Creating Connections 2024
For the 7th annual Creating Connections symposium on writing pedagogy, we will welcome keynote speaker Dr. Vershawn Ashanti Young. In honor of his work on code meshing, a means of encouraging student writers to bring their authentic selves to all forms of communication, our theme for this year is “Re-envisioning ‘Good’ Writing in the 21st Century University.” Young’s work encourages us to re-envision what we mean by “good” writing in our fields so that we “[promote] recognition and acceptance of the robust and positive ways that people’s home, heritage, cultural languages influence all of their communicative practices in school, in home, and at work,” and this year’s symposium takes up this call in multiple ways. In addition to Young’s keynote workshop, we will feature workshops on information literacy and on positionality in science writing, as well as a roundtable on approaches to writing that foreground student agency. The symposium will be held in person, with opportunities to watch remotely.
Please note that keynote Vershawn Ashanti Young has had to cancel due to a personal emergency, but the event will still go on! A revised schedule is provided below.
The RSVP has closed at this time, but you can still register at the event.
Location
Young Research Library Main Conference Room (YRL 11360) (accessibility guide)
Zoom information will be provided via RSVP.
Revised Schedule
Pedagogy Social HourDescription: Come grab a coffee or tea and some breakfast treats and strike up a conversation with colleagues about how your classes are going this quarter (or future pedagogical plans)! |
10:30 – 11:30 |
WelcomeWelcome from Laurel Westrup, Coordinator of the Graduate Certificate in Writing Pedagogy |
11:30-11:45 |
WorkshopSteal These Ideas, Please! Information Literacy Activities for First-Year Composition Description: Participants in this session will sample and discuss six activities that engage students around issues of information literacy, citation justice, voice, and culture. Be prepared to leave with creative lesson plans and embodied teaching strategies for teaching writing. Workshop Leaders: Marilyn Love, C. Phil, Near Eastern Languages & Cultures Link: Workshop materials |
11:45-12:30 |
Lunch and ConversationLunch will be provided! |
12:30 – 1:15 |
WorkshopPositionality & Audience in Science Writing Description: In this workshop, attendees will learn about the importance of recognizing positionality, identity, and diversity in science writing and learn how the acknowledgment of these nuances can be leveraged to effectively communicate with a given audience. We will share examples of the epistemic strength of identity in science, and explore how identity can become central to classroom activities and writing assignments in UCLA science courses. Active participation and generative discussion is encouraged! Workshop Leaders: |
1:15-2:00 |
Break and Conversation |
2:00-2:15 |
RoundtableIndividual Voices and Distributed Knowledge Description: This panel will discuss strategies for enabling students to create spaces within the expectations of various writing disciplines for contributing their own authentic voices, enriched by individual and cultural practices. Additionally, we’ll address methods to overcome the ways in which AI-based tools and their related surveillance measures impede students’ unique sense of self in their writing, particularly among marginalized students. Through acknowledging and deferring generic writing expectations, we promote translanguaging, communal writing, field journaling, and scholarly dialogue. These practices can equip students to produce original writing that fosters agency, experimentation, self-awareness, and surprise, instead of merely conforming to predictable, imitative, or even “correct” standards. Moderator: Participants: Links: slides | additional resources |
2:15 – 3:00 |
2024 Steering Committee:
Chloe Bell-Wilson (she/her), History and Clusters
Peggy Davis (she/her), Writing Programs
Emily Frake (she/her), School of Education
Laurel Westrup (she/her), Writing Programs
2024 Volunteers:
William Hirsh, Geography
Jada Patchigondla, Writing Programs
Leslie Sherwood, Writing Programs
Julia Walder, School of Education
Thank You
Tony Friscia, Director of UCLA Clusters
Leigh Harris, Assistant Dean, Undergraduate Educational Initiatives
Christine Holten, Director of Writing Programs
Sara Hosegera, Curriculum Planning Analyst, Writing Programs
Jade Lacy, Business Office Coordinator, English
Suzy Lee, Young Research Library
Alexandra Minna Stern, Dean of Humanities
Whitney Su, Business Office Manager, English
Brooke Wilkinson, Director of Academic Initiatives
This year’s symposium was made possible by
Funding from UCLA Clusters | Undergraduate Educational Initiatives
A grant from the Division of Humanities Creating Community Fund
This symposium was organized by students in the Graduate Certificate in Writing Pedagogy in consultation with faculty and staff in UCLA Writing Programs.