WHAT Is "COLLEGE-LEVEL" WRITING?

Transcription

1 WHAT Is "COLLEGE-LEVEL" WRITING?

2 NCTE EDITORIAL BOARD: Arnetha F. Ball, Evelyn B. Freeman, Jeffrey N. Golub, Carol Jago, Tonya B. Perry, Carol A. Pope, Mark Reynolds, Sharon Taberski, Morris Young, Zarina M. Hock, Chair, ex officio, Kent Williamson, ex officio, Kurt Austin, ex officio

3 What Is cccollege-levet" Writing? Edited by PATRICK SULLIVAN Manchester Community College HOWARD TINBERG Bristol Community College National Council of Teachers of English 1111 W. Kenyon Road, Urbana, Illinois

4 Staff Editor: Bonny Graham Manuscript Editor: Lisa McAvoy Interior Design: Jenny Jensen Greenleaf Cover Design: Barbara Yale-Read 1';CTE Stock Number: by the National Council of Teachers of English. All rights reserved. 1';0 part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the copyright holder. Printed in the United States of America. It is the policy of NCTE in its journals and other publications to provide a forum for the open discussion of ideas concerning the content and the teaching of English and the language arts. Publicity accorded to any particular point of view does not imply endorsement by the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, or the membership at large, except in announcements of policy, where such endorsement is clearly specified. Every effort has been made to provide current URLs and addresses, but because of the rapidly changing nature of the Web, some sites and addresses may no longer be accessible. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data What is "college-level" writing? I edited by Patrick Sullivan, Howard Tinberg. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISB1';-13: (pbk) 1. English language-rhetoric. 2. Report writing. 1. Sullivan, Patrick,1956- II. Tinberg, Howard B., 1953 PE1408.W '.042-dc

5 To Susan -Patrick To Toni -Howard

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7 It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question. EUGENE IONESCO

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9 CONTENTS INTRODUCTIO::-': Patrick Sullivan and Howard Tin berg X111 1 An Essential Question: What Is "College-Level" Writing? Patrick Sullivan I High School Perspectives 2 Whistling in the Dark Merrill J. Davies Am I a Liar? The Angst ofa High School English Teacher Jeanette Jordan, with Karena K. Nelson, Howard Clauser, Susan E. Albert, Karen M. Cunningham, and Amanda Scholz The Salem Witch Trials: Voicers) Alfredo Celedon Lujan The Truth about High School English Milka Mustenikova Mosley II College Perspectives 6 Good Enough Writing: What Is Good Enough Writing, Anyway? Lynn Z. Bloom Whose Paper Is This, Anyway? Why Most Students Don't Embrace the Writing They Do for Their Writing Classes Michael Dubson lx

10 Contents 8 The Boxing Effect (An Anti-Essay) Jeanne Gunner What Does the Instructor Want? The View from the Writing Center Muriel Harris It's Not the High School Teachers' Fault: An Alternative to the Blame Game Peter Kittle What Is College Writing For? Ellen Andrews Knodt Scripting Writing Across Campuses: Writing Standards and Student Representations Cynthia Lewiecki-Wilson and Ellenmarie Cronin Wahlrab From Attitude to Aptitude: Assuming the Stance ofa College Writer Ronald F. Lunsford Do You Believe in Magic? Collaboration and the Demystification of Research Kathleen McCormick A Community College Professor Reflects on First-Year Composition John Pekins Defining by Assessing Edward M. White Coming to Terms: Vocabulary as a Means of Defining First-Year Composition Kathleen Blake Yancey, with Brian M. Morrison III Student Perspectives 18 The Great Conversation (of the Dining Hall): One Student's Experience of College-Level Writing Kimberly L. Nelson Putting on the Sunglasses: The Argumentative Thesis as the Keystone to "Good" College Writing Mike Quilligan Bam Amanda Winalski x

11 IV Administrative Perspectives Contents 21 College-Level Writing: A Departmental Perspective James M. Gentile A Lot Like Us, but More So: Listening to Writing Faculty Across the Curriculum Susan E. Schorn The Recursive Character of College Writing Chris Kearns College Writing, Academic Literacy, and the Intellectual Community: California Dreams and Cultural Oppositions Sheridan Blau ApPENDIX: CONTl~lJING THE CONVERSATION: A DIALOGUE WITH OUR CONTRIBUTORS INDEX EDITORS CONTRIBUTORS Xl