ERIC Number: EJ1418414
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 24
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1534-9322
EISSN: EISSN-1542-5894
"Expanding Communicative Possibilities" in the Public Writing Classroom
Alisa Russell
Composition Studies, v50 n3 p81-104 2022
This article develops a pedagogical approach to increase students' ability to locate and (re-)create publics for the issues about which they care most. By drawing Rhetorical Genre Studies into public sphere theories, this approach blurs the boundaries between widely-dispersed genres (those with large readerships across communities) and narrowly-dispersed genres (those with smaller readerships within singular communities) to show that almost any genre can contribute to public (re-)creation when it encourages public uptakes. The article first explores how these public uptakes work with a case example before turning to pedagogical examples, which include the strategies of (1) mobilizing known genres, (2) selecting concrete locations, and (3) tapping into an ecology. Expanding our understanding of how genres across blurred dispersions can (re-)create publics ultimately expands our students' possibilities for authentically locating, engaging, and (re-)creating these publics.
Descriptors: Writing (Composition), Graduate Study, Rhetoric, Writing Instruction, Public Opinion, Social Attitudes, Community Attitudes, Political Attitudes, Learner Engagement, Student Experience, Publicity, Authentic Learning, Social Action, Class Activities, Teaching Methods
Composition Studies. Available from: English Department, UMass Boston. 100 William T. Morrissey Blvd, Boston, MA 02125; e-mail: compstudiesjournal@gmail.com; Web site: https://compstudiesjournal.com/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A