Making Sense of My Own Ideas

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to trace the emergence of authorship in a beginning college writing classroom through two case examples. Three primary questions motivate this study of authorship: (a) What were students' interpretations of writing an essay based on sources? (b) How did these students organize their essays? and (c) What strategies did they use to advance their own ideas? An additional question focused on the instructional context of the course. In particular, how did the instructor represent the task of writing an essay based on different sources of information and the process of writing in the classroom? To answer these questions, each class was audiotaped during a 15-week semester and field notes were taken. Retrospective protocols and cued questions were used in order to understand students' evolving interpretations of the task they were given. The results show that although the instructor tried to foster a sense of engagement and commitment through reading, writing, and talking, the technical difficulty of the task, students' perceptions of their peers' interests, and a legacy of schooling and culture were equally important concerns that shaped the decisions made in writing. Implications for developing a theory of authorship are discussed as well as strategies for teaching.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
1995-04-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088395012002002
Open Access
Closed
Topics

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (3)

  1. Computers and Composition
  2. Pedagogy
  3. Written Communication

Cites in this index (10)

  1. Research in the Teaching of English
  2. Written Communication
  3. Research in the Teaching of English
  4. Research in the Teaching of English
  5. College Composition and Communication
Show all 10 →
  1. Rhetoric Review
  2. Written Communication
  3. Written Communication
  4. College Composition and Communication
  5. Written Communication
Also cites 10 works outside this index ↓
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    Journal of Basic Writing  
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  6. 10.2307/377860
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  9. Learning lessons: Social organization in the classroom
  10. 10.17763/haer.47.3.8840364413869005
CrossRef global citation count: 13 View in citation network →