Paul Kei Matsuda
http://matsuda.jslw.org/

CFP: Symposium on Second Language Writing 2009

Symposium on Second Language Writing 2009
November 5-7, 2009
Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

Theme: The Future of Second Language Writing

The 2009 Symposium Organizing Committee seeks proposals for 20-minute presentations that address various topics within the field of second language writing--broadly defined. Any topic related to second language writing is welcome, but we particularly welcome proposals that seek to challenge the status quo in the field by introducing new topics as well as theoretical and methodological approaches.

As always, we are interested in L2 writing issues in any second or foreign language and at various levels of education--from emerging literacy and adult literacy to L2 writing across the disciplines and in the professions. We also encourage proposals that connect L2 writing with other related areas of inquiry, such as computer assisted instruction, computers and composition, corpus analysis, language testing, rhetoric, writing program administration and world Englishes. We welcome proposals from around the world.

Although there will not be a separate graduate student conference this year, graduate students are encouraged to submit proposals. After all, future of the field of second language writing depends on today's graduate students.

To submit your proposal, please use the online proposal submission form.

Proposals must be received by April 30, 2009 (Arizona Time/MST).

We look forward to receiving your proposal!

Paul Kei Matsuda and Tony Silva, Chairs
Symposium on Second Language Writing

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CCCC 2009

Here are some of the things I will be doing at this year's CCCC:

Wednesday, March 11, 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
RN.1 Research Network Forum
Plenary Talk: "Got Multilingualism? Why and How of Integrating a Multilingual Perspective into Writing Research"

Wednesday, March 11, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Executive Committee Meeting

Thursday, March 12, 7 a.m. to 8:15 a.m.
Newcomer's Coffee

Thursday, March 12, 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.
A.16 Transnational English(es) and U.S. Composition: From Global to Glocal
Respondent

Thursday, March 12, 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
TSIG.06 Second-Language Writing SIG: Discussing the Revised CCCC
Statement on Second-Language Writing and Writers
Discussant

Friday, March 13, 2 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.
J.05 Racism in Assessment
Session Chair

Friday, March 13, 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.
FS.K Featured Session: Voice in Written Discourse: Implications for Multilingual Writers
"A Critical Theory of Voice for the Multilingual Composition Classroom"

Friday, March 13, 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
FSIG.24 Transnational Composition
Presenter

Saturday, March 14, 9:30 a.m. to Noon
Committee on Second Language Writing Open Meeting
Union Square 9, Hilton San Francisco

====

Here is a list of L2 writing-related sessions at CCCC 2009 in San Francisco (with thanks to Gladys Vega Scott):

Wednesday Workshops

MW.2 Keeping Multilingual Writers in Mind: How Universal Design Can Lead to Inclusive Pedagogies and Practices (Part I)
Wednesday, March 11, 9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Imperial Ballroom B, Ballroom Level
Chairs: Christina Ortmeier-Hooper, University of New Hampshire & Kathryn Nielsen-Dube, Merrimack College
This workshop provides participants with an overview of issues related to multilingual writers in higher education and explores ways to serve both L1 and L2 students better in writing classes, writing centers, and in WAC/WID programs.

AW.2 Keeping Multilingual Writers in Mind: How Universal Design Can Lead to Inclusive Pedagogies and Practices (Part 2)
Wednesday, March 11, 1:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Imperial Ballroom B, Ballroom Level
Chairs: Michelle Cox, Bridgewater State College & Steve Simpson, University of New Hampshire
This workshop builds on themes presented in the morning workshop, allowing participants to further explore inclusive writing pedagogy designed with L2 students in mind.

Thursday Sessions

A.01 Un/Documented Literacies:Rewriting Cultural Citizenships in the United States
A.16 Transnational English(es) and U.S. Composition: From Global to Glocal
A.33 Four Voices from the Contact Zone of Composition Theory and Linguistic Minority
B.32 Waves of Transnational Composition, Ways of Doing Intercultural Rhetoric
C.11 Exploring Student, Teacher, and Tutor Limitations in the Linguistic Development of Multilingual Students in Mainstream Composition Classes
C.17 ESL Practices: Community, Voice and Identity
C.18 Surfing International Waves: Issues for Chinese Teachers and Writers
C.35 Teaching English Abroad: The Wave of the Future
D.03 Universal Design and Writing Programs: Constructing a Student-Centered Universe(ity)
D.27 ESL, Feedback, and Assessment
D.30 You’ve Been Served: Practice and Development of Service Learning for ESL and Writing-intensive Courses and for Teacher Development
E.03 Sovereignty and Dialect: Non-standard English Patterns in the Writing of Navajo Students
E.04 Multilingual Graduate Students and Composition Studies: Issues and Concerns for our Field
E.36 Grammar, Writing, and Communication
E.38 Strategies for Staying Afloat in the Multi-Lingual Classroom

TSIG.06 Second-Language Writing SIG: Discussing the Revised CCCC Statement on Second-Language Writing and Writers Thursday, March 12, 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Chairs: Kevin Eric De Pew, Old Dominion University and Jill Swavely, Temple University College of Education
The mission of the Second-Language Writing Special Interest Group (SIG) is to bring scholars and practitioners together to discuss the issues that all writing instructors, and, by extension, all writing programs face when working with second-language writers. This year we will present the revisions of the Statement and discuss the draft before it is proposed to the CCCC Executive Committee.

Friday Sessions

F.28 Writing on Different Wavelengths: Competing Perceptions of Teaching and the Academy
F.31 Cultural Expectations in Cross-cultural Classrooms: ESL and International Issues
F.39 Going Global by Going Local: Connecting Study Abroad and International Students with the Writing Support They Need
G Featured Session: Walking the Talk: Teacher Response and Best Practices
H.07 The Research Plan is Sinking—Locate the Lifevest!: Navigating Research Methodologies and Realities
H.13 Approaches to Teaching Writing to L2 Learners and ESL Students
H.25 Multicultural/Multilingual
K Featured Session: Voice in Written Discourse: Implications for Multilingual Writers

Saturday Sessions

L.01 Think-Tank for Newcomers Developing Papers and Sessions for CCCC–2010
L.23 Assessment of Student Writing
L.30 ELL Practice: Work, Pedagogy and Literacy
M Featured Session: Literacy in Higher Education in Mexico
M.14 Authorizing Multiculturalism at the Center: Tales of Trials and Triumphs
M.26 World Englishes: Possibilities/Limitations of Code Meshing
N.26 Writing in the Technical and Scientific Disciplines
O.07 Global Issues: Closing the Divide between Locals and Transnationals in Freshman Composition

Committee on Second Language Writing Open Meeting (p. 32)
Saturday, March 14, 9:30 a.m.–Noon - Union Square 9, Fourth Floor
Co-Chairs: Susan Miller-Cochran & Christina Ortmeier-Hooper
Each year, the Committee on Second Language Writing sponsors an open meeting to plan activities and sessions for the following year. If you’d like to get involved in second language writing workshops or the Special Interest Group on Second Language Writing, please come to this meeting. We will also share ideas for panel proposals.

This is not a complete listing of second language writing-related sessions:
for a complete list, please consult the convention program.


SLW.CCCC: Second Language Writing at CCCC Email List
In order to facilitate communication among CCCC members who are interested in second language writing, the Committee on Second Language Writing sponsors an email discussion list (hosted by North Carolina State University).

To join the list, send an email message to mj2@lists.ncsu.edu with the following in the body of the message (do not type anything in the subject line):
subscribe slw_cccc


If you have any questions about L2 Writing at CCCC, please feel free to email Susan Miller-Cochran or Christina M. Ortmeier-Hooper, Co-Chairs of the Committee on Second Language Writing:

Christina M. Ortmeier-Hooper
christina.ortmeier@unh.edu

Susan Miller-Cochran
susan_miller@ncsu.edu

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The Future of Graduate Education in Computers and Writing

Patricia Webb Boyd and Peter Goggin, my colleagues in the English Department at ASU, are the editor of the special issue of Computers and Composition (26.1: 2009) that focuses on the future of graduate education in computers and writing.

The issue is now available online:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/issue/6537-2009-999739998-934086

Congratulations, Tricia and Peter!

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My Video Self

So far, I haven't met anyone who isn't disturbed by their own recorded voice. It's understandable because it just doesn't match our self-image--it's not what we are used to hearing. After giving many talks using microphones, I came to accept my own physical "voice" as it is heard by others.

I can ignore the microphone pretty well. When Dwight Atkinson and I decided to record our usual conversation, we just carried our conversation as usual, and it came out pretty good and coherent when we had it transcried (by Steve Simpson--thanks, Steve!) verbatim with very little edits (Matsuda & Atkinson, 2008).

But I still can't get used to my own video voice. (Here, I'm using a slightly modified version of my own definition of voice as "the amalgamative effect of the use of discursive and nondiscursive features that language users [appropriate], deliberately or otherwise, from socially available yet ever-changing repertoires" [Matsuda, 2001, p. 40].)

When I give a lecture at other universities, some people ask if it would be OK to video-record my lecture. I usually say yes on two conditions. The first condition is that I get a copy of the video. (I usually don't watch it, but I want to have it for archival purposes.) The second is that they have to promise that they don't circulate it outside the institutional circle. This is partly to protect my intellectual property, but it also has a lot to do with the uncomfortable feeling of my "video-recorded voice" being circulated beyond my control. I know it's probably much closer than I think to what people are actually experiencing when I give a live talk. But still....

I don't like being video-recorded because I get too self conscious. I don't really get nervous when I give a talk--even when it's impromptu. But being video-recorded is an entirely different story. (I feel their pain when I ask my teaching mentees to have their own teaching video-recorded.)

But I'm not the kind of person to let these feelings hold me back when there is an exciting new opportunity. I have agreed to be video recorded several times to share my experties.

The first one I remember is when I had a video interview with a BYU production crew at TESOL. It was for a grant-funded project on second language instruction. I haven't seen the outcome, but if my clips weren't used, I wouldn't be surprised.

The second was a series on foreign language teaching, directed by Rick Donato at the University of Pittsburgh. I remember driving down to Boston to partipate in the production at the WGBH studio. (The person who did my make-up told me that she was the make-up artist for the famous Antique Roadshow.) I remember being really self-conscious, but I managed to get through it--thanks to the help of Rick and the great WGBH crew.

I guess this one is being widely circulated--there have been a number of sighting reports. Cindy Gannett told me once that she saw it on TV in Baltimore. More recently, a graduate student from IUP mentioned on Facebook that he watched it online. It's available at: http://www.learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=2110.

Another video-recorded project is Take 20, produced by Todd Taylor for Bedford/St. Martin's Press. It was a compilation of a series of interviews, organized around 20 questions about the teaching of writing. It features 22 writing teachers, including:

  • Linda Adler-Kassner
  • Cheryl E. Ball
  • Dave Bartholomae
  • Patricia Bizzell
  • Bill Condon
  • Ellen Cushman
  • Cheryl Glenn
  • Brian Huot
  • Erika Lindemann
  • Andrea A. Lunsford
  • Paul Kei Matsuda
  • Don McQuade
  • Christine McQuade
  • Mike Palmquist
  • Malea Powell
  • Nedra Reynolds
  • Mike Rose
  • Jacqueline Jones Royster
  • Raul Sanchez
  • John Schilb
  • Nancy Sommers
  • Howard Tinberg
I thought it was a great idea, and I was happy to be part of this project. But because it was filmed during CCCC convention, I was sleep-deprived as usual. When I got to the hotel where Todd was filming the piece, I looked really tired--I was pale and my skin was dry as desert. I felt horrible, but my schedule for the rest of the conference was jam packed, so I wasn't even able to ask to be rescheduled. I was somewhat releaved when I saw the CD the following year--Todd had decided to go black-and-white. (Maybe everyone looked tired.)

I thought it was a great resource for teachers--to hear established writing teachers talk about their own experiences. But I just had to laugh everytime I came on the screen with a series of one-liners. I remember describing it as a "fortune-cookie" discourse. The transcripts read like this:

Matsuda: I tried to be very structured.
Matsuda: It's much more complex than it seems at first.
Matsuda: Janice Lauer.
Matsuda: Every student is different.

Aaaargh!!!

None of my substantive comments were included, it seemed. Of course not. I was tired--I thought I was going to fall asleep during the interview--and when I get tired, my cheeks get stiff. The chilly and rainy weather didn't help, either. And I didn't give straight foward answers to questions like "If you had to pick only one book for a writing teacher to read, what would it be?" I just don't believe in one book that's important for everyone--or even for me. Different books offer insights that we need at different times. Blah, blah, blah....

But the last question rescued me: "How do you approach difference?"

Matsuda: "In the next few years, writing teachers need to learn a lot more about language differences, and I'm not talking about just language differences in terms of language and gender, or language and social class. Those are important issues as well, but I think writing teachers need to expand their notion of language and spend some time seriously thinking about the issues of speakers of different varieties of English and speakers of different languages altogether. And I think in the past, because composition and ESL, for example, have been developing as separate disciplines, many people seem to think that it's okay for writing teachers not to know about language issues or students who come from different language backgrounds. And because the student population is becoming more and more complex, that's becoming less and less the case."

That was my favorite question, of course. I was also finally warming up. I even thought maybe I was asked to participate in this project just to answer this question.

As I left the room, I remember telling Todd that, if he needed to retake my interview, I'd be happy to drive down to the Bedford/St. Martin's Office in Boston or even to Chapel Hill. (I was still in New Hampshire at that time.)

OK. Enough rambling for tonight. If anyone is interested in my fortune-cookie discourse--I mean, if anyone is interested in this great resource, it's available at:

http://bedfordstmartins.com/take20/

References

Matsuda, P. K. (2001). Voice in Japanese written discourse: Implications for second language writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 10(1-2), 35-53.

Matsuda, P. K., & Atkinson, D. (2008). A conversation on contrastive rhetoric: Dwight Atkinson and Paul Kei Matsuda talk about issues, conceptualizations, and the future of contrastive rhetoric. In U. Connor, E. Nagelhout, & W. Rozycki (Eds.), Contrastive rhetoric: Reaching to intercultural rhetoric (pp. 277-298). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Taylor, T. (Ed.). (2008). Take 20: Teaching writing. [CD-ROM] Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s Press.

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From Discourse Communities to Activity Systems: Activity Theory as Approach to Community Service Writing

Michael-John DePalma, a student of mine from UNH, just published an article on service learning and activity theory, which he wrote in my Theory of Composition class.

His article, "From Discourse Communities to Activity Systems: Activity Theory as Approach to Community Service Writing," appears in the latest issue of Reflections: Writing, Service-Learning, and Community Literacy (7.3).

Congratulations, Mike! Well done!

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The Problem of Multiple Identities, Part II

The problem of multiple identity is also multifaceted. If it's hard for people to imagine belonging to more than one discipline, it also seems hard for some people to understand that a researcher doesn’t have to be bound to a single mode of inquiry or a methodology.

In the last few months, I have had conversations with a few graduate students (who haven't taken my research methods course, of course) who made remarks that seemed to imply that I didn’t specialize in empirical research.

Well, yes, if it means that I don't do empirical research exclusively. But if that means I don't do empirical research, I don't know what to say. Perhaps I'm better known for my historical and philosophical inquiry, but I have published a fair share of empirical studies as well (e.g., Matsuda, 1999, 2001, 2002, Matsuda & Matsuda, 2001; Matsuda & Tardy, 2008; Tardy & Matsuda, 2009), using a range of methodological tools—from interviews and surveys as well as discourse analysis.

As a student of Janice Lauer who has always insisted that her students be proficient in multiple modes of inquiry--including philosophical, historical, empirical (qualitative and quantitative), and rhetorical (and to this list I would add narrative)--I'm not comfortable with the assumption that it's OK for people to stick to a single mode of inquiry.

Like Tony Silva, I firmly believe that all researchers in my fields should familiarize themselves with various theoretical and methodological tools and incorporate those that would best address the research question at hand. I thought I made that clear in the introduction to Second Language Writing Research (Matsuda & Silva, 2005) but I guess not everyone reads everything—sigh.

I do realize that many people have their favorite modes of inquiry and methodological tools that they rely on. It's also natural that people are drawn to certain research questions that lend themselves to the mode of inquiry one is most familiar with.

But as researchers, we need to develop a rich repertoire of theoretical and methodological tools if not to use them all then to understand and, if necessary, critique contributions by other researchers.

As Dwight Atkinson says in his chapter in Second Language Writing Research, “do try.”

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The Problem of Multiple Identities

The problem of multiple identities in academia has been an important driving force behind my work. (It all boils down to the issue of identity and power, it seems.)

Over the last 15 years, I have been fighting the pervasive perception in some of my fields (i.e., applied linguistics, composition and rhetoric) about multidisciplinarity--that it's not possible to be a full-fledged member of more than one discipline. Back when I was in graduate school, if I said I was specializing in second language writing, people in rhetoric and composition often thought I was really a second language specialist who happens to be coming to CCCC; some people in applied linguistics also thought that I was an "L1" compositionist who happens to be coming to applied linguistics conferences. (This has not been much of an issue in TESOL for some reason—perhaps because L2 writing was already well-established there?)

It didn't seem to occur to many of them that I was actually starting out in both fields at the same time.

This is one of those tacit cultural assumptions in academia that is hard to challenge because people don't seem to realize that they have those assumptions nor are they able to articulate what their own assumptions are or why they came to those conclusions. It may be because some people in those fields are not used to working in multiple disciplines that the notion of being multidisciplinary was unimaginable. (People who cross those disciplinary boundaries often seem to keep quiet about their other disciplinary identities). It may also be related to the institutional practices that require people to identify their "tenure home" and to align their professional activities with the job description when they got hired. Whatever the case may be, challenging unarticulated assumptions is one of the hardest things to do intellectually.

This was one of the most intriguing and disturbing dissonances that I decided to make fighting monodisciplinarity one of my professional missions. How did I do that?

  • I went to all the major conferences—AAAL, CCCC and TESOL—on a regular basis. I have tried not to miss any except when the schedule overlapped or when there was a family situation that required my attention.
  • I got myself elected or appointed to various committees, such as the Executive Committee and Nominating Committee, and to other leadership positions.
  • I published my work in journals in multiple fields and subfields. My goal was to establish a tenurable record in each discipline so I didn’t have to worry about tenure requirements—I didn’t want to shift my attention away from what I considered to be the most important research issue or problem.
  • I articulated the unarticulated assumption. I explicitly pointed out the problem of monodisciplinarity through my research and placed them in high profile journals to change the perception in both fields.
  • I helped make L2 writing an integral part of composition studies by institutionalizing the cause.
  • I took positions in departments where my multidisciplinary expertise would be valued.
  • I refused to choose one discipline or another as my primary discipline and insisted that I belonged to both.

After more than a decade of hard work, the world seems to be a better place—at least to people who specialize in second language writing. But sometimes I still get remarks—even from close friends who know my work well—that seem to imply that I’m more X than Y or that I should choose one over the other.

Old habits die hard, I guess.

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College English Conference, 11th April. Abstracts due soon

From: smithsgj@gmail.com [mailto:smithsgj@gmail.com] On Behalf Of simon smith
Sent: Sunday, January 18, 2009 8:53 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients
Subject: To all English teachers: College English Conference, 11th April. Abstracts due soon

Dear Colleagues

I am writing to you, on behalf of the Conference Organizing Committee, about National Chengchi University's College English Conference, to be held on 11th April 2009. The deadline for abstract submissions, 2nd February, is coming up quite soon.


Information about the conference, including CFP, may be found at http://flc.nccu.edu.tw/Conference/3rd/. The conference is being organized in collaboration with the Language Teaching and Research Center, National Chiao-tung University, and features ESL writing scholar Professor Paul Kei Matsuda, of Arizona State, as keynote speaker.

We'd be most grateful if you could pass on the details of the conference to colleagues and friends who might be interested.

We have tried to think of suggested topics which are stimulating, and in many cases original. Contributions within the broad compass of our theme College English: Opportunities and Challenges for Teaching and Learning are however all welcome.

The conference aims to provide a stimulating and rewarding academic forum for presentation and discussion of English teaching in colleges and universities, including Freshman English programs.


We look forward to receiving your abstract in the next few days.

Best wishes
Simon Smith


(for Organizing Committee)


----


歡迎以中文回信

Simon Smith, PhD

Assistant Professor
Foreign Language Center
National Chengchi University

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SSLW 2009 Call for Proposals

The Call for Proposals for the 2009 Symposium on Second Language Writing, to be held at Arizona State University on November 5-7, 2009, is now available in PDF format.

http://sslw.asu.edu/2009/sslw2009cfp.pdf

Please distribute widely!

Paul

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Paul Kei Matsuda, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of English
Director of Writing Programs

Arizona State University
Department of English
Box 870302
Tempe, AZ 85287-0302 USA

Paul.Matsuda@asu.edu
http://matsuda.jslw.org/
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Founding Chair, Symposium on Second Language Writing
http://sslw.asu.edu/

Editor, Parlor Press Series on Second Language Writing
http://www.parlorpress.com/slw.html

Web Administrator, Journal of Second Language Writing
http://www.jslw.org/

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Job Ad: Lecturer in Rhetoric and Composition with expertise in ESL Writing

Lecturer in Rhetoric and Composition with expertise in ESL Writing

Lecturer in Rhetoric and Composition. Beginning August 16, 2009. Required: Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Composition or in a related discipline with appropriate relevant coursework; experience in teaching college-level first-year ESL writing courses; evidence of effective teaching. Desired: Theoretical grounding, expertise, and teaching experience in second language writing; evidence of participation in professional conferences in applied linguistics, composition, rhetoric or TESOL.

Teaching load is 4 composition courses each semester. Appropriate professional university service responsibilities. Three-year renewable appointment.

Applicants must submit: Letter of application; vita; teaching philosophy; unofficial graduate transcripts; three letters of recommendation; and copies of recent teaching evaluations to D. Baker, Rhet/Comp ESL Writing Lecturer Search Committee, Department of English, Arizona State University, P.O. Box 870302, Tempe AZ 85287-0302, postmarked by January 2, 2009; if not filled, the 15th of every month until search is closed. We do not accept incomplete applications. E-mailed materials will not be accepted. A background check is required for employment. AA/EOE.

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CFP: Conference on College English at National Chengchi University, Taiwan

Call for Papers

The 3rd Conference on College English

College English: Opportunities and Challenges for Teaching and Learning

National Chengchi University
Taipei, Taiwan

The 3rd Conference on College English will be organized by the Foreign Language Center of National Chengchi University (NCCU) on 11th April 2009. The conference is an annual gathering, which provides a stimulating and rewarding academic forum for presentations and discussions of various issues regarding College English. Teachers and researchers in ELT/TESOL are invited to offer scholarly papers on teaching and learning English at college or university level. The theme for this year is "College English: Opportunities and Challenges for Teaching and Learning."

With English becoming the lingua franca in the global village, ELT has been more and more important in higher education in Taiwan and other countries. Many English teaching theories, pedagogical approaches, and research models have been originated in or imported from the English dominant countries. This influx of studies has encouraged dynamic English education and offered plenty of opportunities—as well as challenges—for both teachers and students in teaching and learning. Therefore, this year’s conference will focus on critical issues of opportunities and challenges in college English education in all aspects.

Principal keynote speaker, Dr. Paul Kei Matsuda (http://matsuda.jslw.org/), is currently Associate Professor of English and the Director of Writing Programs at Arizona State University. As one of the most influential scholars in the field of L2 writing, Professor Matsuda has published widely on second language writing in various journals and edited collections; he has also edited numerous books and special journal issues in this field. Interested in L2 writing development in Asian countries, Professor Matsuda has been a visiting scholar at the University of Hong Kong and Nagoya University in Japan in the past years. Moreover, he is the recipient of numerous awards, including the 2005-06 Richard Ohmann Award for the Outstanding Refereed Article in the journal College English and TOEFL Outstanding Young Scholar Award from Educational Testing Service in 2006.

The Conference Organizing Committee is now circulating a call for abstract proposals for individual paper presentations. Abstracts are welcome in any areas that fit the conference theme. Please submit your anonymous abstract proposal of 250-500 words and a brief bio in either English or Chinese as a Word/PDF attachment to flcenter@nccu.edu.tw by February 2, 2009. Full-paper manuscripts to be considered for inclusion in the proceedings should be submitted for blind peer review by May 8, 2009.

Important dates:

  • Conference: April 11, 2009
  • Abstract due: February 2, 2009
  • Notification of abstract acceptance: February 13, 2009
  • Full manuscript due: May 8, 2009
Conference organizer: Foreign Language Center, National Chengchi University
http://units.nccu.edu.tw/server/publichtmut/html/w5T1/cw5T1.html

Postal Address: Foreign Language Center, National Chengchi University
64, Sec 2, Zhi-nan Rd., Wenshan District, Taipei 11605, Taiwan

Abstract Submission

E-mail Address: flcenter@nccu.edu.tw
Contact Person: Derya Liu (02)2939-3091 ext. 62396

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Call for Contributors: Bedford Bibliography for Teachers of Basic Writing, 3rd edition

From: Gregory R Glau
Sent: Wednesday, October 08, 2008 3:25 PM
Subject: publication opportunity

Chitralekha Duttagupta and I are working on the 3rd edition of the BEDFORD BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR TEACHERS OF BASIC WRITING, and we need folks to annotate the new entries.

We've pasted-in the url of available entries below. If you're interested in annotating one or more of them, while we cannot pay you anything, Bedford/St. Martin's will send you a copy of the text when it's published, and we will owe you our debt of thanks!

Please note:

1/ you must have the essay(s) or book(s) you'd like to annotate in-hand; we cannot supply them to you

2/ annotations should follow the general form, style, and length of those in the 2nd edition (your local Bedford/St. Martin's sales representative can supply you with a copy, if you don't have one)

3/ annotations must be sent to us by email by November 17, 2008

If you'd like to annotate one or more of the items in the list below, please send your selection(s) to Greg at Gregory.glau@nau.edu. Please do NOT reply to the whole List. Please note that items in BOLD are available to annotate (as we assign entries, we’ll “unbold” those we assign, so you can always see what entries are still available:

http://oak.ucc.nau.edu/grg37/available.doc

It'd be useful if you can send Greg your "first three choices" (or however many) as we have to assign these first-come, first-served and your first choice might not be available by the time we get to your email. Please indicate if you'd like to do one out of the three, or two, etc. and we'll do our best to accommodate you.

Many thanks,

Greg Glau
Northern Arizona University
Gregory.glau@nau.edu

Chitralekha Duttagupta
Utah Valley University
Chitralekha.Duttagupta@uvu.edu

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You Are What Conferences You Attend

An academic's identity is shaped in part by what conferences she or he attends. This is true especially for graduate students and junior scholars who are just beginning to discover and construct their own disciplinary alignments.

When I was a graduate student, I attended AAAL, CCCC and TESOL on a regular basis. I also attended local affiliates and special topic conferences being held in the area. But how can a graduate student afford to attend all these conferences? Attending multiple conferences can be especially hard for graduate students who are working in interdisciplinary fields. Well, I wasn't particularly rich--my spouse and I were both on TA stipends--but I was able to find ways to finance my trips.

Here are some strategies:

  • Apply for internal travel funding. Check with the graduate student organization and the graduate program in your department to see if they have any travel funding for graduate students who are presenting a paper. The graduate school at your institution may also have some travel funding.
  • Apply for external travel funding. Some professional organizations (e.g., AAAL, CCCC, TESOL) have travel grants and awards for graduate students. Many local TESOL affiliates also offer travel grants for attending the international TESOL conference.
  • Apply for graduate student awards. I applied for many awards for graduate students that provided some additional funding. It also helped enhance my profile and boost my confidence.
  • Look for volunteer opportunities. Some conferences, such as AAAL, provide graduate students with opportunities to volunteer for a few hours in exchange for registration discount or waiver. The volunteer work itself is a good way of getting to know the organization and other members.
  • Split the cost with someone else. Share a hotel room with other graduate students from your program or other programs. Plan to arrive at the airport at the same time with other people you know so you can share a cab. Making these arrangements becomes easier as you develop your professional network by attending more conferences.
  • Find inexpensive hotels in the area. Many cities have public transportation options that make commuting to the conference realistic. I personally didn't use this strategy too much, though, because I wanted to be in the middle of action. I tended to stay at the headqarter hotel (or ones that were close to them), which tends to be more expensive. I go to conferences to meet people, not just to attend sessions.
  • Find a grocery or convenience store and get water, cookies, energy bars, and other inexpensive and quick breakfast and lunch items. At conferences, it's usually more important to be able to go to dinners with people you meet, but sometimes you end up going to really expensive restaurants (depending on who you hang out with), so it's important to find ways to reduce the cost for breakfast and lunch.
  • Go to publisher's exhibits where coffee and snacks may be available.
  • Go to events and receptions where food is served. For example, CCCC invites first-time attendees to a breakfast where pastries and coffee are served.
  • Forget expensive vacation plans. You get to travel to a lot of different cities by attending conferences. Plan your vacations around them, if necessary.
  • Attend local and regional conferences. Attending small conferences could be more rewarding than people may realize because it provides opportunities to meet people in the field in a more relaxed and intimate setting.

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Job Ad: Advanced Associate or Full Professor in History of Rhetoric

The Department of English at Arizona State University (ASU) seeks an advanced associate or a full professor and accomplished scholar-teacher in rhetoric and composition who has compiled an established record of scholarship in any area of the history of rhetoric. ASU is a Research I university with outstanding research facilities and infrastructure support and is located within the rapidly growing and dynamic metropolitan Phoenix area. Our English department is a large and diverse unit of faculty committed to excellence in teaching, to new and exciting research, and to ongoing community outreach.

Required: Ph.D. in rhetoric and composition or related discipline; college-level teaching experience; evidence of ability to teach and develop graduate and undergraduate courses in the history of rhetoric; and a compelling record of ongoing, high-quality scholarship in any area of the history of rhetoric appropriate to rank.

Desired: Established record of scholarship and publications on classical and/or medieval rhetoric appropriate to rank; experience in teaching graduate courses in the history of rhetoric, especially classical rhetoric.

Applicants must send: Cover letter, curriculum vita, names of three references with contact information to Chair of Associate/Full Professor of History of Rhetoric Search CommitteeDepartment of EnglishArizona State UniversityP.O. Box 870302Tempe, AZ 85287-0302.

Application Deadline (no faxes or e-mails): Postmarked by October 31, 2008; if not filled, then every Monday thereafter until the search is closed. ASU is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and is dedicated to the recruitment and employment of a diverse workforce. A background check is required for employment.

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Job Ad: Associate Professor of Rhetorical Theory

Associate Professor of Rhetorical Theory

The Department of English at Arizona State University (http://www.asu.edu/clas/english) seeks an Associate Professor and accomplished scholar-teacher with an excellent record of scholarship in any area of rhetorical theory. ASU is a Research I University with outstanding research facilities and infrastructure support and is located within the rapidly growing and dynamic metropolitan Phoenix area. The Department of English is a large and diverse unit of faculty committed to excellence in teaching, to new and exciting research, and to ongoing community outreach.

REQUIRED: PhD in Rhetoric/Composition, or related discipline; demonstrated excellent record of research, teaching, mentorship, and service as appropriate to rank of Associate Professor.

DESIRED: Expertise in one or more of the following areas: Feminist rhetorical theory, African American rhetorical theory, Latino/a rhetorical theory, and/or Queer rhetorical theory.

Typical teaching load is 2/2 for tenured and tenure-track faculty with a significant research agenda. Teaching opportunities are at the undergraduate, Master’s, and PhD levels.

APPLICANTS MUST SEND: Cover letter, CV, and names of three references (with Name, Address and Phone number) to Chair, Search Committee for Associate Professor of Rhetorical Theory, Department of English, Arizona State University, P.O. Box 870302, Tempe, AZ 85287-0302.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: October 31, 2008 (no faxes or emails); if not filled, then every Monday thereafter until the search is closed. All applications will be acknowledged, and a background check is required for employment. A short list of candidates will be asked to submit writing samples; after review of writing samples, selected candidates will be invited to interview. AA/EOE.

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Extended Cognition and Second Language Learning

A presentation by Dr. Dwight Atkinson, Purdue University

Monday, November 3, 2008
Language and Literature 316

Presentation: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Reception: 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.


Based on the assumption that second language acquisition (SLA) is an internal cognitive process, SLA studies is increasingly viewed as a branch of cognitive science. But cognitive science is a vast enterprise featuring diverse perspectives on cognition. In this presentation, I examine how one such perspective, the extended mind hypothesis (e.g., Clark & Chalmers, 1998), might be brought to bear in understanding second language acquisition.

The extended mind hypothesis holds that human cognition subserves real-world ends: adaptive behavior promoting organismic survival. More specifically, cognition is viewed as part of a functionally integrated system comprising brain, body, tools, ecological affordances, interactants (including other human beings), and situated activity systems. In this sense, cognition extends beyond the head and into the ecosocial world. Such extension allows human beings to align with our ever-changing environments in ways that promote our well-being and survival.

If SLA is a cognitive process, but cognition extends into the world, then what does this mean for second language learning? I discuss three possibilities, both negative and positive: 1) the cognitive-social/head-world dichotomy is largely meaningless; 2) SLA can be viewed as an ecologically adaptive process; and 3) the fine details of individuals’ alignment with their ecosocial environments matter fundamentally in SLA. I illustrate this last point using videotaped interactions of a Japanese EFL learner with her tutor, textbook, and sociocognitively constructed world.

Dr. Dwight Atkinson is an applied linguist and second language educator who specializes in writing (first and second language), qualitative research approaches, and second language acquisition. Current projects include an attempt to establish a view of second language acquisition on “sociocognitive” principles and research in India on the experiences of vernacular language-schooled students in English-language universities. Past work has covered a wide variety of topics, from the history of medical and scientific research writing in English, to critiques of commonly used concepts in university writing instruction such as critical thinking and voice, to explorations of the concept of culture, to writings on qualitative research methods. Atkinson teaches courses in qualitative research, postmodernism, and second language acquisition at Purdue University, where he is an associate professor of English.

Sponsored by Interdisciplinary Committee on Linguistics and the Department of English

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Interview

As I was searching for something else on the web, I found an interview that I had earlier this year with ESL Globe.

The title is: "What Strategies or Instructional Approaches are Particularly Effective for Second Language Writers?"

Because it happened at the busiest time of the year, I had almost forgotten that I had done this.

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L2 articles in the Journal of Basic Writing

The latest issue of the Journal of Basic Writing (27.1) includes two articles that focus substantially on second language writing:

"Assessment of Generation 1.5 Learners for Placement into College Writing Courses" by Kristen di Gennaro.

"Feedback on Feedback: Exploring Student Responses to Teachers' Written Commentary" by Maria Ornella Treglia.

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CFP: Special Issue on Corpus-Based Writing Research (Journalf of Writing Research)

Stephanie A. Schlitz
Assistant Professor, English and Linguistics
117B Bakeless Hall
Bloomsburg, PA 17815
sschlitz@bloomu.edu
570.389.4974

Journal of Writing Research
(JoWR, http://jowr.org/)

Special Issue: Exploring a Corpus-Informed Approach to Writing Research

Call for Proposals:

Since the development of the Brown Corpus in the 1960s, leveraging language corpora and corpus-based methods to analyze and to describe spoken and written language has become an established tradition within the broad field of linguistics.

Writing researchers as well have begun extending corpus methods to L1 and L2 writing research. Research teams in the U.K. and the U.S., for example, have begun designing large reference corpora of student writing. The developers of the British Academic Written English Corpus suggest that the corpus "has the potential to chart growth patterns such as whether students’ arguments became more complex as their education advanced, whether students learned to integrate material from different sources in formulating conclusions, and whether students’ vocabulary became more specialized and precise" (Nesi et al. 446). And the forthcoming Michigan Corpus of Upper-Level Student Papers aims to provide a corpus of 1.6 million words written by students and to offer researchers the opportunity to quantitatively and qualitatively examine student writing in areas as diverse as writing development, genre variation, and disciplinary differences ("MICUSP").

The trend toward a corpus-informed approach to writing research also continues on a smaller scale. Given the ease with which individual teachers and researchers can create and mine corpora using text analysis software such as TextSTAT or WordSmith Tools, the development of small corpora by writing teachers who adopt the role of compiler-analyst is providing another avenue for corpus-informed writing research.

Yet, because corpus methods are relatively new to the field of writing research, there have been very few comprehensive discussions of the work in this area. The aim of this special JoWR issue, therefore, is to bring together teachers and researchers from a myriad of perspectives in an effort to explore the emerging field of corpus-informed writing research.

We invite papers covering a range of related topics, including discussions of the development of large, small, and parallel writing corpora; papers exploring the kinds of questions examined via
corpus research (e.g. diction and style, citation practices, usage, stylistic variation and its relationship to author gender, etc.); papers examining corpus methods (e.g. frequency lists, concordancing, examination of sociolinguistic variables, etc.) in the context of writing research; explanations of current and ongoing research; as well as discussions of the critiques surrounding a corpus-informed approach to writing research and the corpus-inclined researcher’s response to them. Authors are asked to write papers for a broad audience including readers with little or no corpus study familiarity.

Deadline for proposals (500-750 words in abstract form) is October 15, 2008. Proposers will receive initial notification by November 15, 2008. Final papers will be due by February 15, 2009.

Prior to acceptance, all final papers will undergo peer review as defined by JoWR’s peer review policy.

Proposals should be sent to: TBA

References

"MICUSP." University of Michigan English Language Institute. 12 Nov. 2007. http://www.micusp.org/.

Nesi, Hilary, Gerard Sharpling, Lisa Ganobcsik-Williams. "Student papers across the curriculum: Designing and developing a corpus of British student writing." Computers and Composition 21 (2004): 439–450.

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Job Ad: Associate or Full Professor of Rhetoric and Composition

Writing Programs Director/Advanced Associate or Full Professor of Rhetoric and Composition

The Department of English at Arizona State University (http://www.asu.edu/clas/english) seeks an experienced writing programs administrator and accomplished scholar-teacher with an established record of outstanding scholarship and professional contributions to any area of Rhetoric and Composition. ASU is a Research I institution with outstanding research facilities and infrastructure support, and is located within the rapidly growing and dynamic metropolitan Phoenix area. Our English department is a large and diverse unit of faculty committed to excellence in teaching, to new and exciting research, and to ongoing community engagement.

Required: Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Composition, or related discipline; experience as a lead writing programs administrator; college-level teaching experience appropriate to rank; evidence of ability to teach and develop graduate and undergraduate courses in Rhetoric and Composition; and a compelling record of ongoing, high-quality scholarship in any area of Rhetoric and Composition.

Desired: Outstanding record of scholarship and publications on topics related to writing program administration.

Applicants must send: Cover letter, curriculum vita, names of three references with contact information to Chair of Writing Programs Director/Rhetoric and Composition Search Committee, Department of English, Arizona State University, P.O. Box 870302, Tempe, AZ 85287-0302.

Application Deadline (no faxes or e-mails): Postmarked by September 26, 2008; if not filled, then every Monday thereafter until the search is closed. All applications acknowledged. ASU is an affirmative action/equal employment opportunity employer and is dedicated to recruiting a diverse faculty community. A background check is required for employment.

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Call for Nominations: The 2008 Advancement of People of Color Leadership Award

In response to a recommendation of the Task Force to Advance and Support Members of Color, the NCTE Executive Committee established the Advancement of People of Color Leadership Award. The NCTE Advancement of People of Color Leadership Award (APCL) is a special award given to an NCTE member of color who has made a significant contribution to NCTE and the development of our professional community. The award was established in 2007 and will be first presented in 2008.

The NCTE Executive Committee has asked that nominations be solicited. Council members may self-nominate or nominate any Council colleague.

Please send your nominations, with a brief commentary (maximum one page) on the qualities and services of the nominee to:

Diane Waff, Chair
Advancement of People of Color Leadership Award Subcommittee
NCTE
1111 W. Kenyon Road
Urbana, IL 61801-1096

Deadline for your nomination is September 15, 2008.

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Reprint

A friend of mine--a rising star in rhetoric and composition--told me recently that he has received a request for permission to reprint his article, which is quite an honor. He was wondering if there were any issues he should be aware of.

Here is my response (with a few minor changes):

Congratulations on having your article reprinted.

The answer depends on who owns the copyrights. If you signed a copyright release when you had your article published with the journal, then this is a courtesy request. You can say no and I’m sure the editor would honor that, but I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to have your article reprinted. The original publisher has the final say in whether to grant permission (and charge a fee).

If you kept your copyrights (or more precisely, part of the copyrights) concerning the right to reprint (which is unusual in humanities journals), then it would be your decision alone (though I would also have the editor contact the publisher just to be safe).

Normally, reprint authors in our fields don’t get any royalty, but it wouldn't hurt to ask to have a copy of the book sent to you. If you wish to make any minor changes to the article (typos, copy editor’s edits you didn’t like), you can also ask about it at this point. I wouldn’t make any major revisions at this point, though.

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Blog entries elsewhere

I've been asked to write about my experience with diversity and being a nonnative English speaking professional for other institutional blogs. Here are the "blog" sites:

NNEST of the Month Blog
http://nnest.asu.edu/blog/2008/01/paul-kei-matsuda.html


CCCC Blog
http://cccc-blog.blogspot.com/2008/07/individual-issue-of-language-diversity.html

The CCCC blog is supposed to be interactive--I hope many people will post comments and questions there.

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2008 Symposium

The 2008 Symposium on Second Language Writing was a great success. As always, it was good to see many familiar faces as well as new ones. This year, we focused on foreign language writing--English as a foreign language as well as foreign languages other than English.

This year's Symposium would not have been possible without the contributions of the two Associate Chairs. Melinda Reichelt was the driving force behind this year's program--she was instrumental in assembling the list of speakers who represent a wide variety of languages and contexts. Tony Cimasko worked hard in taking care of local details; everything went smoothly thanks to him.

The Graduate Student Conference, organized by Jihyun Im and Beril Tezeller Arik, was also stimulating. The discussion at the end, where participants reported on issues they found interesting, gave me a lot of ideas for next year's Symposium.

We also benefited much from the support provided by the Symposium Assistants from Purdue University, Arizona State University, and the University of New Hampshire. They are: Haiying Cao, Shihyu Chang, Lixia Cheng, Yin Ling Cheung, Cristyn Elder, Fatima Esseili, Brian Guthrie, John Hitz, Mike Hubert, Jaisree Jayaraman, Beth Kramer, Elena Lawrick, Xianqiang Li, cristine McMartin-Miller, Wongjan Poolpoem, Laurel Reinking, Tanita Saenkhum, and Steven Simpson.

The next Symposium will be held on November 5-7, 2009, at Arizona State University. The theme will be the future of second language writing.

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Recent Publications

I've been too busy to even keep track of my own work. Here are a few publications that recently came out.

Knoblauch, A. A., & Matsuda, P. K. (2008). First-year composition in the 20th century U.S. higher education: An historical overview. In P. Friedrich (Ed.), Teaching academic writing (pp. 3-25). New York: Continuum.

As the title suggests, this chapter provides an overview of the development of first-year composition--starting with the creation of the first-year composition course in the late 19th century. It also considers the rise of rhetoric and composition as a discipline in the mid 20th century and explores some of the major pedagogical approaches in the 20th century. Abby, by the way, is going to start as Assistant Professor at Kansas State University.
Matsuda, P. K. (2008). Myth: International and U.S. resident ESL writers cannot be taught in the same class. In J. M. Reid (Ed.), Writing myths: Applying second language research to classroom teaching (pp. 159-176). Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
This piece examines one of the extreme positions I've seen people take--that ESL writing courses (intensive or first-year) are for international students only and that resident students' needs are too different from international students for them to be placed in the same course. Well, it may be, but given the demographics, all writing teachers--mainstream, basic, or ESL--need to be prepared to work with students who come from various language backgrounds.
Matsuda, P. K. (2008). Voice in second language writing: Implications for Japanese learners of English. JACET Summer Seminar Proceedings, No.7: Issues in L2 Writing Instruction (pp. 9-14). Tokyo: The Japan Association of College English Teachers.
This is an outcome of a JACET summer seminar in Kusatsu, Gunma, Japan. (If you are in Japan in August, I highly recommend it.) Based on my earlier study of voice (Matsuda, 2001), I considered the implications of voice for English learners in Japan. While my view on voice encompasses both individual and social voice, I couldn't help but notice that many Japanese students want to develop their own individual voice. That is, they don't want to stand out but they don't want to be the same as everyone else. Individual identiy, after all, is something we create by combining socially available discursive and non-discursive repertoire.
Matsuda, P. K., & Atkinson, D. (2008). A conversation on contrastive rhetoric: Dwight Atkinson and Paul Kei Matsuda talk about issues, conceptualizations, and the future of contrastive rhetoric. In U. Connor, E. Nagelhout, & W. Rozycki (Eds.), Contrastive rhetoric: Reaching to intercultural rhetoric (pp. 277-298). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Dwight and I often have conversations on various topics in the field (and we often don't agree with one another), and we decided it would be a good idea (and fun) to share some of those conversations with other people in the field. So we tape-recorded one of our conversations when I visited his family cottage on Deer Isle, Main. Steve Simpson transcribed the conversation for us. (He reflects on that experience in Simpson and Matsuda (2008) that I mention below.) We edited it very little, but it sounds remarkably coherent and even handed--it was interesting for us to see what kinds of conversations we often have. (We were aware of the presence of the tape recorder, of course, but after a few beers, it just didn't seem to matter.)
Matsuda, P. K., & Tardy, C. M. (2008). Continuing the conversation about voice in academic writing. English for Specific Purposes, 27(1), 100-105. (doi:10.1016/j.esp.2007.04.002)
This is a response to the response that Paul Stapleton and Rena Helms-Park wrote to our article on voice (Matsuda & Tardy, 2007). It may sound pretty strong, but we felt compelled to respond to all the points that Stapleton and Helms-Park raised in their piece. (I've met them both, and they are great people.) Chris and I have a follow-up article on voice (though not in response to this dialogue) that's being considered for publication as we speak.
Simpson, S., & Matsuda, P. K. (2008). Mentoring as a long-term relationship: Situated learning in a doctoral program. In C. P. Casanave & X. Li (Eds.), Learning the literacy practices of graduate school: Insiders' reflections on academic enculturation (pp. 90-104). Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Steve and I wrote this piece during the summer of 2006. I thought of this as a culminating experience for our mentoring relationship at UNH and an important step toward our relationship as colleagues. It was useful for me to reflect on my approach to mentoring and to hear Steve's perspective as well. I was also happy that we were able to receive responses from some of my other mentees, including Michelle Cox, Joleen Hanson, Matt Schneider, and Christina Ortmeier-Hooper. Matt Schneider, who came from San Francisco State to work with me during the summer, observed the whole process of writing this piece. I was lucky to have had the chance to work with these and many other great grad students at UNH, who remain my important colleagues and friends.
A list of major publications is available at: http://matsuda.jslw.org/publications.html.

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Last update: January 6, 2008