2014 Coursework
Advanced Nonfiction Writing
Spring 2014 // Dona Bailey
When I entered the program, I wanted to start with a class that would be enjoyable and get me motivated to continue. When I saw Advanced Nonfiction Writing, I thought it would be perfect, and I still look back on it as one of my favorite courses in the program. I especially enjoyed Dona Bailey's selected readings for the class, which included Richard Preston's "The Hot Zone," Nancy Franklin's "Lady With a Pencil," Rick Moody's "On Sleater-Kinney," among others that surprised me and reminded me why I love writing.
​
The first piece for my portfolio, "Teaching," is a series of vignettes that I wrote about experiences I've had as a high school teacher. The assignment was to write a piece of narrative nonfiction, and my writing was inspired by Esme Cordell's "Educating Esme," which was an assigned reading for class. I
spent a lot of time editing and revising it, and I feel that the current draft accurately represents just a few of the many challenges I face daily in my job as an educator.
​
My second piece, an audio feature story called "Teens and Technology," was created for a digital storytelling assignment. This was one of my favorite projects--I love NPR and used their storytelling structure as a model, and I feel that I was pretty successful in creating a piece that is both informative and fun to listen to. It was also really helpful to have an opportunity to learn how to use Garage Band to create an audio story. My online newspaper students are interested in starting a podcast, so the knowledge that I gained from this assignment will allow me to teach them what I know and see what cool things they can create.
Work Samples
Summer 2014 // Dr. Karen Kuralt
Document Design
As a former high school yearbook editor and layout editor of my college literary magazine, I have some experience with graphic design and was looking forward to a class where I could expand on that knowledge. Document Design did not disappoint.
​
Dr. Kuralt provided interesting readings about color theory and design that I continue to use to this day as teaching materials in my publications classes. Robin Williams' "The Non-Designer's Design Book" is especially valuable in helping my new designers get a grasp of the basics before they begin creating pages.
We got many opportunities to practice the concepts we were learning about in the class, and my favorite assignment was creating an infographic. I have
always wanted to teach my students about how to present lots of information in a pleasing and concise way, so practicing it myself and reading about how to do it well was a great learning experience.
​
I decided to create my infographic about how the
"millennial" generation differs from the ones before it. As part of this oft-maligned group, I wanted to present a clear picture of our differences using reliable source data (which I obtained from the Pew Research Center). I think it provides some interesting insights, and it is a refreshing alternative to the accusations that we are lazy and that we're "killing" various industries.
Work Samples
Millennial Infographic Memo
Working with Writers
Summer 2014 // Dr. Karen Kuralt
I signed up for Working with Writers because I wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone. I'm a bit of a control freak, and I have always been the person who just takes everything upon myself in a group project so that I can ensure it is done correctly. I have also always felt uncomfortable sharing my writing before it is finished. Both of these qualities made me sure that Working with Writers would be a valuable learning experience.
​
Thankfully, my classmates made what could have been very difficult for me pleasant and rewarding. There were only four of us--Tonisha Brown, Laura Chambers, Jennifer Godwin, and myself--and Dr. Kuralt informed us that we would be working collaboratively on every assignment for the class.
Our first assignment was to use the tool Twodoo to collaborate and then review its functionality. Then, we used Google Docs to collaboratively write an entry for the department's wiki site.
​
We decided to write about rhetorician Andrea Lunsford, who I knew almost nothing about before the assignment. It was fun to learn more about a female academic while I practiced writing with others.
​
In addition to getting better at working with other writers, I learned some great collaboration and editing strategies to use with my publications students.
Work Samples
Andrea Lunsford Collaborative RhetWiki Entry
Fall 2014 // Dr. Michael Kleine
Science Writing
I had heard from friends in the program that I needed to take Dr. Michael Kleine for at least one class. When I saw that he was teaching a topics class on Science Writing, I jumped at the chance--I love reading about science, and I was interested to learn about how scientific data and writing can intersect.
​
The textbook for this class, "Sustainability: A Reader for Writers," was one of my favorite reads in the program. The collection of writing opened my eyes to some issues I previously knew nothing about and also showed me how good scientific writing is essential to help laypeople understand the issues and make positive changes. Scientists are not the only people who should understand science, and it is especially important that elected officials read about science so that they can make informed policy decisions.
​
One of the things I enjoyed most in this class was the
quality of our discussions. Everyone always came in prepared, and the variety of perspectives and backgrounds in the class often allowed me to see the issues we talked about in a new light. It was thought-provoking to analyze the writers' use of rhetoric in the articles we read, but it was also enlightening to consider the issues themselves with my classmates.
​
The pieces I've chosen to include in the portfolio are for an assignment to write nonfiction about a sustainability topic of our choosing. I am passionate about locally grown food, so I created a Prezi to share at a neighborhood association meeting and an infographic with information about where to find local food in central Arkansas. I won a department Student Writing Award for the infographic in the "Design" category. I've also included an audience analysis that assesses the rhetorical situation for these pieces.
Work Samples
Local Food Audience Analysis
