dfitzgerald@millikin.edu | department of english | 402d shilling hall
Though all students who enter the classroom may not identify as writers, I encourage them to bring their individual interests to their writing. They regularly choose their own topics, using personal and professional interests to motivate their work and make it interesting to them. If students write about topics in which they are invested, they can better see themselves as experts or at least writers who have something significant to say about a given topic. Through daily journal writing, collaborating, sharing revision strategies and reflecting on these processes students are able to strengthen their writer identities. I seek to make the writing classroom a place of discovery for students by encouraging them to pursue a range of topics about their culture, discipline or major and environment. We not only study writing and communication processes but also the processes of critical thinking and engagement. We focus on political, social and cultural issues through readings, project topics and in-class assignments. I practice what I a critical techno-pedagogy, which means I look at technology as part of the writing process as well as content for critical examination. Studying technologies such as social network sites, chatting, texting, and web design, for example, offer opportunities for students to examine critically their technology practices and their culture.
My goal for students is for them to emerge from the classroom as more conscious and discerning writers, readers and viewers of texts. I also hope students become more confident communicators with new, creative ways to approach the composition process whether they write essays or design hypertext. I want them to be able to take their talents into any situation and communicate with any audience. My personal goal as an instructor is to learn more about myself as a teacher and writer.
IN 150 Critical Writing, Reading & Research
EN 270 Computer Aided Publishing
EN 305 Web Publishing
EN 480 Professional Writing Internship