Final Reflection 2 – Writing 101 & 102

My hope is that students feel that Writing 101 was a foundation for the kind of research-intense work we’ve done in Writing 102.  From my own observations, students were more engaged in working with the NYT last semester than my first year Writing 101 students were in the Norton textbook.  It led easily to 102 in that students were already aware of the topics that built the most kairos in a sense.  I felt that many of the topics covered in especially the opinion part of the NYT led well into the cultural myths explored in 102.  It prepared students for the kind of engagement in social issues that came with the Writing 102 theme.  Student writing improved in some ways, but I feel like the most growth happened in students who were already driven in Writing 101 and really pushed themselves to be better researchers and stronger academics in 102.  I’m hoping the semester has given students a confidence in their writing that they may not have had without the first year writing sequence.

Running out of source ideas? Try…

  1.  Ted Talks
  2.  New York Times Op-Docs
  3.  Local issues?  Check out Mississippi Public Broadcasting
  4.  Retro Reports
  5.  National Public Radio podcasts (Fresh Air, Here & Now, The Marketplace)
  6.  Podcasts like Serial or This American Life
  7.  Have a Netflix account?  Browse the documentaries!
  8.  Local newspapers!
  9.  Consider conducting primary research like surveys, interviews, etc.
  10.  Don’t forget about the resources in the textbook.  Even the visual portfolios!
  11.  PBS!  Lots of great stuff on PBS, especially Frontline.
  12.  Don’t forget about Statistical Abstract of America, CQ Researcher, or Issues & Controversies.