Definitions: I feel like most of them relate to my course!!

Academic writing	Writing that fulfills a purpose of education in a college or university
Audience	The person or group you intend to reach and inform, entertain, or call to action on a topic
Basic writing	Remedial or developmental writing; came about because of open admissions. Leveling for college courses
Coherence	Logically in order; put together in an order that makes sense
Collaboration	To work together in a joint intellectual effort to produce a desired product
Collaborative learning	Situation when two or more people are attempting to learn something together

what is one assignment you will include in your syllabus assignment that uses collaboration and/or technology and/or other things Yancey and Bruffee and Shaughnessey have discussed?

I am excited to be using something that seems so basic, but I have not incorporated it into my classes at all: Facebook!

I will set up a Facebook page that is private and every student can request to join the page. I have not decided if it will be required for them to get a Facebook, because I have no clue how many students will not have one. That will be a question on the survey I give in the first few days of class. The goal of the Facebook page is to serve as a reminder for due dates, but more importantly, to get some discussion going. Students will be given bonus points for posting links to videos, articles, or other media about a topic we are discussing that week (like resumes or cover letters). Students will also receive points for commenting and discussing on the Facebook page.

Another thing I want to incorporate is doing a quiz question every other day or so. For example, if they have quiz 6 on Friday, Monday and Wednesday I may put up a question on the Facebook page (without the answer) to see how students are doing. It is essentially a freebee as long as they take the time to look up the correct answer and discuss it.

The class I teach is 90+ students, which is hard for them to get up and ask a question. I am hoping with the Facebook page they will either ask the question on there or feel comfortable sending me a question.

Define Literacy

Something I had talked about during a few points of class was agricultural literacy. But what makes ag literacy so important?

Merriam-Webster defines literacy in the following:

1. : the quality or state of being literate 

So what exactly is literate? 

a : educated, cultured  
b : able to read and write

a : versed in literature or creative writing : literary  
b : lucid, polished <a literate essay>  
c : having knowledge or competence <computer-literate> <politically literate>

The best way I could think of to define literacy was to look at a specific industry: agriculture. In ag communications we are constantly talking about the importance of ag literacy. Overall, I thought I had a pretty good grasp on the concept. We wanted people to be able to understand and communicate about agriculture. But then I got to thinking, agriculture is a REALLY big field and can differ tremendously depending on what region one is in.

I found a great definition from Wikipedia (and while I normally stay away from it, they did mention Texas Tech so I figured they were on to something good!):

Agricultural literacy is a phrase being used by several universities (e.g., Texas Tech, the University of Arizona, and California Polytechnic State University) to describe programs to promote the understanding and knowledge necessary to synthesize, analyze, and communicate basic information about agriculture to students, producers, consumers, and the public. These programs focus on assisting educators and others to effectively incorporate information about agriculture into subjects being taught or examined in public and private forums, and to better understand the impact of agriculture on society.

So, ag literacy helps to inform educators. The goal is to see more agriculture in the classroom.

I believe that literacy is  understanding and knowing about a subject enough to educate others on that topic.

Assignment Review: Emily Gilbert

I decided to review Emily's project because I have taught a course that was completely computer based (design course) and one where you had to use a computer for the assignments. I was intrigued to see if the world had some of the same problems I did with the courses!

Emily did a great job of finding literature that was relevant to the topic. There is clearly a need for students to use technology in the classroom because it is a skill they will undoubtedly need for the future. One of the points I particularly liked was that FYC is a course that all students need to take for basic writing, so why not include technology? We seldom do anything that is hand-written anymore, so maybe that is how the courses should be structured?

My problem with that, though, is how do we REQUIRE technology? I had a course that required students to have a computer and a computer program and with only 30 students in the class, there were probably 20% that did not always have a computer or their program was down. It needs to be something that can be accessed by everyone, even just on school computers.

The one thing I wish I would have seen (and Emily did point out there was a lack of information on) is how to use it in the classroom? Facebook was mentioned, but other than posting assignments or giving students a chance to comment and interact, what purpose does it serve? It did make me realize that my students are more likely to check Facebook than they are Blackboard. I had one undergraduate course that had a Facebook page and it was extremely helpful during tests. It really has me thinking, how can we incorporate technology more? Outside of an online class, what applications will benefit them in the future?

Overall, great job Emily! Very thorough review of the literature. The presentation would have been great to a departmental meeting.

Online Anonymity

I have always been an advocate of online courses. I loved the freedom it offered and the flexibility in which classes could be taken. This summer was my first experience with using any type of interface where we actually meet and talk. I have participated in other courses where we have had discussions. There is a tremendous difference in the two methods. I feel like I know the personalities of those in the MOO (although I'll say I am more quiet so people probably do not see mine as much!) I think about that comparison to Skype or even in class. While I like that in class I can respond a little quicker (I feel like I have a learning curve with MOO). I love that MOO is completely unbiased. While I have background information on everyone in the class, I had no perceived notions about who they are, where there from, and because we are so diverse, it makes for an interesting dynamic. I love the saying that no one knows you are a dog online. I think of me in the MOO. Many people probably do not know my inexperience with teaching and especially in the English field. The fact that I am inexperienced is probably less obvious online. It helps me to soak in a lot of information without being worried about speaking up enough. Thinking about the comparison makes me greatful for my in class courses that are discussion based. But I love that I am able to be quieter (not my normal personality) and soak in all of the information!