|
WPA
as Agent of Change: Negotiating the Intellectual Work of Writing Program Administration
|
English 680W Seminar Spring 2002 Purdue University Professor Shirley Rose Fridays 11:30-2:20; HEAV210 |
Syllabus
Course Emphasis
What is the intellectual
work of Writing Program Administration? This seminar will explore the diverse areas in which writing program
administrators do intellectual work, including curriculum development, professional
development of writing faculty, and writing program-based research.
Course readings will examine the WPA as an agent of change in a variety
of higher education contexts, including first-year composition, professional
writing, writing centers, and writing across the curriculum programs
Areas
of Inquiry
Course
readings, seminar discussions and activities, and course assignments will
address themes and subjects such as the following:
·
how do WPAs negotiate their roles in writing programs and their
broader institutional contexts?
·
what rhetorical strategies
do WPAs use to describe and document their work in writing program administration?
·
what stories do WPAs
tell one another about their work and what are the ethical implications of
these stories?
·
what analytical tools
can be used to map the arenas of WPA work?
·
other question and concerns suggested by course readings and
student interest
Course Work Requirements
Reading/Discussion
Assignments:
Individual Projects
Students may select from the following projects for inclusion in a portfolio
of course work. Complete portfolios are due at the end of the term; drafts
of projects may be submitted for review at any time during the semester.
·
Documentation
Strategy
for some aspect of a particular writing program
·
Job
Description
and analysis of a particular WPA position
·
Mini-Ethnography of a particular
WPA as a writer
·
Report and analysis of Shadowing
a WPA for a Day
·
Case Study of administrator practice
·
WPA Conference
Proposal
·
Annotated
Bibliography/List of Internet Resources for WPA subfield
·
Design and leadership of an in-class Situated Performance Activity based on
an issue in writing program administration with reflective follow-up commentary
·
Book Review of recent book on issue(s) of concern
for writing program administrators
Collaborative
Class Project: Proposal for contribution
to curriculum development for Purdue’s Introductory Writing Program
Course Texts
required
Linda Myers-Breslin,
ed. Administrative Problem-Solving for
Writing Programs and Writing Centers: Scenarios in Effective Program Management.
Urbana, IL: NCTE, 1999.
Ward, Irene and
William C. Carpenter. Allyn and
Bacon Sourcebook for Writing Program Administrators. New York: Longman, 2002
Coursepack for English 680A Spring 2002 (Coursepack will be
in two parts. The first part is available at Copy Mat in Chauncey Village)
recommended
Rose, Shirley
K and Irwin Weiser, eds. Writing Program
Administrator as Researcher: Inquiry in Action and Reflection. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann-Boynton/Cook, 1999.
Course Policies
Course Grade:
For a grade of "C" (or "Pass" for students taking course pass/fail):
Attend class regularly;
Read all required course texts and participate in class discussions about
readings;
Contribute to in-class exercises;
Contribute
to collaborative class project; and
Complete
brief weekly in-class and out-of-class writing exercises
For a grade
of "B":
Meet all of the requirements for a "C" and
Complete a course portfolio of 3 individual projects
Present one of the projects orally in class or incorporate it into the class
website
For a grade of
"A"
Meet all of the requirements for a "C" and
Complete a course portfolio of 4 projects
Present two of the projects orally in class or incorporate them into class
website.
All activities
and assignments must meet course standards (including on-time completion)
to receive credit. No incompletes. No incompletes. No incompletes.
No
coursework accepted for credit after Friday of finals week.