1st Edition

Theories and Methods of Writing Center Studies A Practical Guide

Edited By Jo Mackiewicz, Rebecca Babcock Copyright 2020
    246 Pages 5 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    246 Pages 5 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This collection helps students and researchers understand the foundations of writing center studies in order to make sound decisions about the types of methods and theoretical lenses that will help them formulate and answer their research questions.

    In the collection, accomplished writing center researchers discuss the theories and methods that have enabled their work, providing readers with a useful and accessible guide to developing research projects that interest them and make a positive contribution.

    It introduces an array of theories, including genre theory, second-language acquisition theory, transfer theory, and disability theory, and guides novice and experienced researchers through the finer points of methods such as ethnography, corpus analysis, and mixed-methods research.

    Ideal for courses on writing center studies and pedagogy, it is essential reading for researchers and administrators in writing centers and writing across the curriculum or writing in the disciplines programs.

    1. Introduction to the Collection

    Jo Mackiewicz and Rebecca Day Babcock

    Part 1:Theories

    2. Vygotskyan Learning Theory

    John Nordlof

    3. Genre Theory: A Research Approach for Understanding Learning, Agency, and Materiality in the Writing Center

    Layne Gordon

    4. Writing Center Research and Critical Race Theory

    Frankie Condon, Neisha-Anne Green, and Wonderful Faison

    5. Category Is… Queer Theory, Queering Research and Queerer Centers

    Mitch Hobza and Harry Denny

    6. Bringing Feminist Theory Home

    Michelle Miley

    7. Transfer Theory: A Guide to Transfer-focused Writing Center Research

    Heather N. Hill

    8. Writing Center Research and Disability Theory

    Brenda Brueggemann and Noah Bukowski

    9. Activity Theory

    R. Mark Hall

    10. Second Language Acquisition Theories and Writing Center Research

    Carol Severino and Emilia Illana-Mahiques

    Part 2: Methods

    11. Grounded Theory

    Rebecca Day Babcock

    12. Ethnography—More or Less

    Kerri Jordan

    13. Histories, Historiographies, and Historical Research in the Writing Center

    Harry Denny and Elizabeth Boquet

    14. The Potential of Writing Center Case Study Research Design as Public Scholarship

    J. Michael Rifenburg

    Chapter 15. Extending Our Research: Meta-Analysis in the Writing Center

    Steve Price

    16. Rhetorical Analysis: Choices in Exploring and Connecting Our Writing Center Studies and Stories

    Steven Corbett

    17. Discourse Analysis, Critical Discourse Analysis, and Conversation Analysis

    Terese Thonus

    18. Corpus Approaches to Writing Center Research

    Randall Monty

    19. Survey Methods for Research and Assessment in Writing Centers

    Lori Salem

    20. Mixed Methods Research in Writing Centers

    Cara Marta Messina and Neal Lerner

    21. Conclusion

    Jo Mackiewicz and Rebecca Day Babcock

    Biography

    Jo Mackiewicz is a professor of rhetoric and professional communication at Iowa State University. Recently, she published the books The Aboutness of Writing Center Talk and Writing Center Talk over Time. With Isabelle Thompson, she has published a number of articles about writing center discourse, as well as the book Talk about Writing, now in its second edition.

    Rebecca Day Babcock is the William and Ordelle Watts Professor at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. She also serves as director of undergraduate research. Her latest books are Writing Centers and Disability (with Sharifa Daniels) and Researching the Writing Center: Towards an Evidence-Based Practice (with Terese Thonus; revised edition).