Although we are often encouraged to write what we know, the best research writing is motivated by our interest in the unknown: What do we want to discover, how can we discover it, and what are the most effective ways to communicate our discoveries? These questions will drive our work in all classes at the WR 15x level. Building on WR 120 or its equivalent, this class will help you cultivate your writing and research skills through a range of assignments, including a scholarly research essay in which you will be responsible for identifying and refining a topic, devising research questions, and answering those questions by finding and using a range of scholarly and non-scholarly sources.<\/p>\n
New to teaching WR 15x? Start here.<\/a><\/p>\n All WR 15x classes carry Hub units<\/a> in (1) Writing, Research, & Inquiry and (2) Research & Information Literacy<\/a>.<\/p>\n The following learning outcomes, pedagogical approach, and resources are common to all courses at the WR 15x level; refer to each individual page (linked above) for specific resources and guides to teaching the individual courses.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n In WR 15x, you will undertake an extended research project related to your course topic. You will conduct individual and\/or group research, exploring new ways to find, evaluate, and engage with information from different sources and in different formats. You will become better able to select and use information sources strategically to formulate and\u00a0respond to research questions and to participate in the scholarly conversation about your topic. You will also become a more flexible writer by adapting your inquiry to address different audiences, integrating\u00a0research into your writing\u00a0in various ways to create new knowledge. Reflecting on your approach to writing and research will prepare you to adapt it to future occasions.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n Tip #1: Incorporate Writing in Module 1<\/b> Tip #3: Less is More<\/b> Tip #4: Make Writing a Throughline<\/b> Tip #6: A Common Alternative Genre Makes Life Easy<\/b> Tip #7: Take Advantage of Deerfield<\/a> Content<\/b> Previous level:<\/a>WR 120: First-Year Writing Seminar<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Although we are often encouraged to write what we know, the best research writing is motivated by our interest in the unknown: What do we want to discover, how can we discover it, and what are the most effective ways to communicate our discoveries? These questions will drive our work in all classes at the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5515,"featured_media":0,"parent":54,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1250"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5515"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1250"}],"version-history":[{"count":42,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8341,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1250\/revisions\/8341"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/54"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/teaching-writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
Learning Outcomes<\/h3>
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Pedagogical Approach<\/h3>
Course Requirements<\/h3>
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Resources for Teaching<\/h3>
Essential Lessons<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\tMajor Assignments<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\tExercises & Handouts<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\tFlipped Learning Modules<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\tGuides & Tips<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Teaching Tips<\/h3>
\nAlthough WR 15X classes are anchored in an extended student research project that dominates modules 2 and 3, instructors should be sure to have students doing some kind of writing in the first module of the class. Some students take time off from WR after taking WR 120 and can benefit from warm-up exercises that feature the kind of rhetorical skills (reading response, engaging with an argument source about an exhibit source, etc.) they will use in their longer project. Moreover, assigning writing in the first module\u2013even as a short response or ungraded exercise\u2013provides you, the instructor, with a quick sample of student work, which is beneficial for identifying student strengths and weaknesses that you can monitor as they pursue their independent project.<\/span>
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\nTip #2: Allow Time for Research Before the Draft<\/b>
\nUnlike WR 120, students in WR 15X have more time to work on an extended project. Take advantage of that time in the calendar\u2013build in sufficient time for students to develop a research question and explore possible sources, then revisit and modify their question(s) based on what they discover. Ensure that there is sufficient time for you to provide meaningful feedback and guidance on their project between the submission of a stepping-stone assignment (like a proposal or an annotated bibliography) and the draft of the research paper. We recommend at least 2-3 weeks between a proposal or initial assignment and the paper draft.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nOnce students begin working in earnest on their research papers, it can sometimes be counterproductive to assign the same sorts of readings that you assigned in the first module. At this point in the semester, readings and class meetings are best spent discussing nuts-and-bolts research and writing issues. We also recommend building some time into your schedule for students to read their sources and helping them pace their research. For example, as the paper draft deadline approaches, you could ask students to read 1-2 of their sources each week. You could even ask students to briefly share what they learned in small groups or to give informal research-in-progress presentations.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nThroughout the class, emphasize writing skills that might be helpful for each component of the project, whether the project is a traditional research paper or something different, as it might be in WR 153. While each of our courses has a unique topic, it\u2019s important to place writing and research at the forefront.<\/span>
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\nTip #5: Make the Hub Component Meaningful<\/b>
\nMeaningfully integrate the Hub requirements for your course (oral\/signed for WR 151, digital\/multimedia for WR 152, and creativity\/innovation for WR 153), including assigning models\u2013both student and professional\u2013for the Hub genres\/modalities that you are asking students to produce. If you\u2019re teaching WR 151, for example, don’t just have students do a 10 minute presentation at the end of the term. Instead, incorporate oral\/signed throughout the semester by having students study, analyze, and discuss oral\/signed texts (a podcast episode, a TED talk, a debate, a poetry reading, etc.). If you are teaching WR 152, consider creative digital genres that students could practice (social media reels, infographics, etc.) to translate their research into a new media form. If you are teaching WR 153, incorporate lessons on design thinking, as well as creative ways to bring their research to life outside the bounds of the classroom.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nThough there is value in giving students a choice of genre in the final course module, having the entire class working in the same genre can be easier for everybody involved. Above all, instructors can plan class and assign readings devoted to modeling and analyzing a specific genre. This approach allows students to have a clear sense of genre requirements when they work on their own final projects. <\/span><\/p>\n
\nFor some students who may have never written an academic research paper before\u2013or an alternative genre\/creative piece\u2013trying to do so without having a model is akin to attending a yoga class where the instructor calls out a pose without modeling it themselves. <\/span>That\u2019s where <\/span>Deerfield<\/a>, the journal of undergraduate writing produced in WR courses, can help. Recent issues contain many pieces written for WR 15X classes. The topic of the student writing will almost certainly not match the topic for your class, but that\u2019s an asset: instead of being distracted by the topic, students can use assigned models to discuss how the essay or creative piece works, how it engages in scholarly conversation (if it is a traditional academic essay), and how it guides its audience through its main idea.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n
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