In addition to all the vlogging we did and photos we took, we did our first experiment in podcasting for the KU Composition Conference.  Three students from my Advanced Composition class–Tim Crane, Katrina Albert, and Renee Franklin–agreed to having their panel recorded for a podcast.  A huge thanks goes out to them for their willingness to try this out.  

I just finished loading up the audio (with very minimal editing) and it sounds good!  If you’d like to check it out, click on the radio icon above.  A QuickTime (or other audio program) should start up and play the file.  If you want a little context for the panel, check out the paper assignment that provided the prompt for Tim, Katrina, and Renee’s paper.  Or, check out the Ramage-tagged posts on our class blog.

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Come on out and support some great student writers and indulge in all things comp/rhet to start your weekend out right.

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Yesterday began yet another cycle in the KU Composition year: Connections and Directed Self-Placement. Connections is a two-day orientation for students who will be first-year students at Kutztown in the fall. In addition to a general orientation to all the ins and outs of the university, students also receive their first-semester schedules. As part of that two-day whirlwind, students also go through “Directed Self-Placement” to choose their composition course.

Unlike colleges and universities who place students in their first-year composition classes by using SAT/ACT scores or a timed essay, Kutztown takes students through a process called “Directed Self-Placement.” Basically, I get to see all the new students for a 45 minute session to discuss our different courses and the central place of writing at the college level. I also take them through a couple of surveys that ask students to self-assess their past writing and reading experiences. At the end of the process, students will have chosen their class.

At first the whole idea of students making their own decision as to which college composition course they will takes makes some people nervous. It’s not uncommon to hear concerns that students will then choose poorly, or that they will ignore the advice I give them or that they receive from their advisors. However, if you think that part of what happens at higher education is a shift in students’ relationship to their educational processes–i.e. they are no longer simply “following directions;” they must now also take over the responsibility for their choices–then Directed Self-Placement makes a whole lot of sense.

This year, we’re experimenting with a slightly different format and we will begin a process of assessing Directed Self-Placement at Kutztown. It should be an interesting and worthwhile endeavor. If you are interested in learning more about Directed Self-Placement, there is a great website from the folks at Grand Valley State University (one of the pioneers of Directed Self-Placement for college composition courses). The website has several useful links, including an article by Dan Royer and Roger Gilles about the model at GVSU–a model, I must say, that our Directed Self-Placement program borrowed heavily.

So, I’ll try and keep everyone up-to-date on how DSP is going this time around. In the meantime, enjoy the summer!

Wishing all our graduates the best of luck in the years to come. In the words of an old Irish blessing: “May the road rise up to meet you.  May the wind always be at your back.”  For today, enjoy the celebration.