1st Edition
Theories and Methods of Writing Center Studies A Practical Guide
This collection helps students and researchers understand the foundations of writing center studies in order to make sound decisions about the types of methods and theoretical lenses that will help them formulate and answer their research questions.
In the collection, accomplished writing center researchers discuss the theories and methods that have enabled their work, providing readers with a useful and accessible guide to developing research projects that interest them and make a positive contribution.
It introduces an array of theories, including genre theory, second-language acquisition theory, transfer theory, and disability theory, and guides novice and experienced researchers through the finer points of methods such as ethnography, corpus analysis, and mixed-methods research.
Ideal for courses on writing center studies and pedagogy, it is essential reading for researchers and administrators in writing centers and writing across the curriculum or writing in the disciplines programs.
1. Introduction to the Collection
Jo Mackiewicz and Rebecca Day Babcock
Part 1:Theories
2. Vygotskyan Learning Theory
John Nordlof
3. Genre Theory: A Research Approach for Understanding Learning, Agency, and Materiality in the Writing Center
Layne Gordon
4. Writing Center Research and Critical Race Theory
Frankie Condon, Neisha-Anne Green, and Wonderful Faison
5. Category Is… Queer Theory, Queering Research and Queerer Centers
Mitch Hobza and Harry Denny
6. Bringing Feminist Theory Home
Michelle Miley
7. Transfer Theory: A Guide to Transfer-focused Writing Center Research
Heather N. Hill
8. Writing Center Research and Disability Theory
Brenda Brueggemann and Noah Bukowski
9. Activity Theory
R. Mark Hall
10. Second Language Acquisition Theories and Writing Center Research
Carol Severino and Emilia Illana-Mahiques
Part 2: Methods
11. Grounded Theory
Rebecca Day Babcock
12. Ethnography—More or Less
Kerri Jordan
13. Histories, Historiographies, and Historical Research in the Writing Center
Harry Denny and Elizabeth Boquet
14. The Potential of Writing Center Case Study Research Design as Public Scholarship
J. Michael Rifenburg
Chapter 15. Extending Our Research: Meta-Analysis in the Writing Center
Steve Price
16. Rhetorical Analysis: Choices in Exploring and Connecting Our Writing Center Studies and Stories
Steven Corbett
17. Discourse Analysis, Critical Discourse Analysis, and Conversation Analysis
Terese Thonus
18. Corpus Approaches to Writing Center Research
Randall Monty
19. Survey Methods for Research and Assessment in Writing Centers
Lori Salem
20. Mixed Methods Research in Writing Centers
Cara Marta Messina and Neal Lerner
21. Conclusion
Jo Mackiewicz and Rebecca Day Babcock
Biography
Jo Mackiewicz is a professor of rhetoric and professional communication at Iowa State University. Recently, she published the books The Aboutness of Writing Center Talk and Writing Center Talk over Time. With Isabelle Thompson, she has published a number of articles about writing center discourse, as well as the book Talk about Writing, now in its second edition.
Rebecca Day Babcock is the William and Ordelle Watts Professor at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. She also serves as director of undergraduate research. Her latest books are Writing Centers and Disability (with Sharifa Daniels) and Researching the Writing Center: Towards an Evidence-Based Practice (with Terese Thonus; revised edition).