A Response to Back to the Future?

As a rhetoric scholar, I obviously applaud David Grant’s claim that effective writing instruction necessarily involves rhetorical education. I could even pile on with corroborating evidence from contemporary pedagogy in speech making, discussion, and interpersonal communication. There is no argument, at least among those who study the subject. Communication is effective and appropriate only to the extent that it conforms to the rhetorical norms of both rhetor and audience—the social, epistemological and performative rules for collective decision making on which they can agree. Thus, communication instruction, including writing instruction, is most effective as coached skill development within a context of rhetorical socialization. The challenge that Dr. Grant identifies is not one of evidence or theoretical understanding