I just got done setting up the second online module for my formerly face-to-face classes. When we all were preparing to go online, I knew I had some advantages: I’ve done this before (in fact, I’ve been plundering some of my previous online classes’ resources to help the shift), and I know from experience thatContinue reading “Redundancy Is Good Praxis”
Category Archives: Work Thursdays
The Good, The Bad, and The Covid-19
Yesterday, Ball State University announced that we will be suspending in-person classes for the remainder of the semester, effective Monday. I wasn’t surprised, honestly, and I’m actually a little relieved. I’m not given to panic. But I know I’ve been dragging lately, and honestly the requirement to entirely change my teaching strategy overnight excites me.Continue reading “The Good, The Bad, and The Covid-19”
Update: Due Week Results
Before the semester began, I wrote about my resolution to improve response times on student work by assigning due weeks and having students sign up for their due dates within the weeks, rather than having a set due date for the entire class. Last week I wrote about building revision into the syllabus, which wasContinue reading “Update: Due Week Results”
Building Revision Into the Syllabus
Muriel Harris usefully posited the notion of “one-draft writers” and “multi-draft writers” in 1989. For anything less than a novel, I tend to be a “one-drafter”, meaning that I resist revision because I do most of my deep revision on the planning end of things. My outlines are basically my first drafts, and by theContinue reading “Building Revision Into the Syllabus”
First Year Composition Conundrums
This week I had a very depressing thought: As a fully qualified person with a Ph.D., I am teaching essentially the same courses that I was teaching my first year of graduate school, with only a B.A. to my name and a week of “boot camp” training. Sure, I get paid more, but I alsoContinue reading “First Year Composition Conundrums”
The Embodied Literature Review: A Classroom Activity
Last week, I introduced my students to the genre of the literature review. This is, for most first year composition students, an entirely alien genre, since it’s largely the province of academic work. However, the course I’m teaching requires, as part of its description, that my students produce an annotated bibliography of 15-20 sources andContinue reading “The Embodied Literature Review: A Classroom Activity”
When Classroom Management Failure Is An Understatement
I normally don’t talk about professional material on Mondays in this space, but, after last week, I think there’s something we need to talk about. Some of you may have seen Ball State University, where I teach, in the news lately. If you haven’t, here’s the story, go read it. I’ll wait. My understanding ofContinue reading “When Classroom Management Failure Is An Understatement”
I Asked My Students What Makes Good Writing. This Is What I Learned.
Yesterday, I opened class by asking my students what makes writing good. I’m not entirely surprised by the results that I got, but they are telling. I expected every section to mention description, but only three out of four did. The odd one out did mention world-building, though, so perhaps description is still represented. ButContinue reading “I Asked My Students What Makes Good Writing. This Is What I Learned.”
Dr. Cox’s 3 Rules For Peer Criticism
Peer criticism is unquestionably important for learning, especially in writing. It’s also unquestionably tricky to implement effectively. To help out, in this post I offer three simple rules you can use to guide a peer criticism session. There is a lot against us in the traditional classroom when we try to implement peer criticism. ThereContinue reading “Dr. Cox’s 3 Rules For Peer Criticism”
Teaching Against Deficiency
There’s been a lot of talk about “ungrading” and, of course, most of us are probably aware by now of the growing body of research that shows how standardized testing is not a useful measurement of student learning and may actually be doing harm to students. I don’t have anything really conclusive to say aboutContinue reading “Teaching Against Deficiency”
Dr. Cox's Desk 