Bonus Prompt

I apologize for being an idiot and for doubling your reflection and work load with no notice whatsoever. I will offer this defense and apology.

First of all, as you may remember this is my first time teaching this class and I received the assignment about 10 days before classes started so I didn’t really have time to think through the semester properly and certainly didn’t have time to think about how the other half of my job might usefully inform and contribute to my teaching. And I do really think this will give you insight into professional writing. That’s the explanation for this last minute bombshell. By way of apology, if you willingly engage in this reflection and editing discussion then I will give the entire class a week off from reflection activities later in the semester when the final project deadline looms. This way when all is said and done you won’t really be doing extra work (or at least not much) and really you will be ahead of the game which is always a good thing.

OK, enough teasing. Here is the bombshell: I want you to still engage in the Prompt 2 reflection activities you were already assigned (and many of you have already begun) but I want to add another (bonus) topic. You will still journal, discuss, and tweet about this topic (so in essence you will have two journal entries, participate in two discussion board forums, and post two sets of Tweets this week. I know, I know, that is a lot to ask but think about it as getting ahead.

I am doing this to you (I’d rather think of it as for you but I know that’s not how it feels when a teacher drops this sort of bombshell) because I was working furiously on a grant application (today) and suddenly realized that this would be a great opportunity for you to see the process from the inside. I then realized I would be very remiss if I did not grab this teaching opportunity and use it. Believe me, the last thing I want when fighting a tight deadline is to stop writing, thinking, and editing to teach but I’m hoping it will all work out in the end. I hope this work will also inspire your own thinking in regard to your semester project.

Here is the situation:

My job description at MSU includes teaching two classes each semester and serving as the Site Director for the Morehead Writing Project (basically half-time teaching and half-time administrating). As an affiliate of the National Writing Project, MWP’s mission is to improve the teaching of writing (although we interpret this to improving literacy instruction as you cannot really separate reading and writing). We are supported by a mixture of federal, state, and local grants as well as institutional support (MSU) and our own program income. Our primary purpose is professional development although we also run a number of community outreach programs as well. I am currently engaged in writing a grant for a community outreach project for a program run by the National Endowment for the Arts called the Big Read. You can read more about it here: http://www.neabigread.org/about.php

For your journal reflection, I want you to look at the guidelines and applications instructions: http://www.neabigread.org/guidelines.php and think about how you would review applications. This review cannot be based on your personal preferences and interests. It needs to reflect the parameters and requirements of the Big Read. Specifically look at the criteria and requirements. What needs to be in there? Don’t simply list the requirements again but think about what it really is that they are looking for. What buzz words and ideas will tickle their fancy and/or turn them off, for example. What will capture their interest? What will make them reject a project? Really think about what a successful application would look like.

You might also want to reflect on the work that doesn’t show up on paper. How much groundwork, planning, collaboration, and networking is essential to prepare an application of this nature? Sure I’m writing it but there are a whole lot of people involved.

In Blackboard, I will post the narrative and accompanying documents as I draft them (oh yes, I’m letting it all hang out, and it’s not pretty) and our discussion will center around your evaluation of those documents – not as an editor but as someone on the committee reviewing my application. Where have I gone right, gone wrong, and what do I need to add or take out or expand upon? This is a real, honest-to-goodness work in progress and I’m on a real deadline (Feb. 1). This is not a drill.

And, last but not least, do not forget to Tweet!