Engaging ideas the professor's guide to integrating writing, critical thinking, and active learning in the classroom

Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Contents
Preface
About the Authors
1 Using Writing to Promote Thinking: A Busy Professor’s Guide to the Whole Book
	Steps for Integrating Writing and Critical Thinking Activities into a Course
	Four Discouraging Beliefs and Some Encouraging Responses
	Conclusion: Engaging Your Students with the Ideas of Your Course
PART ONE Understanding Connections Between Thinking and Writing
	2 How Writing Is Related to Critical Thinking
		Overview of the Writing Across the Curriculum and Critical Thinking Movements
		Writing, Thinking, and a Dialogic View of Knowledge
		Avoiding a Thesis: Three Cognitively Immature Essay Structures
		What Causes These Organizational Problems?
		Pedagogical Strategies for Promoting Critical Thinking
		Teaching Thinking through Teaching Revision
		Conclusion: The Implications of Writing as a Means of Thinking in the Undergraduate Curriculum
	3 Helping Writers Think Rhetorically
		Helping Students Think about Audience and Purpose
		Helping Students Think about Genre
		Genre Awareness and Student Learning
		Conclusion: Thinking Rhetorically as a Transferable Skill
PART TWO Designing Problem-Based Writing Assignments
	4 Formal Writing Assignments Situated in Rhetorical Contexts
		Thinking Rhetorically: Five Variations on the Same Assignment
		Articulation of Learning Goals as Preparation for Designing Assignments
		Planning Your Course Backward by Designing the Last Assignment First
		Best Practices in Assignment Design
		Designing an Effective Assignment Prompt
		Example of an Effective Assignment Handout
		A Common Problem: Asking Too Many Questions
		Asking a Colleague to “Peer-Review” Your Assignment Handout
		Giving the Assignment in Class
		Assignments Leading to Closed-Form Thesis-Governed Writing
		Microtheme Assignments for Writing-to-Learn
		More Open Forms: Alternatives to the Thesis-Governed Paper
		A Potpourri of Other Kinds of Alternative Formal Assignments
		Multimodal Alternatives to Formal Assignments
		Conclusion: Writing Assignments in the Context of the Whole Course
	5 Informal, Exploratory Writing Activities
		Why We Find Exploratory Writing Valuable
		Common Objections to Exploratory Writing
		Logistics, Media, and Methods for Assigning Exploratory Writing
		Explaining Exploratory Writing to Students
		Twenty Ideas for Incorporating Exploratory Writing into a Course
		Evaluating Exploratory Writing
		Managing the Workload
		Conclusion: Engaging Ideas through Exploratory Writing
PART THREE  Coaching Students as Learners, Thinkers, and Writers
	6 Designing Tasks to Promote Active Thinking and Learning
		Ten Strategies for Designing Critical Thinking Tasks
		Conclusion: Strategies for Designing Critical Thinking Tasks
	7 Helping Students Read Mindfully across the Disciplines
		Research on Reading Practices across the Disciplines
		Cultural Obstacles to Mindful Reading
		The Rhetorical Component of Reading Mindfully
		The Metacognitive Component of Reading Mindfully
		Suggested Strategies for Helping Students Become More Mindful Readers
		Developing Assignments That Require Students to Interact with Texts
		Conclusion: Promoting Mindful Reading
	8 Using Small Groups to Coach Thinking and Teach Disciplinary Argument
		The Advantages of a Goal-Oriented Use of Small Groups
		Sequence of Activities for Using Small Groups During a Class Period
		Suggestions for Designing Productive Small-Group Tasks
		Making Small Groups Work
		The Controversy over Using Small Groups: Objections and Responses
			Using Small Groups Takes Minimal Teacher Preparation or Skill
			Small-Group Work Reduces the Amount of Productive Class Time Spent with the Teacher
			Small-Group Work Devalues Eccentricity and Teaches Social Conformity
		Conclusion: Some Additional Advantages of Small Groups
	9 Bringing More Critical Thinking into Lectures and Discussions
		Increasing Active Learning in Lecture Classes
		Increasing Active Learning in Discussion Classes
		Conclusion: Engaging Ideas through Active Learning
	10 Designing and Sequencing Assignments to Teach Undergraduate Research
		From Research Paper to Research Project: A Metacognitive Overview of Academic Research across the Disciplines
		Information Literacy Skills Needed to Do Undergraduate Research
		Pedagogical Strategies for Teaching Authentic Undergraduate Research
		Departmental Collaboration to Teach Undergraduate Research in the Major
		Conclusion: Engaging Students in Research
PART FOUR  Responding to and Grading Student Writing
	11 Helping Students Use Self-Assessment and Peer Review to Promote Revision and Reflection
		The Benefits of Student Self-Assessment
		Using Reflective Writing to Foster Metacognition
		Easy-to-Implement Ways of Integrating Reflection Assignments into a Course
		Making Self-Assessment a Part of the Classroom Culture
		The Research on Why Peer Review Can Be as Useful as Instructor Response
		Conclusion: Shifting the Focus of Response from Teachers to Students
	12 Using Rubrics to Develop and Apply Grading Criteria
		Controversies about Evaluation Criteria
		An Overview of Different Kinds of Rubrics
		Controversies about Rubrics
		John’s Approach to Using Rubrics
		Dan’s Approach to Using Rubrics
		Deciding on an Approach to Grading That Works for You
		Conclusion: The Role of Rubrics in Coaching the Writing Process
	13 Coaching the Writing Process and Handling the Paper Load
		1. Design Good Assignments
		2. Clarify Your Grading Criteria
		3. Build in Exploratory Writing or Class Discussion to Help Students Generate Ideas
		4. Have Students Submit Something Early in the Writing Process
		5. Have Students Conduct Peer Reviews of Drafts
		6. Refer Students to Your Institution’s Writing Center
		7. Make One-on-One Writing Conferences as Efficient as Possible
		8. Hold Occasional Group Brainstorming Conferences Early On
		9. Use Efficient Methods for Giving Written Feedback
		10. Put Minimal Comments on Finished Products
		Conclusion: A Review of Time-Saving Strategies
	14 Providing Effective and Efficient Feedback
		Students’ Responses to Teachers’ Comments
		The Purpose of Commenting: To Coach Revision
		General Strategy for Commenting on Drafts: A Hierarchy of Questions
		Suggestions for Writing End Comments That Encourage Revision
		Alternatives to Written Response: Audio and Video Feedback
		Conclusiown: A Review of General Principles
	15 Responding to Grammar and Other Sentence-Level Concerns
		The Difficulty of Teaching Editing
		What Does It Mean to “Know Grammar”?
		The Politics of Grammar and Language Difference
		What Teachers across the Curriculum Need to Know about Recent Studies of Error
		Responding to Error: Policies and Strategies for Teachers across the Disciplines
		A Further Note about International Students
		A Note about Spell-Checkers and Grammar-Checkers
		Conclusion: Keeping an Eye on Our Goals
	16 Alternatives to Traditional Grading: Portfolio Assessment and Contract Grading
		Five Problems with Traditional Grading of Student Writing
		Portfolio Assessment as an Alternative to Traditional Grading
		Advice for Designing and Assessing Portfolios
		Strategies for Contract Grading
		Conclusion: Harmonizing Assessment and Instruction
References
Index
EULA