Written Communication Jan 2019 OA PDF

“I Think When I Speak, I Don’t Sound Like That”: The Influence of Social Positioning on Rhetorical Skill Development in Science

Heather M. Falconer Curry College

Abstract

Negotiating membership within a disciplinary community is as much an exercise in rhetorical facility as it is content expertise. Where individuals reside in the hierarchy of membership is determined by not only what they talk and write about, but how. Yet, there are many factors that can impact newcomers’ acculturation into a disciplinary community on a rhetorical level. In this article, I use positioning theory and intersectional identity to examine how Anne, a woman of color participating in undergraduate research in science, learned to read and write as a scientist and the ways her social position as a woman, person of color, and low-income and first-generation student influenced her perception and adoption of the discourse as her own. I argue that social positioning influences students’ views of scientific discourse and affects their rhetorical skill development as scientific writers. Because recognition as a group insider is heavily influenced by discourse, this research has potential implications for those interested in retention and persistence of women of color in STEM, as well as for those interested in changing learning cultures and incorporating writing instruction into disciplinary arenas.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
2019-01-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088318804819
CompPile
Open Access
OA PDF Bronze
Topics
rhetorical criticism discourse analysis writing pedagogy
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (5)

  1. Jacobson (2024)
    Social Positioning and Learning Opportunities in One Student’s Textual Transiti…
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  2. Sybing (2022)
    Dead Reckoning: A Framework for Analyzing Positionality Statements in Ethnograp…
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  3. Driscoll et al. (2022)
    Threshold Genres: A 10-Year Exploration of a Medical Writer’s Development and S…
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  4. Zhang et al. (2022)
    Responding to Supervisory Feedback: Mediated Positioning in Thesis Writing
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  5. Ellison et al. (2020)
    Examining African American Girls’ Literate Intersectional Identities Through Jo…
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CrossRef global citation count: 12 View in citation network → Build reading path →

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