Thinking Outside the Classroom: Creative Approaches to Writing Support for First-Gen Students
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Start Date
2-2-2022 11:00 AM
End Date
2-2-2022 12:00 PM
Document Type
Presentation
Description
Writing has long been a source of anxiety for many first-gen students. The pandemic has exacerbated this anxiety, as students have had to negotiate—and renegotiate— shifting learning modes and expectations. It has also widened the privilege gap by putting extraordinary pressure on teachers at the K-12 level. This panel will offer an overview of a four-part workshop series designed by first-year composition (FYC) instructors who are mentoring first-gen students. Drawing on feedback from our first-gen mentees, and working in conjunction with Boston University’s new center for first-gen students, we hope to pilot this workshop series in Fall 2022. The series will supplement the university’s existing tutorial resources and provide more structured support for the kinds of writing that students are expected to do at the university in their coursework and beyond it, from “Using Writing to Advocate for Yourself” to “Grammar Gaps: Everything Your Writing Teacher Never Told You.” Our presentation offers an overview of student voices articulating their writing needs; a survey of FYC instructors’ attitudes on the so-called hidden curriculum of writing classes; and our own perspectives as instructors who have worked closely with first-gen students both in and beyond the classroom.
Thinking Outside the Classroom: Creative Approaches to Writing Support for First-Gen Students
Writing has long been a source of anxiety for many first-gen students. The pandemic has exacerbated this anxiety, as students have had to negotiate—and renegotiate— shifting learning modes and expectations. It has also widened the privilege gap by putting extraordinary pressure on teachers at the K-12 level. This panel will offer an overview of a four-part workshop series designed by first-year composition (FYC) instructors who are mentoring first-gen students. Drawing on feedback from our first-gen mentees, and working in conjunction with Boston University’s new center for first-gen students, we hope to pilot this workshop series in Fall 2022. The series will supplement the university’s existing tutorial resources and provide more structured support for the kinds of writing that students are expected to do at the university in their coursework and beyond it, from “Using Writing to Advocate for Yourself” to “Grammar Gaps: Everything Your Writing Teacher Never Told You.” Our presentation offers an overview of student voices articulating their writing needs; a survey of FYC instructors’ attitudes on the so-called hidden curriculum of writing classes; and our own perspectives as instructors who have worked closely with first-gen students both in and beyond the classroom.