Pedagogical Training

A core mission of the Writing Program is to train and support course assistants, lecturers, and faculty in the teaching of writing to students in the College.

Courses in Writing Pedagogy

The Writing Program offers courses in writing pedagogy for graduate students who have been hired to teach for the Writing Program or who are training to teach within their own department or program. Visit our Courses in Writing Pedagogy page for more information.

Professional Development Workshops

Graduate student employees of the Writing Program can polish their skills as writing teachers by participating in our series of professional development workshops.  We offer two kinds of workshop series: one for Writing Program staff who work as Writing Interns in the Humanities Core, and another for those who work as Lectors in ENGL 33000: Academic and Professional Writing. These workshops include but are not limited to: best practices in one-on-one pedagogy, crafting effective teaching materials, and mini consultations for evaluating student evaluations. Contact us for the current quarter’s offerings.

College Teaching Certificate with Emphasis in Writing Pedagogy

To help graduate students and postdocs develop their approach to teaching and their approach to student writing, the Writing Program has partnered with the Chicago Center for Teaching to offer a College Teaching Certificate (CTC) with Emphasis in Writing Pedagogy. Visit the link for a detailed description of certificate requirements, which include components such as workshops, implementing pedagogical tools and strategies, written reflections, and submitting a teaching portfolio that includes a syllabus with a substantial writing component.

Autumn 2019:
Rhetoric of Writing-Focused Feedback
Wednesday, October 30th
10:00am-12:00 pm
Writing Program Office (Stuart 330)
Hosted by Ashley Lyons, Assistant Director of University Writing Programs
Teaching courses in your department? Preparing for the job market? This collaborative workshop asks you to think critically about feedback in the courses you design and teach in your own field: what, out of many potential functions, do you want your feedback on student writing to do? We’ll share different modes of and approaches to feedback, and discuss how to align the different functions and formats of feedback with the learning objectives you have for your students. With these insights, participants will be equipped to decide what kind of writing-focused feedback to include in their course designs, when, and how. Participants will also be equipped to reflect on and better articulate those decisions when preparing future job materials. 

 

Deja Vu: When Students Keep Making The Same Mistakes 
Wednesday, November 20th
10:00am-12:00 pm
Writing Program Office (Stuart 330)
Hosted by Tracy Weiner, Senior Associate Director of University Writing Programs
Writing pedagogy is a marathon, not a sprint. Many instructors find students understand a writing principle in theory, but have difficulties in practice. In this workshop, we will discuss ways you can support students as they seek to implement writing principles that you’ve already presented once…or twice…or three times. 

You do not need to be enrolled in the College Teaching Certificate Program in order to attend these workshops. The workshops are open to graduate students, postdocs, and recent alumni.