Events

Spring 2013

    "Using Google Drive for Collaborative Class Notes": A Workshop for FYS Faculty

    A few years ago, Joe Essid began using Google Docs for collaborative classroom notes with advanced students.  When Docs became Drive, offering an expanded set of collaborative documents, Essid saw a way to improve students' note-taking skills. He set up one doc for each class session, using his own  classroom notes, then invited students to add commentary and new content. Now Essid uses Drive for his first-year classes as well, awarding participation credit for the best note-takers. The notes are generally done out of class, as in Essid's first-year seminars, electronics are forbidden.

    The workshop covers the basics of the technology, such as setting permissions to share content, but focuses mostly on how such work builds practice with close reading, considering counter-arguments, and gathering sources for writing and other projects.

    • Friday, April 5, 10:30 am, Boatwright 181 (Seminar Room)
    • Moderator: Joe Essid, Writing Center Director & Libby Gruner, Chair of the First-Year Seminar Committee.

      "Cultural Differences in the Writing Process": A Workshop for FYS Faculty

      With an ever-more international student body, faculty encounter students whose writing, ways of citing sources, and methods of analysis vary widely. This workshop will include practice with a short paper written by a non-native speaker, the fundamental differences in student preparation, and strategies for effective pedagogy with this population.

      • Friday, February 22, 1030-1130 am, Boatwright 181 (Seminar Room)
      • Moderators: Joe Essid, Writing Center Director; Nuray Grove, Director of ESL Services; Joe Hoff, Associate Dean of International Education; Krittika Onsanit, Director of International Student, Scholar, and Internship Services.

      "Writing Effective Conclusions"

      Conclusions can sometimes be the hardest part of an essay. You need to summarize without sounding repetitive, while also bringing in new ideas or questions without starting an entirely new paper. You also need to reaffirm your thesis in a clever way, while not repeating it word for word.

      This workshop will covers methods for making a conclusion work well, including: if your points in the body of the paper are a bit scattered, how can you bring them together cohesively and concisely without boring your professor? How do you add an "and then" when you feel you have written all you can?  Or when you are "on a roll," how do you know when enough is enough?

      • Writing Consultants: Astoria Aviles & Michael Doss
      • Monday Jan. 28, 6-7 pm, Boatwright 181 (Seminar Room 2)
      • Participants should sign up here.

      Fall 2012

      "Getting Started: Planning, Organizing, and Outlining Your Paper"

      You've done the reading, you've thought about the assignment, you have an idea of where your paper's going...but how do you begin writing? And how do you keep your thoughts organized? If the idea of a formal outline stresses you out, relax! A Consultant from the UR Writing Center will share her secrets for planning to write without worry! Participants will learn a number of easily applied techniques to assist them in saying what they mean, creating a logical flow for their paper, and avoiding digression in written work.

      • Writing Consultants: Austin Carter & Sarah Lucier
      • Monday Oct. 29, 6:15-7:30 pm, Boatwright 181 (Seminar Room 2)