). Orientation is required of all new TOs, although veteran teachers (TOs who have already taught one year in the Writing Program) are invited to attend. Orientation consists of a series of theoretical and practical sessions designed to prepare TOs for teaching College Writing. New TOs must attend all sessions without exception.
For more about this year's (2011) Orientation, click here.
For a schedule of this year's (2011) Orientation, click here.
General Meeting
A required meeting of all instructors in the First Year Writing Program (Englwrit 111/112/112H), new and veteran, including TOs, lecturers, and Course Directors, is held on the Friday afternoon before the first week of classes of both fall and spring semesters. The fall meeting (this year, it's Friday, September 2, 2011, 12:30 - 3:00 pm, in Engineering Lab 2, Room 119) includes a group photograph and "beginning of the year" social event. The spring meeting (this past year, it was Friday, January 14, 2011) coincides with our annual TO-led "Spring into Teaching" symposium.
Fall Workshops
As a part of ongoing training, members of the Writing Program staff offer a series of workshops on our curriculum and topics related to the teaching of writing. During the Fall semester, these workshops, held on Tuesdays from 11:15-12:30pm, cover each unit taught in College Writing. New TOs are required to attend all Fall workshops. The workshops begin on the second Tuesday of the semester and meet every other week.
For a schedule of this year's (2011) workshops, click here.
Spring Symposium
The spring General Meeting of all First Year Writing instructors, held every year on the Friday before the first week of spring semester classes, is organized as a symposium, with break-out sessions led by TOs themselves and designed to generate discussion and innovation in teaching Basic and College Writing.
For last year's program, click here (PDF).
Course Director (CD) Groups
Each new TO is a member of a regularly-meeting pedagogy group led by an English Department or Writing Program faculty member (Course Director). These meetings ensure the consistent application of Writing Program principles and techniques in all of our classes and also work to build a teaching community among all instructors within the Program. As in any community, members share their experiences and views in order to learn from one another.
These meetings provide the opportunity for TOs to come together as colleagues to reflect on their teaching and focus on issues that arise in the classroom. Likely meeting topics include conducting peer response groups and student conferences, setting appropriate goals and objectives, designing writing activities and assignments, responding to and evaluating student writing, and grading.
For rosters of CD Groups, click here.
Teaching Practica
After the first year, TOs attend practica on different topics in the teaching of writing every other week. The discussions within the practica will be more focused and extend beyond day-to-day teaching practice in our program to broader concerns in the teaching of writing that can help us imagine new possibilities for teaching in our own classrooms. Typical practica offered include the following:
698D Alternative Classroom Practices will examine alternative methods and practices that can enhance your teaching of Englwrit 112, such as the use of technology, collaborative writing, incorporating special projects, etc.
698F Professional Development will help you draft a philosophy statement, develop curricular plans, and compile materials from your classroom and student evaluations. This one is probably best taken close to completing your program.
698G Composition Theories and Pedagogies will look at alternative approaches to teaching composition and ways to revise our syllabus to include some of them (e.g. themed writing assignments, critical pedagogy, etc.) and/or issues raised in the composition literature relevant to 112 such as approaches to ESL and multicultural topics.
698I Teaching Basic Writing (open to teachers of 111 only) will cover issues relevant to teaching Englwrit111. (Note: Enrollment in 698E is required to teach 111, even if you have completed your five semester training requirement.)
698J Teacher Mentoring (open to Resource Center staff only) will focus on issues surrounding mentoring teachers within and outside of course director groups. Biweekly meetings with the asst. director for teacher training.
698K Language Diversity explores teaching issues related to multi-lingual writers and ways to make our classrooms more inclusive of students from diverse language and cultural backgrounds. Topics to be covered include cultural influences on reading and writing practices, evaluation of L2 texts, and the range of experience of multi-lingual writers.
698S: Teaching and Technology explores the wide range of technology available to us as teachers of writing in order to consider what aspects of technology can enhance our teaching and our students’ writing.
For rosters and descriptions of Practica, click here.
Syllabi & Calendars
For College Writing syllabi and calendars, click here.
