Scenarios for Teaching Writing

Book excerpt: Offering teaching assistants, new faculty members, and adjunct instructors "real-world" scenarios about the many facets of teaching introductory college composition, this book provides situations, sample syllabi, assignments, and journal entries from classrooms. The book's six chapters move from general considerations of assignment design and the selection of materials to more particular concerns of teacher-student interaction. In addition, the book features "issues for discussion" throughout the text, which challenge readers to find the solutions that work in their own classrooms. Chapter titles are: (1) Creating Effective Writing Assignments; (2) Using Readings in Writing Courses; (3) Responding to Student Writing; (4) Teaching "Grammar," Usage, and Style in Context; (5) Managing Discourse in Classes, Conferences, and Small Groups; and (6) Teaching Writing: Course Designs. An 83-item bibliography of professional sources is attached. (Contains 88 references under "Works Cited.") (RS)