Transforming My Teaching of Writing Using Rhetorical-Genre Pedagogy

Have you struggled with mixed feelings about requiring students to compose essay after essay? Have you heard their complaints about how boring essay writing can be? Have you wondered or even worried about what transferable skills you’re actually teaching? Illinois Valley Community College English Instructor Adam Oldaker will share ways in which he has struggled with these questions, and he will provide a window into how he has transformed ENG 1001: English Composition I using rhetorical-genre pedagogy. His new approach has resulted in increased student satisfaction and course completion rates, and students are now completing more authentic writing projects that have the potential to build truly transferable skills in composition. He will also address how it has the potential to build dispositions in students that help them to solve problems on their own, not overly rely on teachers for solutions. (Approximately 20-30 minute presentation). Target Audience: Teachers seeking dual-credit certification and 6-12 teachers looking for ways to innovate their curriculum