Writing is omnipresent in our lives, yet we rarely stop and consider its history and material culture. This volume introduces student readers to the development of writing across time and societies. The book incorporates autoethnography and asks readers to consider writing histories, influences, processes, and tools in their own lives. Short readings are included for each chapter. Designed for composition courses with a Writing About Writing focus or courses in Writing Studies, A Writing Studies Primer is a distinctive, visually engaging introduction to writing through its material culture.
As the arts become an increasingly popular pedagogical tool in writing studies, Arts-Based Research Methods in Writing Studies offers scholars and educators in the field ways to leverage the arts for their own scholarship through the practice of arts-based research (ABR). Tailored to the needs of writing studies scholars, this concise guide presents ways of exploring and addressing unresolved research questions from the past as well as new, pressing questions that are emerging in light of increasingly fraught and complicated current contexts. It explores motives and methods for taking up ABR, sheds light on the processes of representing research and the ethical imperative of methodological disclosure, and looks critically at the complexities of fully realizing ABR in writing studies while offering some pedagogical applications. Connecting theory to practice, this book also performs ABR through a co-created mixed-media text about the everyday and extraordinary stories woven into the fabric of new American artists’ composing processes. Arts-Based Research Methods in Writing Studies lends itself to insight that is at once personal for writing studies researchers, useful for research communities, and a catalyst for social change beyond institutional walls; as such, it will be an important resource for scholars, educators, and graduate students in writing studies and those interested in multimodal, multilingual, and translingual learning; equitable pedagogies and administrative practices; online writing instruction; transnational literacies; research methods; community-based research; and disability studies in composition.
Gábor Lövei’s scientific communication course for students and scientists explores the intricacies involved in publishing primary scientific papers, and has been taught in more than twenty countries. Writing and Publishing Scientific Papers is the distillation of Lövei’s lecture notes and experience gathered over two decades; it is the coursebook many have been waiting for. The book’s three main sections correspond with the three main stages of a paper’s journey from idea to print: planning, writing, and publishing. Within the book’s chapters, complex questions such as ‘How to write the introduction?’ or ‘How to submit a manuscript?’ are broken down into smaller, more manageable problems that are then discussed in a straightforward, conversational manner, providing an easy and enjoyable reading experience. Writing and Publishing Scientific Papers stands out from its field by targeting scientists whose first language is not English. While also touching on matters of style and grammar, the book’s main goal is to advise on first principles of communication. This book is an excellent resource for any student or scientist wishing to learn more about the scientific publishing process and scientific communication. It will be especially useful to those coming from outside the English-speaking world and looking for a comprehensive guide for publishing their work in English.
Researching Writing is an accessible, informative textbook that teaches undergraduates how to conduct ethical, authentic research in writing studies. The book introduces students to the research approaches used most often and offers a course framework for professors creating or teaching research courses themselves. Author Joyce Kinkead lays out the research process, including finding and defining questions, planning, and starting the research. Expository content introduces the language and methods of writing research, and specific methods are demonstrated in published examples, illustrating student work using student work and showing that it is possible for students to join the scholarly conversation in writing studies. Other features include student activities, instructor resources, student resources, and links to external content on journal websites, digital publications, YouTube, and similar work. The first-ever textbook for research methods in writing studies for undergraduates, Researching Writing takes a hands-on approach that excites and engages students in the depth and complexities of research and will influence the creation of courses in new writing majors as the field continues to grow.
This practical volume provides a thorough introduction to conducting and critically reading research in technical communication, complete with exemplars of research articles for study. Offering a solid grounding in the research underpinnings of the technical communication field, this resource has been developed for use in master’s level and upper-division undergraduate research methods courses in technical and professional communication.
Thousands of public relations (PR) students and professionals have relied on this authoritative text to understand the key role of research in planning and evaluating PR campaigns. Revised and expanded to reflect today's emphasis on standards-based practice, the third edition has a heightened emphasis on setting baselines, creating benchmarks, and assessing progress. Stacks presents step-by-step guidelines for using a wide range of qualitative and quantitative methods to track output, outtakes, and outcomes, and shows how to present research findings clearly to clients. Every chapter features review questions and a compelling practice problem. PowerPoint slides for use in teaching are provided at the companion website. Instructors requesting a desk copy also receive a supplemental Instructor's Manual with a test bank, suggested readings, and case studies. New to This Edition: *Chapter on standardization, moving beyond the prior edition's focus on best practices. *Chapter on different types of data sets, with attention to the advantages and disadvantages of using Big Data. *Addresses the strategic use of key performance indicators. *Covers the latest content analysis software. Pedagogical Features: *Each chapter opens with a chapter overview and concludes with review questions. *End-of-chapter practice problems guide readers to implement what they have learned in a PR project. *Appendix provides a dictionary of public relations measurement and research terms. *Supplemental Instructor's Manual and PowerPoint slides.
"The discipline of fan studies is famously undisciplined. But that doesn't mean it isn't structured. A Fan Studies Primer: Methods, Research, Ethics will be the first comprehensive primer for classroom use that shows students how to do fan studies, in practical terms. The expansion of fan studies as an academic field and the growing visibility of fandom and fan activities in popular culture have led to more instructors using students' fandom in the classroom, and teaching fan studies as a disciplinary focus. Teaching fandom and fan studies means drawing from a multidisciplinary spectrum of methodologies and foci. Yet, as fan studies itself is often a "moving target," it is imperative to have a volume that approaches the various contributions, methodologies, ethics, and lacunae of the field in a classroom setting. With contributions from many of the biggest names in fan studies, co-editors Paul Booth and Rebecca Williams pull together case studies that demonstrate the wide array of methodologies available to fan studies scholars, such as auto/ethnography, immersion, interviews, online data mining, historiography, and textual analysis. They also probe the ethical questions that are unique to fan studies work and that continue to crop up as the field develops, such as use of online fan content for research, interview methods, consent, and privacy. Both experienced scholars and new students alike will find a useful overview of the diverse research topics in fan studies, whether it's Harry Potter, superheroes, or celebrities, as well as a catalog of conscientious and effective techniques for those who want to join in"--
This book invites readers to reconsider how writing studies researchers work with Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) on behalf of their communities and argues that engaging with IRBs during the research design process helps practitioners conduct research more quickly and effectively Using empirical data from both writing studies and extra-disciplinary contexts, Dr. Johanna Phelps presents findings from two discipline-wide studies, as well as metadata from two IRBs, to develop a principled engagement framework for writing studies researchers to interact with their communities This engaging and timely exploration of research design will be an important resource for scholars and students of writing studies; rhetoric and composition; technical and professional communication; cultural rhetoric; literacy studies; research design; research methodologies; research ethics; IRBs; justice; and critical theory
Preparing students to become informed, critical consumers of research, this accessible text builds essential skills for understanding research reports, evaluating the implications for evidence-based practice, and communicating findings to different audiences. It demystifies qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods designs and provides step-by-step procedures for judging the strengths and limitations of any study. Excerpts from real research reports are used as opportunities to develop methodological knowledge and practice analytic skills. Based on sound pedagogic principles, the text is structured for diverse learning styles: visual learners (concept maps, icons), active learners (building-block exercises and templates for writing), and story learners (examples, reading guides, and reflections). Pedagogical Features *Rubrics, checklists of steps to take, and reading guides that walk students through analyzing different types of research articles. *Journal abstracts with questions that home in on key aspects of a study. *Exemplars of each type of study, with descriptions of methodological and design choices. *End-of-chapter skills-building exercises that lead up to writing a research review essay. *Chapter appendices featuring sample responses to the exercises.
Despite the fact that publishers and policy-makers have had increasing influence over classrooms, it is the teacher who must make decisions on a minute-by-minute basis about what will help specific students learn. Similarly, local administrators must make key decisions at the school and district level that will best serve particular communities of teachers, students, and parents. Action research offers educators and other stakeholders a systematic way to research and reflect on specific students, classrooms, schools, and communities in order to solve local problems and improve local conditions. This book offers an overview of various definitions and perspectives on action research without prescribing any single approach. Instead, key questions are explored: Who conducts action research? Why? How? Possible answers sketch the many types of possible projects, ranging from an individual teacher trying to improve the experience of a particular student to a group of educators and community members striving to improve local socioeconomic conditions. The Action Research Primer presents an accessible but comprehensive introduction to the field, providing a basic compass and map for the interested practitioner. Chapters include a brief historical overview, an introduction to competing research paradigms, discussion of key issues that inform project design, a serviceable guide to process, and an extensive list of resources pointing to more detail on the many categories, communities, and publication outlets of action research.
