Category: Uncategorized

PDF: All Research Centers 1966-2010 |  View Research Centers 1980-1999 on the Web | View Research Centers 2000-2010 on the Web | 

The following resolutions were passed at the CCCC Annual Business Meeting held on Saturday, March 22, 2003, in New York:

Resolution 1: Honoring Kathleen Blake Yancey

Whereas Kathleen Blake Yancey has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to ensuring valid and reliable assessment of students’ writing, whether teachers are assessing a single paper or a portfolio, a handwritten essay or an online test, an English theme or a physics report; and

Whereas she has taken our conference “digital” by providing LCDs and Internet connections for presenters and by scheduling sessions on site and on a simulcast; and

Whereas she has urged us not only to teach our students but also to learn with and from them-in our classrooms and, for the first time, in featured sessions; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED that the 2003 Conference on College Composition and Communication thank Kathleen Blake Yancey for offering us the “transforming possibilities” of a conference that compels us to reflect on our past and our present so that we can rewrite our future.

Resolution 2: Applauding Sandra Jamieson and the Local Arrangements Committee

Whereas Sandra Jamieson and the Local Arrangements Committee have guided us to the theater, music, dance, art, and diverse neighborhoods of New York City; and

Whereas they have also brought the city to us through an emerging writers’ series and a night of “Big Apple” humor; and

Whereas they have supported literacy in New York by organizing the “Send Supplies” project for literacy programs and by continuing the “Buy the Book” project for children at community centers; and

Whereas they have invited us to celebrate New York’s resilience in the wake of the tragic events of September 11, 2001; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED that the 2003 Conference on College Composition and Communication applaud Sandra Jamieson and the Local Arrangements Committee for their hard work, enthusiasm, and hospitality.

Resolution 3: Encouraging Communication About the War

Whereas in our best moments we have relied on the power of rhetoric to mediate disputes, and in our college classrooms we teach students to understand one another, respect their differences, and resolve their disputes through discourse.

BE IT RESOLVED that we encourage teachers of writing and communication at colleges and universities across the country to engage students and others in learning and debate about the issues and implications of the Iraqi war and any other acts of war perpetrated by the United States of America.

Resolution 4: Tribal College Fellowship Resolution

Whereas the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC) has a long and distinguished record of supporting literacy instruction in all kinds of institutions, especially grassroots efforts like those in community colleges, open admissions universities, and basic writing programs; and

Whereas CCCC has long promoted multiculturalism and diversity in terms of professional research, an expanded knowledge base in the field, broad language use in teaching, and wider access to education for those groups historically excluded; and

Whereas CCCC has enacted its commitment to grassroots literacy and diversity by providing monetary support to attend its conference for those writing teachers lacking financial resources or coming from underrepresented groups, through such programs as PEP and Scholars for the Dream; and

Whereas while very successful, these efforts have nonetheless failed to reach writing teachers at the 35 tribally-controlled community colleges in the nation; and

Whereas tribal colleges are currently teaching the vast majority of American Indian students in higher education who belong to a group systematically excluded from educational institutions as well as mistreated historically in such venues as Indian boarding schools which assimilated students through corporal violence as well as through the symbolic violence of punitive English classes; and

Whereas since the incorporation of Navajo Community College in 1968, tribal colleges have sought to counter this colonial history by operating from educational missions different from those of mainstream institutions, validating American Indian heritage by promoting traditional languages and cultures, while also providing mainstream communicative literacy in English, humanities, and technologies; and

Whereas tribal college writing teachers typically work for wages much lower than those found at comparable community colleges; and

Whereas most tribal colleges do not have the financial resources to support travel and conference costs for the professional development of their faculty; and

Whereas tribal colleges are both sites of grassroots education and locations of minority cultures, yet have not benefited from the presentations, workshops, and networking opportunities offered by CCCC; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Executive Committee produce a program called the CCCC Tribal College Fellowships that would fund up to five tribal college writing teachers to attend CCCC each year, under the following provisions:

1. Each fellowship will provide a convention registration and a $750 award.
2. Fellows will be notified in December preceding the upcoming spring convention to allow sufficient time to plan their attendance.
3. Fellowships will be granted to writing instructors currently working in tribal colleges on the basis of an application letter and personal statement.
4. The Tribal College Fellowship will be advertised in CCC, College English, TETYC, Tribal College Journal, and Indian Country Today.
5. Fellowship applications will be evaluated and awarded by a committee jointly appointed by the Executive Committee in consultation with the American Indian Caucus.

Resolution 5: On Professional Standards for Instruction

Whereas the educational conditions for college writing instruction have been deteriorating in the past few decades; and

Whereas the writing of college students recently received unfavorable national attention in The Chronicle of Higher Education; and

Whereas promoting the best teaching conditions will enhance literacy instruction; and

Whereas in its mission to promote higher literacy, CCCC took note of declining learning conditions at its annual business meeting 16 years ago by unanimously approving the Wyoming Resolution, which declared that “the salaries and working conditions of post-secondary writing teachers with primary responsibility for the teaching of writing are fundamentally unfair as judged by any reasonable professional standards,” and called for CCCC to formulate “professional standards and expectations for salary levels and working conditions of post-secondary teachers of writing”; and

Whereas the concerns of the Wyoming Resolution were reiterated in 1989 as the “Statement of Principles and Standards for the Postsecondary Teaching of Writing,” which declared that “every institution should extend to teachers of writing the same opportunities for professional advancement (e.g., support for research and reasonable teaching responsibilities) that they extend to all other faculty” and which observed that declining learning conditions have created a situation in which “the quality of writing instruction is today seriously compromised”; and

Whereas the NCTE Conference on the Growing Use of Part-Time and Adjunct Faculty repeated these concerns in its 1997 statement, which found that “the proportion of part-time and adjunct faculty in relation to all faculty appointments has increased substantially, from 22 percent in 1970 to more than 40 percent in 1993” with “64 percent of community-college faculty holding part-time appointments” while “200,000 graduate assistants at four-year institutions actually exceed the 184,999 part-time faculty” and that “. . . the majority of part-time faculty teach under emphatically substandard conditions, . . . are far less likely to receive regular evaluation and feedback, . . . lack job security” and are typically paid from “$1,000 to $3,000” per course, and that “part-time and adjunct positions are disproportionately occupied by women”; and

Whereas the Two-Year College English Association–Southwest on October 21, 2000, asserted in a position statement that “A great danger now threatens the sustained record of accomplishment of America’s community colleges” because of full-time loads of 7 classes, class sizes over 30 students, and “part-time faculty teaching as much as 70% and even 80% of all writing courses”; and

Whereas the Coalition on the Academic Workforce, representing 25 disciplinary associations, found in its 2001 survey that “freestanding composition programs have by far the highest proportion of courses taught by part-time and graduate student instructors . . . and the lowest taught by tenure-track instructors”; and

Whereas the Associate Director of MLA English Programs, James Papp, reported in 2002 that more than 60% of part-time instructors in the humanities want full-time jobs and that the meager per-course wages paid contingent faculty have fallen behind the inflation rate; and

Whereas the continued decline in professional standards not only undermines literacy instruction but also threatens the membership base of CCCC; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the CCCC Executive Committee affirm and disseminate the following standards to support high-quality professional instruction:

1. The professional standard for writing positions shall be full-time lines equivalent in salary and benefits to other full-time academic positions.
2. Faculty members who prefer part-time work can request less than a full-time load with prorated salary and benefits. Faculty members requesting less than full-time loads can staff a maximum of 20% of the course coverage in any department or program.
3. All writing instructors shall be protected with the same professional security, academic freedom, and due process accorded other faculty members within their institution.
4. All full-time writing positions will be tenurable or covered by continuous employment certificates.
5. Graduate students shall be required to teach no more than three semester-equivalent writing courses per academic year, shall undertake overloads only at their own choice, and shall receive ongoing professional development and careful mentoring from experts credentialed in the field of composition/rhetoric.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT CCCC shall elect and budget a permanent Academic Quality Commission, whose charge will be to:

1. Research writing programs meeting the standards cited above for learning conditions.
2. Acknowledge and recognize publicly such programs in all CCCC venues.
3. Propose sessions at the annual convention on concerns raised by CCCC members, caucuses, SIGs, coalitions, and workshops relative to teaching and learning conditions.
4. Research ongoing campus efforts for high-quality teaching conditions and disseminate an online directory and database of such information.
5. Seek to co-sponsor with other professional associations (e.g., Modern Language Association, American Historical Association, American Association of University Professors) and groups (e.g., the Coalition of Contingent Academic Labor) a series of regional conferences addressing standards supporting high-quality professional instruction.

Resolution 6: On Professional Development and Retention of People of Color within Academia

Whereas members of the Latino Caucus notice the frequent call for Latina/o professors in academia, specifically to teach English and writing; and

Whereas those of us who find positions experience difficulties not addressed by the colleges or CCCC with respect to mentoring and retention; and

Whereas Caucus members’ concerns about hiring and work-related experiences are not addressed adequately by CCCC; and

Whereas the numbers and/or percentages of students from Latina/o groups outnumber the percentages/numbers of Latina/o academics; and

Whereas we need to address those issues affecting hiring, mentoring, and retention of people of color within academia, particularly Latina/os; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the CCCC Executive Committee affirm and disseminate the following policies to ensure adequate professional development and retention of professors of color:

1. CCCC shall request writing programs and English departments to provide the following information:
   a. Their percentage of people of color in full- and part-time positions and in tenured and untenured lines.
   b. Their procedures for identifying, hiring, mentoring, and tenuring people-of-color faculty.
2. CCCC shall publish this information annually online and in print.
3. CCCC shall acknowledge annually a writing program or department for its exemplary efforts to develop people-of-color faculty.

Mission

The Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC) is committed to supporting the agency, power, and potential of diverse communicators inside and outside of postsecondary classrooms. CCCC advocates for broad and evolving definitions of literacy, communication, rhetoric, and writing (including multimodal discourse, digital communication, and diverse language practices) that emphasize the value of these activities to empower individuals and communities. CCCC promotes intellectual and pedagogical freedom and ethical scholarship and communication. To this end, CCCC and its members

• sponsor and conduct research that produces knowledge about language, literacy, communication, rhetoric, and the teaching, assessment, and technologies of writing;
• create collaborative spaces (such as conferences, publications, and online spaces) that enable the production and exchange of research, knowledge, and pedagogical practices;
• develop evidence- and practice-based resources for those invested in language, literacy, communication, rhetoric, and writing at the postsecondary level;
• advocate for students, teachers, programs, and policies that support ethical and effective teaching and learning.

For professional growth

Since 1949, CCCC has provided a forum for all those responsible for teaching composition and communication skills at the college level, both in undergraduate and graduate programs. For over 50 years, CCCC members have charted new courses in the teaching and scholarship of composition and rhetoric, helping to shape our academic community and professional practices. As members, through the College Forum of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), of the American Council of Learned Societies, CCCC is the professional voice of composition and rhetoric studies.

Find your focus and share your interests

When you join CCCC, you will be welcomed into a community of scholars and teachers who share your concerns about important issues influencing the teaching of composition and rhetoric. You will be connected to current trends in scholarship and research, developments in teaching, national trends in higher education, and much more.

Benefits of CCCC membership

• A subscription to the respected journal College Composition and Communication as well as online access to all of the journal articles.
• An invitation to attend the CCCC Annual Convention and discounts on convention registration fees.
• Access to member-only events, including the CCCC Webinar Series.
• The opportunity to apply for various CCCC awards and research grants.
• Eligibility to join a variety of CCCC member groups and be appointed to CCCC committees, which produce publications and position papers in the interest of the English and composition and rhetoric profession.
• An opportunity to become affiliated with the Two-Year College English Association (TYCA), which responds to concerns of educators at two-year colleges and coordinates seven regional conferences.
• Access to the resources and communities maintained by CCCC and NCTE.
• Visit the User’s Guide to CCCC for information on organizational structure and how CCCC members are involved.

Professional journal

College Composition and Communication (CCC) is the NCTE journal that addresses the concerns of writing specialists, researchers, and teachers of college-level composition courses through articles on the theory, practice, and teaching of composition. CCC is published in September, December, February, and June. Click here to learn more about submission opportunities with CCC.

With your CCCC membership, you will not only receive a subscription to the journal but also unlimited online access to all of the journal articles in PDF format!

Annual conference

Click here for more information.

CCCC sponsors a convention every spring where more than 3,000 higher education faculty from across the nation come to converse, share, network, and learn about issues that influence the scholarship and teaching of composition.

The program sessions cover such topics as the composing process; grading and assessment; issues of gender, race, and class; the use of contingent, adjunct, and part-time faculty; the tenure debate; intellectual property; and the way technologies are reshaping the teaching of rhetoric and composition – in other words, all aspects of the profession.

Join now!

Membership in CCCC includes an annual subscription to CCC, access to online resources, discounts on NCTE and CCCC publications, voting rights in NCTE and CCCC, eligibility for group insurance, and discounts on all conference and convention registration fees. NCTE membership is required for membership in CCCC.  To become a member, simply click here, or call NCTE’s Customer Service toll free at (877) 369-6283.

Submitted by Jason Dockter, Lincoln Land Community College

The example provided here addresses the following OWI Principles:

• OWI Principle 1: “Online writing instruction should be universally inclusive and accessible.”
• OWI Principle 10: “Students should be prepared by the institution and their teachers for the unique technological and pedagogical components of OWI.”
• OWI Effective Practice 10.1: “Appropriate OWI preparation should begin with interface familiarization and experiential exercises that make clear the public (i.e., communication to/from the teacher and among all students in the course) and private (i.e., communication between the teacher and individual student) spaces. Students need to be introduced to the writing-course specific uses of the LMS. At a minimum, students need to know where to access their assignments and readings, where to post and retrieve formal writing, where to meet and write publicly with peers, and where to communicate privately with the teacher and peers.”
• OWI Principle 11: “Online writing teachers and their institutions should develop personalized and interpersonal online communities to foster student success.”
• OWI Effective Practice 11.3: “Instructors should set expectations about course objectives, assignments, and learning by communicating with students one-to-one and as a group, regularly and systematically, using both asynchronous and synchronous modalities.”

This class orientation module, which features video walk-throughs, is implemented in a community college first-year composition (first and second semester) asynchronous online course. This can be done in any LMS, with a variety of technologies. My institution uses Blackboard and SoftChalk. So I have embedded videos and captioning of the videos within a Softchalk presentation. However, I have published these teaching materials on the web (in a WordPress site) to demonstrate that neither Softchalk nor Blackboard is essential to presenting these materials (address provided below).

In an attempt to help all students access the online class and feel comfortable moving into the first module of the class, I created these videos. They’re purposefully brief, but each video aims to accomplish a specific aspect of orienting students to my particular online class, preparing them to begin the work of the course in a confident manner.

Explanation of effective practice

When students enter an online course, whether or not they have taken an online course before, they have to make sense of the digital space of that particular class. Because there is not a universal online course design template that all instructors follow, nor are students as familiar with being online students as they are with being face-to-face students (f2f), students have to learn the course layout and determine how a course operates (even just how to begin) each time they take a class.

Upon the initial course log-in, students may feel uncomfortable about how to proceed within the class.  Potential confusion about basic online course navigation can exacerbate already existing feelings of uncertainty and isolation that many online students experience. Although many online instructors provide a welcome announcement to the class or even an email prior to the class about how to begin, in order to help ease students into the online class, written directions alone may not be enough to help ease students’ nerves regarding their new online class.

To help students transition more easily into my online course and to feel both more comfortable and more confident in the new digital environment of this specific course, I provide an orientation module to the class, which features video walk-throughs to help students feel comfortable with how the course is laid out and how its pieces connect.

When students enter the online class initially, they visit the orientation module, named EGL 101 Orientation, as the starting point for the course. This is the first item in the course menu within the LMS, as shown below.

Figure: Course Menu Showing Orientation Module

In this orientation module, I include three different videos that I have produced and provided written transcripts for, shown below. These are all collected in one space within our LMS. The first video I present is an introduction to the instructor (named General Welcome to Class). The next video provides students with an overview of the writing projects they’ll complete within this course (named Focus of Work to Be Done to EGL 101).  The third video explains to students how to navigate this particular online course (this video is named How to Navigate EGL 101).

Figure: Menu of Orientation Module

After viewing the videos, my hope is that students feel confident about where to go in the class to accomplish the tasks required, the work they’ll do, and who the teacher is. Overall, I want to ensure that students are comfortable within the class, not left alone and uncertain about any aspect of the class. Since my course is an asynchronous online course, students are left to complete assignments and learning tasks on their own, with the activities being due at the beginning of the following week. I believe this effective practice helps make my online course more accessible than it otherwise would be if I relied upon a written ‘welcome announcement’ and assumed that students would know how to begin this online class.

This effective practice takes the idea of the ‘Welcome Announcement’ and enhances it to be an overview of the course, a navigational guide, and an introduction to the instructor. Effective practice 10.1 stresses the importance of helping students become familiar with the design of the online course, and specifically, identifying the difference between public and private writing spaces and where assignments can be located and completed.

The key is that these elements are presented through multimedia, emphasizing the visual, aural, and gestural modes to increase the potential for students to make meaning from these course elements. The benefit of conveying information through the video medium is that students are able to visualize the instructor and begin to form a sense of who that person is and what her personality is. Additionally, instead of having to attempt to imagine how to navigate a specific online course design, a video screen capture can replicate almost exactly what students see on their own screens and can more accurately demonstrate how to move throughout the various areas of the online course.

Challenge this practice addresses

One recurring problem for online students can be lack of certainty about course layout and basic navigation within a given class, which can result in student frustration (see Brickman 361; Hewett, Writing 38; Peterson 367).  When taking a new online course, students enter the class and have to figure out where to go and what to click. Unlike a f2f class, where students likely have years of experience and are familiar with what to do and where to go when they enter the classroom, online students aren’t guaranteed to know this.

The effective example practice presented here is intended to minimize student frustration immediately in the course by helping to familiarize them with the class, the course design, and the instructor. Students are actually shown what they will see – and shown where to go to accomplish certain tasks unique to this specific online course.

Instead of assuming that students will figure out how to navigate the class on their own, I intentionally demonstrate to students how to navigate the course and introduce myself to the students in the class. Instead of believing that the online course design is easily navigable and makes good sense, I assume that students will struggle to understand where to go and what to do within my particular class. Orienting students to each specific online course will help students to begin more confidently and feel more assured about being a member of that online course.

How to implement this practice

My orientation for my online course is comprised of a general written explanation of what is included within this unit and the three distinct videos with separate transcriptions. (All three transcripts are collected together within a single text, located within the EGL 101 Orientation area of the course.) While the orientation module resides within the LMS, I have recreated the unit through WordPress, which can be seen here: https://onlineorientation.wordpress.com/ (see tabs at the top of the page to find videos and transcripts).

General Welcome to the Course Video
The introduction to the instructor video should feature the instructor speaking to a camera (rather than, say a static image or other screen capture). For me, I talk about my time teaching at my institution, the courses I teach, my enjoyment of those courses, educational experience – stressing that I am here to help students learn and that I am available to help them throughout the course. To capture this video, any sort of video recorder will work, as will any video capturing software. A smartphone, tablet, or a webcam on a computer will all work equally well to record the video, which can then be exported to a computer or directly to YouTube. I record these videos using the webcam on my computer and the Quicktime software. From there, I upload them to YouTube for later export and embedding in the LMS.

 

Course Navigation Video
The guided tour video is a screen capture video of the online course. I use Quicktime or Camtasia to capture what I see on my computer screen. I enter the course in the ‘student view’ and talk students through where they are in the class and precisely where they should go next to complete the initial course activities. From there I proceed to review the items in the course navigation menu, and to enter into each area to explain what students will find there and its purpose for the class.

The initial step to begin this effective practice is to ensure that the online course architecture is in place (e.g. the main course menu, units or modules, instructor contact information, etc.). This is not to say, though, that aspects of the course cannot be tweaked as the course unfolds. But because the orientation video will demonstrate to students how to navigate the online course, the video should replicate as much as possible what students will actually see when they log into the course. Any major discrepancies between the video and what students see upon their visit to the class may increase the potential for student confusion, leading to frustration.

Overview of the Writing Projects Video
The video of the overview of the writing projects could be done in a variety of ways, depending on the instructor’s objective for the video. My video is of me talking to the camera (rather than a screen capture); I talk about the general focus for the work students will compose within my writing class. I also discuss how smaller writer projects in the class lead into the larger ones and may be readily incorporated into those larger projects. Because I do not get into specifics about assignment requirements, for I don’t want to overwhelm students on the first day, I prefer the talking head style. My primary intention is to give them a general overview of the work, while again, sharing more of myself with my online students.

If an instructor is interested in the talking head style video and displaying an aspect of the class itself, a screen-capture software, such as Camtasia, would allow for the recording of both. In this case, it might be nice to show students, again, where these assignment directions are located (if the course design keeps these in one space within the course). This would provide an opportunity to preview the actual instructions for an upcoming assignment(s) if the instructor opted to do so.

Or, the instructor might elect to talk through a short slideshow presentation in which the slides help to supplement the discussion of the written projects for the course. The slideshow could be recorded using PowerPoint or Apple’s Keynote. Then the recording could be exported directly to YouTube and embedded within the course.

This collection of videos and transcripts can be created in a variety of ways, using numerous technologies.

Hardware
Any sort of camera capable of recording video will work for the talking head videos. I use the webcam on my laptop, but could easily use a camera on a tablet, smartphone, or a digital camera. Aside from a computing device, through which the videos can be uploaded to a website, this is the only hardware required.

Software
Recording Video

To record videos that follow the talking head style, a computer’s webcam can be used and if using a mobile device, this will most likely be done through the camera app on the device.

To record videos that involve a screen capture, such as the course navigation video, the following options can work well. Camtasia costs money, but the other options are free.
Camtasia
Quicktime
Screencast-o-matic
Screencastify (use with Google Chrome)

Aside from recording the videos, reviewing them for transcriptions requires a word processing program, from which the transcriptions can be written and then copied and pasted into the LMS.

Editing
Once a video has been created, it can be edited, but it does not have to be. I prefer to use the raw video footage to preserve the miscues or mistakes that I might make in my delivery to demonstrate a little more of my own humanity for my online students. If you capture video and wish to edit it, some options would be:
YouTube’s free video editor
Camtasia
iMovie, if you work on a Mac
Windows Movie Maker, if you work on a PC

Hosting
After the videos have been created and edited (if you wish), each video needs to be uploaded to a hosting site. I opt to use free hosting sites, such as YouTube  or Vimeo.

Embedding Video in LMS
The embed code can be copied from the hosting site and loaded into the LMS (or wherever the instructor opts to place the videos). The video below demonstrates who to complete this process:

One of the challenges of current staffing practices for college writing courses in my institutions is the sometimes last-minute assignment of multiple course preparations, additional sections, or new preparations that instructors can receive due to fluctuation in enrollments or inaccurate curricular planning. On this page, we offer direction to some teaching and learning sources that provide models of syllabi and assignments as well as heuristics and guidelines that can help instructors with the planning process that goes into teaching college writing. We also include some open-access materials that can be assigned in courses as student reading or that support course development.

Syllabi and Assignment Models or Collections of First-Year Writing Materials

• Council on Basic Writing Resource Sharing Website
• University of Georgia’s Syllabus System (browsable by course)
• Campus Compact Syllabus Archives (select ‘writing’) for courses using engaged learning
• Florida State Teachers’ Guide to the College Composition Program (including sample syllabi)
• Printable Handouts for students on Writing Topics, Center for the Study and Teaching of Writing, Ohio University

Writing and Research Assignment Banks

• CORA: Community of Online Research Assignments: An Open Access Resource for Faculty and Librarians: A searchable bank of assignments for developing and assessing information literacy. 
• Effective Research Assignments, Oregon State University Libraries (audience, exploration and topic selection, reading and evaluation)
• Creating Successful Research Skills Assignments, Penn State Libraries
• Alternative Research Assignments, San Diego State University Libraries
• Alternative Assignments to Term Papers, Lawrence University
• Writing Assignment Ideas for Specific Purposes (to learn, to communicate, Hobart and William Smith colleges
• College Composition Instructor Guide, Three Rivers Community College, for first-year writing (including syllabus checklist and learning module ideas)
• Effective Writing Assignments, Lehman College
• Sample Writing Assignments for first and second-semester writing courses (narrative, summary, rhetorical analysis, synthesis, literary analysis) from Stephen Austin University
• Sample Writing Assignments (literacy narrative, ethnography, new media, visual analysis), Georgia State University
• Resources for Writing Teachers, George Mason University

Tutorials and Guidance for Writing Class Planning and Management

• Colorado State’s Teaching Activities Bank: Discussion, Peer review, working with sources
• Teaching College Composition: A Practical Guide for New Instructors (excerpts through Google books)
• Dartmouth’s Principles for Syllabus Design
• Sample Chapter from NCTE’s book “Sequencing Writing Projects in Any Composition Class.” In Strategies for Teaching First-Year Composition
• Designing Writing Assignments, by Traci Gardner (open-access e-book)
• First Time Up: An Insider’s Guide for New Composition Teachers, Brock Dethier (open-access e-book)
• Bedford Bibliography for Teachers of Writing, (open-access e-book)
• The Teaching Professor Special Report, “Keys to Designing Effective Writing and Research Assignments,” principles and guidelines for developing writing assignments.

Open Source Sites

These are open-access educational materials that can be useful for instructors who are assigned courses with little time to advance order traditional textbooks.

• Writing Spaces: An open-Textbook Project for college-level writing studies courses.
• Writing Commons: Writing Commons is a free, online textbook. As outlined by the Site Map, Writing Common provides a comprehensive introduction to academic writing
• Open-Textbooks: English and Composition, full-access textbooks available online
• University of North Carolina Supporting Materials for a College Writing Course
• Merlot: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching, a repository of learning objects and activities for use in English and Writing Courses
• Course Materials through Open course Library (click “Browse”
  • Basic Writing
  • English 101: Composition I
  • English 102: Composition II

Bibliographies on Composition Teaching Topics

• Teaching in an Accelerated Learning Program Context

Professional Resources from Publishers (at no cost)

Bedford St. Martin’s

• Webinars
• Bibliographies
• Background Readings
• The Bedford/St. Martin’s Series in Rhetoric and Composition
• Workshop and Symposia

Guides for Writing Teachers in Specific Curricula or Contexts

• Teaching Composition in the Two-Year College: Background Readings
• Informed Choices: A Guide for Teachers of College Writing
• The Bedford Bibliography for Teachers of Basic Writing
• Developmental Education: Readings on Its Past, Present, and Future
• Teaching Developmental Reading: Historical, Theoretical, and Practical Background Readings
• The St. Martin’s Guide to Teaching Writing
• Multimodal Composition: Teaching Developmental Writing
• Background Readings: A Critical Sourcebook

FORUM: Issues about Part-Time and Contingent Faculty is a peer-reviewed publication concerning working conditions, professional life, activism, and perspectives of non-tenure-track faculty in college composition and communication. It is published twice annually (alternately in CCC and TETYC) and is sponsored by the Conference on College Composition and Communication. Faculty and scholars from all academic positions are welcome to contribute.

Fall 2023
Volume 27, Number 1

Spring 2023
Volume 26, Number 2

Fall 2022
Volume 26, Number 1

Spring 2022
Volume 25, Number 2

Fall 2021
Volume 25, Number 1

Spring 2021
Volume 24, Number 2

Fall 2020
Volume 24, Number 1

Spring 2020
Volume 23, Number 2

Fall 2019
Volume 23, Number 1

Spring 2019
Volume 22, Number 2

Fall 2018
Volume 22, Number 1

Spring 2018
Volume 21, Number 2

Fall 2017
Volume 21, Number 1

Spring 2017
Volume 20, Number 2

Fall 2016
Volume 20, Number 1

Spring 2016:
Volume 19, Number 2

Fall 2015:
Volume 19, Number 1

Spring 2015
Volume 18, Number 2

Fall 2014
Volume 18, Number 1

Spring 2014
Volume 17, Number 2

Fall 2013
Volume 17, Number 1

Spring 2013
Volume 16, Number 2

Fall 2012
Volume 16, Number 1

Spring 2012
Volume 15, Number 2

Fall 2011
Volume 15, Number 1

Spring 2011
Volume 14, Number 2

Fall 2010
Volume 14, Number 1

Spring 2010
Volume 13, Number 2

Fall 2009
Volume 13, Number 1

Spring 2009
Volume 12, Number 2

Fall 2008
Volume 12, Number 1

Spring 2008
Volume 11, Number 2

Fall 2007
Volume 11, Number 1

Spring 2007
Volume 10, Number 2

Fall 2006
Volume 10, Number 1

Spring 2006
Volume 9, Number 2

Fall 2005
Volume 9, Number 1

Spring 2005
Volume 8, Number 2

Fall 2004
Volume 8, Number 1

Spring 2004
Volume 7, Number 2

Fall 2003
Volume 7, Number 1

Spring 2003
Volume 6, Number 2

Fall 2002
Volume 6, Number 1

Spring 2002
Volume 5 Number 2

Fall 2001
Volume 5, Number 1

Fall 2000
Volume 4, Number 1

Spring 2000
Volume 3, Number 2

Fall 1999
Volume 3, Number 1

Winter 1999
Volume 2, Number 2

Fall 1998
Volume 2, Number 1

Winter 1998
Volume 1, Number 1

About

• Establishment of the Labor Liaison
• Overview of the Issues
• History of Labor in Writing Postsecondary Writing

Information

• Contact the Labor Liaison
• Labor Liaison Position Description

Resources for Instructors

• Advocacy and Activism
• Bibliography of Sources on Labor in Postsecondary Writing
• Position Statements on Working Conditions
• Teaching Resources for Writing Instructors

Definition

The Executive Committee of CCCC is the primary governing body of the organization.

Membership

Executive Committee membership is described in the CCCC Constitution.

Responsibilities

• Reviews and approves the annual CCCC budget.
• Reviews, and either acts on or files reports presented to the Executive Committee by member groups, standing committees, or special committees.
• Responds to items of current or public interest to the organization and its members in the form of position statements or other documents.
• Contributes members to the committee reviewing the CCCC research initiative proposals.
• Nominates and/or approves nominees to Standing Committees, Special Committees, and/or Task Forces as they are convened and charged.
• Serves on one subcommittee of the Executive Committee as needed with priorities developed by the Officers’ Committee.
• Serves on working groups, special committees, task forces, or as a liaison to CCCC committees as needed.
• Reviews and recommends revisions as needed to CCCC position statements on a five-year cycle.
• Attends designated sessions or events at the Annual Convention, including the Annual Business Meeting, as communicated by the CCCC liaison and determined by the CCCC Leadership.

Time Commitments

• Make a commitment to serve on the CCCC Executive Committee through the length of the specified term.
• Attend an online orientation following election and prior to/at the start of the specified term.
• Attend two (2) annual meetings of the Executive Committee (required). Remote participation is available as necessary.
  • At CCCC Annual Convention, all day Wednesday before Convention starts
  • NCTE Annual Convention, (takes place the week before Thanksgiving)
    • CCCC Executive Committee retreat, Sunday afternoon
    • CCCC Executive Committee Meeting, all day Monday

• Attend 2–3 virtual meetings annually of the Executive Committee (required).
• Conduct business on email, including voting, which requires a timely response.
• Serve on subcommittees of Executive Committee, which are appointed by Chair of CCCC.

Please note: Executive Committee members receive $60.00 per diems for each meeting, but CCCC does not provide regular funds for Committee members to attend the conventions.

Candidates agree not to campaign during the election process.

NCTE Policy on Campaigning

Click here to go back to the main CCCC Election page.

Responsibilities

When you agree to accept the nomination for Secretary, you are making a four-year commitment to serve as an officer of the CCCC Executive Committee.

The Secretary is responsible for preparing appropriate and accurate minutes for all meetings (the Annual Business Meeting, Executive Committee meetings, and Officers Meetings), certifying the correctness of these minutes, and distributing these minutes to the CCCC Chair and NCTE Headquarters. A draft of the minutes, or at least a list of motions and action items, should be prepared within 30 days of each meeting. The completed minutes should be prepared for distribution within 60 days. Minutes shall include:

• A record of all motions and results
• A summary of the discussion of each item
• Notification of approved expenditures
• Enclosures that are publicly available

Additionally, the Secretary prepares a report of Executive Committee actions and Annual Business Meeting actions for publication in the December issue of CCC. The Secretary is a voting member of the NCTE Board of Directors.

1. Meetings

The Secretary is responsible for attending all of the following meetings:

Attend an online orientation following election and prior to/at the start of the four-year term.

November (at the NCTE Annual Convention)

• CCCC Officers Meeting (Saturday afternoon)
• CCCC Executive Committee Retreat (Sunday afternoon)
• CCCC Executive Committee Meeting (Monday, all day)

January

• CCCC Officers’ Meeting (Arrive Friday afternoon, meet all day Saturday and a half day Sunday, return home on Sunday afternoon/evening)

March (at CCCC Annual Convention)

• Officers’ Meeting (Tuesday afternoon)
• Reception for new Executive Committee members and Local Arrangements Chairs (Wednesday evening)
• CCCC Executive Committee Meeting (Wednesday, all day)
• Opening General Session (Thursday morning)
• Annual Business Meeting (Friday evening)
• Awards Presentation (Friday evening)

Regular CCCC Officers’ virtual meetings—typically monthly or every two months.

2. Reimbursements

The Secretary receives travel, lodging, and meal reimbursement for CCCC and NCTE Conventions starting on the first day of duties and ending on the last day. All expenses in connection to the January Officers’ meeting are reimbursed.

Candidates agree not to campaign during the election process.

NCTE Policy on Campaigning

Click here to go back to the main CCCC Election page.

February 9, 2017

The Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC), a conference within the National Council of Teachers of English, is the world’s largest professional organization for researching and teaching composition, from writing to new media. 

CCCC calls for the new Secretary of Education to reaffirm the Department of Education’s commitments to

• departments and policies within the Department of Education that ensure that all students have access to high-quality, equitable educational opportunities based in research and practice.
• postsecondary accountability processes that are mission-specific, discipline-appropriate, and driven by professionals who understand student learning.
• support for regional accreditation.
• the appointment of qualified educational professionals to the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity.
• programs that support, promote, and publish educational research and student success such as the Institute for Education Sciences and the Fund for Improvement in Postsecondary Education.
• implementation of federal policies as directed by Congress.

Within the structures of postsecondary education policy and practice, CCCC and its members also reaffirm its commitments to engaging in valid, research-based writing instruction and assessment practices that engage students in appropriate development of literacy abilities.