2017 Coursework
Rhetorical Theory
Spring 2017 // Dr. George Jensen
Work Samples
When I was at the University of Central Arkansas for my undergraduate degree, I was in the Honors College. We read a few pieces of classical philosophy my freshman year in my first Honors class, and I really loved reading and discussing them with my classmates. I have not had much opportunity to study philosophy since then, so the readings for Rhetorical Theory were fun to stretch my brain with.
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Considering heavy ideas about the nature of communication and argument are much more fun with intelligent classmates, and I was glad to have a great group of people to discuss Plato, Aristotle, Ramus, Bakhtin, Burke and Derrida et al. with. We spent many hours poring over the readings, and I learned a lot from those conversations.
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Our midterm exam was an essay test that allowed
me to analyze and apply some of the readings we had done so far. I included it here because I think it reflects my understanding of the issues I address in the essays.
I also included my research paper for the class, an analysis of recent U.S. protests using the semiotics of Charles S. Peirce. When I was taking Rhetorical Theory, my husband Zach was reading "The Metaphysical Club" by Louis Menand, which explores the history of American Pragmatists (including Peirce). When he told me about Peirce, he sounded really interesting, so I decided to look into his theory of semiotics and apply it to a modern subject. I think the paper demonstrates my understanding of Peirce and draws some interesting connections and conclusions about the recent protests through his semiotic lens.
Signs of Signs: Analyzing Protests
Through Peircean Semiotics
Rhetorical Theory Essay Exam
Short Form Writing
Summer 2017 // Dr. Heather Hummel Ecke
Work Samples
Only two classes away from being finished with the program, I still had not taken either of my two allowed cognate courses. Since hardly any courses that I hadn't already taken were being offered in the Rhetoric department, I decided to look at the offerings in the English department, where I found a workshop class in Short Form Writing. I knew of Dr. Hummel Ecke from when she helped with the Little Rock Writing Project, so I was sure the class would be enjoyable.
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Before the class started, I assumed that we would be reading poetry and short stories. However, our textbook, "Short" by Alan Zeigler, introduced me to a genre that I was not familiar with: flash (also known by a myriad of other names, listed in his introduction). These short writings are surprising and interesting and I enjoyed reading them.
Dr. Hummel Ecke also had us practice writing our own flash texts, which she called "free dives." We had different options to choose from each week, and I
was really pleased with a few of the things I wrote. I have included a selection of my favorites below which represent a variety of styles I tried for my writing.
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It also occurred to me during the course that I had not really encountered flash texts in writing classrooms, which doesn't make any sense--they would be a fantastic teaching tool, both for reading and for having students write their own. It is an accessible form that has a lot to offer students who may struggle to read longer passages or build confidence in their writing. I wrote my research paper for the course on how to include short form pieces in high school writing classes.
Flash Text Collection
Short and Sweet: Why Short-Form Prose is Essential in High School English Classrooms
Instructional Skills
Summer 2017 // Dr. Judith Hayn
For my second cognate course, I chose a class in the Teacher Education master's program called Instructional Skills. It had been nine years since I had an education class, and I thought an appropriate way to end my degree program would be to use this opportunity to practice my teaching skills and strategies.
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For the first week of class, Dr. Hayn asked us to write a educator autobiography. This writing exercise gave me an opportunity to reflect on my teaching philosophy and my career so far. It is refreshing to consider how much more I know after eight years than I did at the beginning, but I know I still have a lot to learn.
For another assignment, I created a new lesson plan
on the Exposure Triangle, a topic that my digital photography students struggled with in previous years. I wanted to create new lesson materials that would help students master this complicated concept. I started by creating a presentation that explains each aspect with examples, and an accompanying note-taking handout to help students follow along. It is a nice reminder each time I create new materials for my classes that my training in document design and technical writing in this program make my students' learning easier every day.