In this essay, I offer William James's notion of pragmatic belief as a framework for re-envisioning religious discourses as rhetorical resources in composition teaching. Adopting a Jamesian pragmatic framework in composition teaching, I argue, entails two pragmatic adjustments to current approaches. The first adjustment concerns the way we think…

In this article we provide a "portrait" of an exemplary writing teacher and the social construction of authority he established with students in two courses. The portrait demonstrates that teacher authority is most essentially a form of professional authority granted by students who affirm the teacher's expertise, self-confidence, and belief in…

Based on an ethnographic study of a writing course taught by a talented instructor who integrated process and critical pedagogy approaches, I argue that many students actively engage with the concerns of critical pedagogy when the classroom ethos strongly supports their agency--their ownership of their developing ideas and texts. (Contains 10…

The assessment framework presented here draws on theories of reflective practice and mediated activity to update or "multimodalize" the reflective texts students are sometimes asked to compose after completing an essay. The article underscores the importance of having students assume greater responsibility for cataloging and assessing the…

In this article, the author offers a brief overview of retention scholarship and argues that there are several reasons composition studies professionals should pay attention to this area of research. She then considers how the problem of retention reframes and qualifies the issue of access to higher education, an issue that is central to the…

There has been little discussion of hospitality as a practice in college writing courses. Possible misuses of hospitality as an educational and ethical practice are explored, and three traditional and still tenable modes of hospitality are described and historicized: Homeric, Judeo-Christian, and nomadic. Application of these modes to…

This article is a rhetorical analysis of the anxious and outraged discourse employed in response to the "rising tide" of cheating and plagiarism. This discourse invites actions that are antithetical to the goals of education and the roles of educators, as exemplified by the proliferation of plagiarism-detection technologies. (Contains 15 notes.)

"Guidelines for the Ethical Treatment of Students and Student Writing in Composition Studies" signals our increased awareness of the ethical obligations that attend our scholarship and research. Our adoption of research methods from other fields, particularly the social sciences, has heightened that concern. We must now consider the ethical…

The implications of the "Students' Right to Their Own Language" resolution on classroom teaching and practices point to a continual need to reevaluate how communicative actions--linguistic diversities--of students are central aspects of the work within composition courses. This article revisits the historical significance and pedagogical value of…

"Your Average Nigga" contends that just as exaggerating the differences between black and white language leaves some black speakers, especially those from the ghetto, at an impasse, so exaggerating and reifying the differences between the races leaves blacks in the impossible position of either having to try to be white or forever struggling to…

Working-class academic narratives reveal a number of common themes, like dual estrangement and internalized class conflict. A less popularized motif is the bookish child who is catapulted out of her working-class origins. But some working-class academics, like myself, were not academically ambitious as children. I am a nontraditional working-class…

Suggests that the marginalized teacher-subject look to contemporary theoretical notions of the "radical resignification" of power as well as to the neglected rhetorical concept of metis, or "cunning," to engage difference more efficaciously, if more sneakily. Argues that one possible praxis for better negotiating student resistance is the…

Shares insights and experiences of three students that might smooth the way for other graduate students who may be struggling to chart their own courses to the "PhD shore." Suggests that it is ultimately the student who must take ownership and chart a course through the "choppy dissertation waters." (SG)

Identifies some of the pitfalls that contribute to the breakdown of communication between white faculty and Black male students during interactions over student writing. Points out the behaviors that both constrain and facilitate these interactions. Concludes with suggestions for improving faculty awareness of how racial dynamics impact…

Examines Black student responses to Black Panther Party documents and how those documents moved the students toward change. Maintains that by allowing the classroom to function as a public space which students can discuss the issues that matter to them, teachers can help to foster and encourage student activism and ultimately their empowerment.…