Professional development events are open to everyone and carry a $50 stipend for PWIs. PWIs may sign up for as many options as they wish; however, only one option per semester will be compensated.

If you‘d like to participate in any of the events listed here and a contact is not listed in the description, please email Faith Plvan at fsplvan@syr.edu.

Access Materials for these events (including some prior semesters) here.

Professional Development Event Evaluation Form

Spring 2012

Teaching Groups & Workshops

Teaching Online Workshop 
Current and former online instructors and any instructor interested in teaching online in the future are invited to attend this workshop to support online teaching (required for instructors who plan to request online teaching for the first time); session will be devoted to discussion, demonstration, course design, and addressing pressing issues. There will be required readings.  
Jonna Gilfus and George Rhinehart 
Tuesday • January 10 • 9 AM to 12 noon with lunch

Workshop on Assigning, Reading, Responding and Grading (ARRG)
In this workshop session, we will launch the spring semester project on Assigning Reading, Responding and Grading student writing, also known as the ARRG project.  However, this session is not just limited to ARRG members--all Writing Program members with an interest are invited to attend.    We will begin by discussing the tensions, struggles, and dilemmas we face as we form challenging writing assignments, respond productively and generatively to student work, and create and apply criteria for assessing student writing in fair and consistent ways.   Through large and small group conversations and perusal of sample student papers for 205, 255, and 307, we'll engage and start to work on the following questions:  
* What values do our assignments communicate?  
* How do those values connect to the broader scheme of course goals and learning outcomes?  
* How do we communicate our impressions of student work through our comments at various phases (drafts, final versions)?  
* How do we place/assign value on that work through grades?   
This workshop session will include a complimentary lunch.  Readings for this session will be made available on blackboard.  
Patrick Berry, Anne Fitzsimmons, Nicole Howell, Katie Navickas, Eileen Schell
Thursday • January 12 • 10:00-2:00 PM

Teaching WRT 255 Reading Group
Current and former WRT 255 instructors and any instructor interested in teaching WRT 255 in the future are invited to join a spring reading group to discuss approaches to this course.  Prerequisite for instructors who have not taught WRT 255 and intend to request it.
Thursdays • 2:00 PM: Jan. 26, Feb. 23, and March 29
Lois Agnew and Faith Plvan

Service Learning
The Service Learning Working Group will support instructors who are interested in service learning pedagogy, whether or not they are currently teaching a service section, and will work to further the long-range service learning/community engagement goals of the Writing Program through planning, assessment, and professional development.  Meetings will include discussion of the strategies and challenges of service learning teaching, as well as examination of how service learning works with the Writing Program's learning goals. Instructors can attend one or all meetings; the group is happy to have both casual and longer-term participants.
Wednesdays • 11:45-12:35 PM: January 25, February 15, March 7, March 28, April 11, April 25. 
Karen Oakes

Technology Support Selected Topics

The Writing Program supports technological teaching, learning, and innovation through a variety of opportunities and formats (workshops, demonstrations, discussions, etc.); ideally the topics of these sessions will be generated by teachers' ideas and inquiries, and all Writing Program teachers are encouraged to make suggestions by emailing George Rhinehart at glrhineh@syr.edu. Possible topics might include evaluating multi-media products, going paperless, new operating system features, specific software training, expanding our technology comfort zones, comparing and purchasing computers, etc. All members are of the Writing Program are invited to attend sessions; look for topics and schedules on the Program's weekly email newsletter.
George Rhinehart

Writing Center Special Topics

Writing Center meetings will be held throughout the semester and will feature a variety of relevant consulting topics such as working with second language writers, engaging direct and indirect consulting strategies, and incorporating emerging technologies. All members of the Writing Program are invited.

Online Consulting Session
Participants are introduced to the Writing Center’s instant message and email services, learn essential features of common programs (such as iChat, AOL Instant Messenger, Google Docs, and MS Word) as well as other helpful hardware and software. These meetings are a prerequisite for instructors who have not done eWC/IM consulting and intend to request it, but may also be useful to online instructors looking to discuss ways to improve interactions with students.
Tuesday • January 17 • 11:00-12:30 PM
Ben Erwin

Minimalist, Directive, and Nondirective Approaches to Consulting Sessions and Teacher Directed Writing Conferences
In this workshop, we’ll examine the minimalist, directive, and nondirective Writing Center debates, theories and consulting approaches to student writing. We’ll read and discuss several articles, apply the theory and claims to the SU Writing Center’s Mission and offer consulting anecdotes that resonate with each approach. Readings and discussion questions will be posted in the Professional Development section of Blackboard. We will work toward the goal of compiling a strategy guide offering best practices for various types of consulting sessions.
Thursday • January 19 • 2:00-3:30 PM
Ben Erwin and Dawnelle Jager


Mentoring Multilingual Graduate Students in Consultations and the Classroom
In this workshop, we’ll explore approaches to teaching and consulting students enrolled in WRT 600: Writing and Rhetoric for Advanced Second Language Writers. The session aims to introduce the goals and assignments of the course as well as the pedagogical theories informing it. Participants will receive course materials and samples of student writing prior to the workshop and will be invited to critically examine both the possibilities and challenges facing teachers and consultants working with international and domestic multilingual graduate students in WRT 600 and beyond.
Monday • February 13 • 2:15-3:45 PM
Missy Watson

ESL Consulting, Error Patterns, and English Grammar
This session will focus specifically on grammatical elements that are often problematic for non-native English speakers; we’ll be discussing article usage, proposition usage, irregular verbs, and parallel structure, among other relevant topics. The session will focus specifically on the ways in which instructors and consultants can help explain these grammatical principles to students in ways that will help identify error patterns and encourage knowledge transfer. Readings, handouts, and discussion questions will be posted in the Professional Development section of Blackboard. We will work toward the goal of broadening consultant and instructor understanding of grammatical principles and more effectively addressing some of ESL writers’ most common writing concerns.
Monday • February 27 • 2:15-3:45 PM
Ben Erwin

Higher Order Concerns, Editing Issues, Modeling, and Effective Revision Strategies in ESL Consulting Sessions
Instructors and consultants are often confronted with students desiring “editing” assistance. This workshop will focus on the ways in which consultants and instructors can help students address higher order concerns within their writing while modeling various editing and revision techniques. We’ll also be discussing how to strike a balance between students’ “editing” concerns and the pedagogical mission of the Writing Center. Readings, student writing samples, and discussion will center on the importance of higher-order concerns, heuristic revision strategies, and error pattern identification within various classroom and Writing Center contexts.
Monday • March 19 • 11:40-12:45 PM
Ben Erwin

Accessing Professional Development Materials

1. Login to the SU Blackboard System using your NetID and Password (the same ones you use for email and MySlice).

2. Look for “My Organizations Plus” (it should be in the middle of the page); select “WP Professional Development"

If you do not see “WP Professional Development”on your entry page, contact glrhineh@syr.edu asap.