MAKING CONNECTIONS: UNDERSTANDING HOW BASIC WRITERS VIEW THEMSELVES AS ACADEMIC WRITERS

• Main Author: Mann, Travis
• Other Authors: Carrie Leverenz
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: Texas Christian University 2006
• Subjects: Addran College of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Online Access: http://etd.tcu.edu/etdfiles/available/etd-05022006-120057/

This research explores how basic writing students in Texas Christian Universitys Introduction to Critical Writing class viewed themselves as academic writers and how that view changed from the beginning of a semester until the end. Conducted in the fall of 2005 and compiled during the spring of 2006, this work attempts to understand factors that influence a students formation of identity as a writer by using the idea of a community that forms within a classroom as a lens to frame the data. By looking at the students through the lens of a community, issues of educational history, confidence, race, culture, and values became quickly apparent as factors that strongly impacted how students view themselves as writers within a classroom. The studys methodology included pre- and post-questionnaires, semester-long class observations, the analysis of students drafts and final products, and one-on-one interviews with students and the instructor.