In-Class Assignment: Rethinking Failure

When I told my students that we were going to spend the class period talking about failure, they immediately started responding with tried and true platitudes. "Failure is not an option!" Their enthusiasm for college success is bolstered by such claims.

The truth though? Failure is not only an option, but often a likelihood.

Conversation: Flipping Out: Flipped Teaching Models

I mentioned in my review of Blackboard that it could be an excellent tool for developing a flipped classroom model, but I wanted to explore that idea a little further. Here's an infographic from Knewton that explains the concept and why it's getting so much attention in discussions about education.

Created by Knewton and Column Five Media

Basically, in a flipped model, we record our lectures for students to watch at home at their own pace (and technology advancements in PowerPoint and Prezi make that pretty easy to do). This frees up the classroom time for more actively engaged learning and group work. 

What do you think of a flipped classroom model? What concerns do you have? Are there any concerns particular to developmental students, or could a flipped model be even more helpful for these students?

Assignment: Group Grammar Worksheet

Grammar worksheets have always been a point of contention in my teaching. When I hand them out, even students who do well on them seem unable to explain the rules they're using, which then means they have trouble applying them in their own writing.

I began to think that grammar worksheets were a waste of time.

I decided to try something new last year,and since then I have used it several times. It has worked really well, and I think it could be adapted in several ways to encompass a variety of grammar lessons.

 

Assignment: In-Class MLA Explanation Exercise

Since I'm teaching exclusively developmental writing classes, I don't spend a lot of time talking about citation styles. My papers don't generally require outside sources, and I tend to work individually with students who want to use them to get the citations right.

Style guides come up, though, because students know that they are out there, but they generally don't have a very firm grasp over what they are or how they work. I do require some familiarity with MLA style because I require its formatting for paper headings and things like margins and spacing. I make formatting a (small) part of my grading criteria, and there are inevitably several students who lose a few points for not double spacing their lines or not putting a title on their papers.

Students don't like this. They think that it's nit-picking and frustrating. It's not "real" writing; it's just annoying. I know what they meant, they insist, so I shouldn't take the points off.

To help demonstrate why paying attention to these details is more than just a place for me to penalize them, I remembered an activity the SLU Writing Center had used when I worked there. I adapted this activity for my developmental writing students, and I was happy with the results.

I divide my students into two groups and then tell them that we're going to have a contest. They need to imagine that they've just entered a busy restaurant.

Assignment: Gaining Perspective

Overview-
Perspective is a key part of understanding how to write well. As writers, we need to recognize that we approach each assignment with our own unique perspective. We also need to realize that we have the power to change that perspective. In addition, we need to recognize that our readers approach what we write with a perspective of their own, one that might or might not match what we had in mind.

Since perspective is mostly about the way we see things, it makes sense to demonstrate it through visuals. This in-class activity will give you a chance to explore your own perspective in a new way.

Assignment: Does Grammar Matter?

Overview- A solid discussion of grammar will often leave students in a space of uncertainty. If we explain that all dialects have grammar and that no grammar is inherently better than any other, we can give them impression that grammar does not matter. At the same time, if we explain that students are held purely to the Standard Academic English grammatical standards, we can give the impression that grammar is the only thing that matters.

This in-class activity is designed to explore that tension.

Assignment: Exploring Audience Expectations

Overview- Good writers adapt their material for their audience. Even if your purpose remains the same, your message will change when your audience changes if you want to deliver it effectively. A good way to see this in action is to explore the websites run by The Washington Post. The Washington Post is a nationally-renowned newspaper that provides information, analysis, and commentary on a wide range of topics.