The Disciplinary Interview
For
this assignment, I want you to see yourselves as researchers and to
observe, to question, and to develop hypotheses about the way disciplines
work.
Try to develop your own questions about writing in the disciplines. Here's a few to get you started:
The Disciplinary Practices Interview
- Why did you choose your discipline as a field of study?
- What was the subject of your dissertation? Could you describe the methodology
you used?
- What is the hallmark of good writing in your field? Can you show me an
example?
- Did you receive any especially important advice on becoming a writer in
your field?
- Do researchers
in your field use language in a specialized manner? Can you show me examples
of words or phrases particular to your discipline?
- How do you know when you've got a good topic? Where do you go to find evidence
for such a topic?
- Do writers in your field have a typical approach to such topics? Where
do you start researching and writing?
- What are the important topics in your field?
- Have these topics, or the emphasis on these topics, changed over time?
- How do you know what to look for? How did you learn when you were an undergraduate?
- How do you organize your findings?
- Can you recommend a particular style guide or handbook that you've found
useful?