Workshops & Talks

2024

Dr. S. Scott Graham from the University of Texas-Austin give a talk on writing and generative AI title “AI has Entered the Chat: Promise, Peril, and the Future of Writing in Higher Ed.” The presentation outlined the nature of emerging generative AI technologies like ChatGPT, explored the risks associated with academic misconduct and FERPA violations, and offered insights into how professors and students alike can leverage this new technological reality to support effective writing instruction and other learning goals.

Led by Dr. S. Scott Graham

In this workshop, Oregon State Ecampus instructor Dr. Ciara Kidder shares ways that Perusall--a free, online social annotation tool integrated into Canvas--can be used to get students reading, thinking, and writing critically about course texts and materials. Dr. Kidder first introduces Perusall as a tool that allows students to provide direct commentary on text-based and multimedia course materials, including PDF documents, YouTube videos, podcast recordings, and more. She describes the different forms of low-stakes writing that Perusall can be used for, including sumarrization, critical question asking, and more. She then describes how Perusall's integrated grading system functions, as well as how faculty can customize it to the needs of their course or to reward multiple forms of textual engagement. She also shares examples of how she has integrated Perusall into lower-, mid-, and high-level courses to target different skill and knowledge levels at various stages of the degree program. To close, Dr. Kidder engages in a question and answer session with attendees. 

Led by Dr. Ciara Kidder

Note: You do not have to watch Part I of the Perusall workshop series to follow along and learn from this one. 

In Part II of our Perusall workshop series, Ecampus Course Development and Training Specialist Angelique Pearson guides attendees through a technical walkthrough of Perusall, a free social annotation tool available through Canvas. She provides information for setting up the Perusall tool and assignments in Canvas, answers questions regarding grade syncing from Perusall to Canvas, and more. 

Led by Angelique Pearson

  • Watch the recording here

2023

What can the Marvel universe teach us about trauma and how to reach our students? WandaVision is a television series based on Marvel’s Scarlet Witch. I watched the series the first time for entertainment, but I kept thinking about how it is the perfect exploration and representation of the power of grief and trauma. In this talk, we will explore the trauma-informed classroom and demonstrate how educators can embed lessons from superheroes into their curriculum that can help with student retention and engagement. We will create a menu of options that are based on your classroom needs, demographic, and discipline.

Led by Sydney Elliott (Tillamook Bay CC)

In this lunchtime conversation, Dr. Patti Sakurai (Associate Professor, Ethnic Studies) will talk about how she guides students through the process of drafting and revising written work in a WIC class. Drawing on more than twenty-five years of experience teaching at OSU, she will share how she teaches students about creating rhetorically effective drafts, and how she uses supportive feedback to help them revise. There will be plenty of time for questions and for a group conversation about how to apply her strategies and insights in other classes and disciplines.

Led by Patti Sakurai (Ethnic Studies)

WIC Director Dr. Sarah Perrault and a group of faculty at OSU Cascades met to talk about how to use informal, low-stakes writing to promote disciplinary learning in both WIC and non-WIC classes. Dr. Perrault shared ideas about specific low-stakes writing exercises. Faculty practiced using one and talked about how they might use it in their classes.

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault

This workshop will introduce pedagogical principles related to teaching writing and give participants the opportunity to think about how they can or do use these principles to design, scaffold, and respond to writing assignments. Participants will also learn about and discuss how advanced digital tools (such as ChatGPT) might or might not be useful in writing classes.

Led by Nadia Jaramillo Cherrez, WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault, and WIC GTA Olivia Rowland

This workshop, led by Dr. Stephanie Kerschbaum, addresses the ways that identities matter to our classrooms and how disability identify in particular might be important for shaping our teaching and learning experiences. Such attention is not solely about the possibility that students in your classes might identify as disabled or have experiences with disability and need accommodations, but also about the ways that faculty understand their teaching identity and their own needs and preferences in setting up and arranging classroom activities and practices. 

Led by Dr. Stephanie Kerschbaum

Dr. Stephanie Kerschbaum, Associate Professor of English at the University of Washington and Director of the Program in Writing and Rhetoric, explores how we notice and attend to disability. Drawing from her most recent book, Signs of Disability, she introduces the concept of "dis-attention" to examine the ways in which disability can be both hypervisible and invisible. 

Led by Dr. Stephanie Kerschbaum

During this lunchtime conversation, a panel of faculty new to teaching WIC classes will talk about how they have been applying WIC principles in their classes. They will share what’s working for them, the challenges they face, and how their courses continue to evolve. After the panelists talk about their classes, there will be time for others to join the conversation by asking questions and by sharing their own experiences applying WIC principles to their teaching.

Led by Bori Csillag (Business), Philip McFadden (Biochemistry & Biophysics)Kim Rogers (Kinesiology), Vaughn Robison (Fisheries, Wildlife, & Conservation Sciences), and Alexander Ulbrich (Electrical Engineering & Computer Science)

At the start of Fall term, OSU's current WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault presented on the use of ungraded writing exercises to promote students' content knowledge and writing confidence. She shared insights into current research about the use of writing to learn, as well as practical ways to meaningfully and seamlessly incorporate ungraded writing exercises into the classroom. 

Led by Sarah Tinker Perrault (Oregon State University)

2022

This workshop at OSU Cascades focused on strategies for providing students with useful, formative feedback. Dr. Sarah Tinker Perrault gave a presentation and guided conversation around tips for responding to student writing, including separating formative feedback and summative judgments, responding as a reader rather than a judge, and focusing on only a few aspects of writing at each stage of the process. 

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault

Peer response can be a valuable supplement to instructor feedback on writing. This workshop will focus on teaching students to offer useful feedback, and will include time to create effective peer response prompts for your classes.

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault

Teaching is a work in progress, and whether we’re heading into summer teaching or looking ahead to fall, now is a good time to reflect on what’s working and to think about revisions. This might be anything from the high level of overall class design, down to the fine-grained level of creating or tweaking low-stake classroom exercises. Wherever the level of change you are contemplating, join WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault and fellow WIC faculty from 2:00-3:20 on Monday, June 6th, for a guided discussion that will help you create a plan.

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault

36% of OSU undergraduates transfer here, bringing with them multi-faceted lived experiences, identities, and abilities that differ from those of non-transfer students. Understanding who these students are and what they bring to OSU will help us as faculty better draw on their past experiences, and better support them as learners in our classes. In this dialogue with OSU Transfer Transitions Coordinator Erin Bird, you will have a chance to learn more about our transfer student population, and about the strengths and needs of this growing part of our undergraduate population. Additionally, discussion surrounding non-transfer students’ transfer credits will be shared to shape awareness of all students enrolling in WIC-based curriculum.  

Led by Erin Bird, OSU Transfer Transitions Coordinator

Writing consultants are trained to support their peers through on-on-one conversations about the writer’s process and draft. Consultants work with students across all majors and encounter a variety of assignments. A panel of writing consultants will describe assignment features that writers often finding confusing, as well as assignment features that help students understand their writing tasks, and that support their work as writers. After the panel share their perspectives, there will be time for attendees to ask consultants questions about these observations or other aspects of their work.

Led by OSU Writing Consultants

In this session, Kelley Calvert, Writing Center Coordinator for Multilingual Support, will begin by discussing strategies to support multilingual writers in the classroom, with a focus on taking an asset-based approach to multilingualism. Following this introduction, Academic Support staff will join in the discussion around the topic of supporting multilingual writers. There will be time for questions and answers with a multiplicity of perspectives and strategies represented. 

Led by Kelley Calvert, Multilingual Support Coordinator, OSU Writing Center

Reading academic texts is challenging, especially for readers who are encountering particular kinds of texts for the first time. In this workshop, three faculty members will share tips and strategies you can use to help your students engage more effectively with difficult texts. Stephanie André (English, Central Oregon CC) will describe strategies she uses in writing classes, including Writing 121. Sheri Jordan (English, Blue Mountain CC) will describe the “Reading Apprenticeship” framework and how it supports reading across all disciplinary areas. Finally, Shawn Massoni (Microbiology, OSU) will describe how he uses journal clubs in science classes.

Led by Stephanie André (English, Central Oregon CC), Sheri Jordan (Blue Mountain CC), and Shawn Massoni (Microbiology, OSU)

dr. Vay (Vershawn Ashanti Young) describes ways that teachers and the public in both Canada and the USA have misappropriated the linguistic concept of code-switching as it applies to both Black language and Standard language speakers. Attendees can expect to learn how race is related to writing instruction, how to exploit the best culturally relevant literacy tools to boost academic instruction in writing, and three lessons to explore and incorporate code meshing into literacy instruction.

Led by Vershawn Ashanti Young, Professor of English at the University of Waterloo

dr. Vay (Vershawn Ashanti Young) describes ways that teachers and the public in both Canada and the USA have misappropriated the linguistic concept of code-switching as it applies to both Black language and Standard language speakers. Attendees can expect to learn how race is related to writing instruction, how to exploit the best culturally relevant literacy tools to boost academic instruction in writing, and three lessons to explore and incorporate code meshing into literacy instruction.

Led by Vershawn Ashanti Young, Professor of English at the University of Waterloo

2021

Research shows that using informal writing can enhance student learning in all disciplines, at all levels (from lower division through graduate classes). However, many faculty are unsure how to incorporate informal writing into classes, or concerned about taking time away from course content. This 50 minute interactive workshop demonstrates how easy it is to include informal writing that accentuates course content, and that helps develop students’ content learning as well as their academic writing skills.

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault

Learn what each WIC learning outcome means, identify how these WIC outcomes can support the disciplinary outcomes, and integrate the two sets of outcomes in clearly defined exercises and assignments that will help students learn course content and disciplinary writing.

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault

This workshop describes the need for linguistically inclusive practices in all academic disciplines. It offers specific tips on how we can value and support students’ use of different languages and varieties/dialects of English, lower barriers to access, and increase learning opportunities for students from all linguistic backgrounds.

Led by Adam Schwartz (OSU), Sergio Loza (UO), and Devin Grammon (UO)

In the midst of the pandemic and a shift to remote learning, many are at our wits’ end converting classes, keeping our students motivated, and keeping ourselves motivated. Just thinking about how to better a WIC course or try something new may be daunting. However, biologist Lauren Dalton has some tried and true activities/strategies that may help both you and your students; she shares 3 quick hacks that are fun (or mostly fun) and also help build students cognizance around their communication abilities, agency in what they write about, and logical flow in their written pieces.

Led by Lauren Dalton (Biochemistry and Biophysics)

When you publish your discussion post, you’re hopeful. Hopeful that students will match the effort you put into crafting a great question: thoughtful, well-articulated, compassionate responses that demonstrate growth and understanding. And yet. A scattering of twenty word responses, some “please get me through this” posts, and a few eager students diving into the deep end—but where are the discussions that build to an energizing and meaningful conversation? Ask better questions and you’ll get better answers. Watch this workshop where we’ll show you how to write questions that maximize student engagement and that create meaningful experiences for your students.

Led by WIC GTA Alexander Mahmou-Werndli and WIC Interns Jessica Al-Faqih and Erin Vieira

Contrary to popular belief, information literacy and its components do not follow a linear model. When students critically explore and engage in texts their actual experience is often messy, dynamic, frustrating, and rewarding. If you are interested in exploring how to integrate information literacy so that students are empowered and create stronger connections in their thinking, watch this workshop on teaching information literacy.

Led by Hannah Gascho Rempel, Professor, Graduate Student Services Coordinator and Science Librarian & Jane Nichols, Associate Professor, Head, Teaching and Engagement Department, OSU Libraries and Press

Are conspiracy theorists and anti-maskers anti-fact? Are confirmation bias and ideological bubbles inevitable? Or is there a deeper dynamic at play? Mike Caulfield, director of blended and networked learning at WSU Vancouver and nationally recognized digital literacy expert, discussed our current “digital dissensus” and how our approach to education may be making problems worse.

This talk was co-sponsored by OSU's Writing Intensive Curriculum (WIC), the OSU Libraries Library Faculty Association Seminar Series, and the OSU Writing Program (SWLF).

Led by Michael Caulfield, director of blended and networked learning at WSU Vancouver

2020

Learn how you can respond to student writing in ways that encourage revision and help students develop effective writing habits. Mary Nolan and Tianhong Shi share insights and ideas about how to adapt in-person strategies for remote teaching.

Led by WIC Director Sarah Tinker Perrault, Mary Nolan (Anthropology), and Tianhong Shi (Ecampus)

This session will feature digital interface resources and strategies for peer review online (Canvas, Eli Review) and will include time for discussion of effective peer review strategies and sample assignments.

Led by WIC Director Anita Helle, WIC GTA Alexander Werndli, and Tasha Biesinger (Canvas Academic Technology)

In this session, we begin with some targeting sharing of peer review assignments carrying over from last week, and move on to other WIC assignments shared by attendees.

Led by WIC Director Anita Helle, WIC GTA Alex Werndli, Lech Muszynski (Wood Science & Engineering), and Claudia Ingham (Animal and Rangeland Sciences)

In this session, we look toward the challenges, surprises, risks, and rewards of experiments in multimodal pedagogies.

Led by Janet Tate (Physics), Ehren Pflugfelder (SWLF), and Andrea Allan (Atmospheric Sciences and Geography)

2019

Nathan Kirk shares his reflective writing prompts and discusses the learning gains for students in this informal freewriting exercise.

Led by Nathan Kirk (Integrative Biology) 

Led by WIC GTA Ruth Sylvester, WIC Intern Marisa Yerace, and SWLF graduate student Ian Ferris 

Instructors for Argumentation (WR 222), Tech Writing (WR 327), and Business Writing (WR 214) discuss writing skills from WR II courses that should transfer to a student’s WIC course in the major.

Led by Becky Haddad (Agricultural Education), Cyndie McCarley (Ecampus), and Randy Moore (Fisheries and Wildlife)

2018

John Morris and Steve Shay share ways they have found to use Canvas tools to improve online feedback to students on their writing.

Led by John Morris (Business) and Steve Shay (History)

This workshop discusses ways to consider ethics within a Writing Intensive course.

Led by WIC Director Vicki Tolar Burton, Giovanna Rosenlicht (Animal Science), and Ted Paterson (Business)

Recent graduates of the WIC Faculty Seminar share ideas for course design and teaching using WIC pedagogies.

Led by Natchee Barnd (Ethnic Studies), Nate Kirk (Integrative Biology), Deanna Lloyd (Sustainability), and Dana Reason (Music)

Chrysanthemum Hayes provides an introduction to using CORE and institutional data as they relate to teaching and course improvement. Session will include important information about data security and access as well as a summary of the CORE reports that may be relevant to faculty teaching WIC courses.

Led by Chrysanthemum Hayes (Institutional Analytics and Reporting)

2017

The WIC Team introduces the ATD’s recent article on High-Impact Writing Practices, a central theme for this year’s lunch series, and explores hands-on multimodal learning.

Led by WIC Director Vicki Tolar Burton and WIC GTA Claire Roth

Dennis Bennett and panel discuss the major transition into the Writing Studio, the reasons behind the change, and what faculty need to know.

Led by Dennis Bennett, Director of the Writing Center

Kay Sagmiller discusses connections between cognition and student learning.

Led by Kay Sagmiller, Center for Teaching and Learning Director

Tasha Biesinger explains how to make the most of Canvas, Eli Review, and other writing technologies.

Led by Instructional Technology Specialist Tasha Biesinger

2016

A panel of faculty discuss how students can be taught citation and use of sources.

Led by Tim Jensen (SWLF), Sara Jameson (SWLF), Celeste King (INTO), and Sarah McGreevy (SWLF)

Vicki Tolar Burton shares research and strategies for helping writers improve focus and reduce writing anxiety. 

Led by WIC Director Vicki Tolar Burton

A panel of graduate students and faculty discuss appropriate roles for and training for graduate assistants involved in WIC classes.

Led by Tracy Ann Robinson (MIME), Monica Olvera (Human Development), and graduate students Maggie Anderson and Lauren Crandon

Led by WIC Director Vicki Tolar Burton and WIC GTA Claire Roth

2015

This discussion will focus on the issues and challenges INTO students face as they transition from INTO courses to regular OSU courses.

Led by Erich White (INTO), Phil Chambers, (INTO), and Galina Romantsova (Writing Center)

Wesley Snyder will discuss the growing number of international students and second language learners enrolled in courses at Oregon State as part of a nation-wide trend. He will also suggest an emerging pedagogy that may guide how WIC faculty can best respond to L1 and L2 writing alike. Kristina Lum will discuss teachers’ expectations for students who are US citizens or have graduated from an American school, but do not speak Standard American English as a first language. Kristina suggests that this situation is especially applicable to students from Hawaii and prompts further exploration in how we can better serve these students in our writing instruction. Corey Taylor will discuss ways in which multilingual writers, particularly Hispanic students, are disenfranchised by current traditional models of writing assessment, and how Writing Across the Curriculum pedagogy can be used to create more equitable assessment of student writing.

Led by Wesley Snyder (SWLF), Kristina Lum (SWLF), and Corey Taylor (SWLF)

Tracy Ann Robinson, the designer of the Writer’s Personal Profile (WPP), will discuss her use of the WPP in MIME Capstone Design as an example of how the tool can be customized to support student writing skills development and program assessment needs in specific majors. André Habet will discuss some ways the Writer's Personal Profile can be modified to be more inclusive of more diverse student demographics with a special interest in addressing international students.

Led by Tracy Ann Robinson (MIME) and André Habet (SWLF)

Each presenter will discuss two Canvas tools that can be used in a writing intensive course to more effectively help students in the writing, feedback, and revising process.

Led by Karen Watte (Ecampus), Sara Jameson (SWLF), and Brooke Howland (TAC and CTL)

2014

Anne-Marie Deitering and Hannah Rempel are interested in the intersections of WIC and curiosity-based learning. This panel will discuss curiosity-based research and how it can be used in the classroom.

Led by Anne-Marie Deitering and Hannah Rempel (Valley Library)

This discussion will look at the role of goal-setting of writers as well as self-assessment of their writing processes.

Led by Tracy Ann Robinson (MIME, College of Engineering) and Tim Jensen (SWLF)

One form of providing student feedback that WIC believes to be advantageous to both student and instructor is peer review.  In this panel discussion we will hear and discuss the practices instructors are using for peer review.

Led by Ehren Pflugfelder (SWLF), Sara Jameson (SWLF), Dennis Bennett (Writing Center), and Celeste King (INTO)

The growing interest in online teaching has been a hot topic nationwide as many colleges and universities, Oregon State included, expand their online course offerings. This panel discussion will consider the methods, modes, successes, and challenges of teaching WIC online.

Led by Kryn Freehling-Burton (Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies), Scott Heppell (Fisheries & Wildlife), Mary Nolan (Anthropology), and Penny Diebel (Agriculture Sciences)

2013

Disabilities may hinder students’ ability to navigate and engage with the web and other documents essential to their education. It is paramount that all resources be made available and accessible to students with disabilities. Our presenter will discuss and provide resources on how to create, ensure, and affirm equal access and equal opportunity to all students.

Led by Gabriel Merrell (Office of Equity and Inclusion)

The coherent transmission and communication of ideas is essential to science writing, technical writing, and students’ professional development as writers and speakers across disciplines. Three panel presenters will offer ideas, insights, and strategies for helping students write as professionals in the field.

Led by WIC GTA Allen Sprague, Ehren Pflugfelder (SWLF), and Christine Pastorek (Chemistry)

As discussed in Sue Kunda’s Winter 2013 newsletter article, fair use is “both a blessing and a curse for educators … So if we’re confused about copyright, what about our students?” Our presenter discusses how we help students think critically about using copyrighted materials, and provides a helpful framework to guide students and additional useful sources on the topic.

Led by Sue Kunda (Valley Library)

For all students, the culture in which they grow up influences their writing; this is called “contrastive rhetoric.” This presentation identifies the topic as “cultural rhetoric,” and recognizes, discusses, and offers insights into this important, sensitive subject as a fundamental element to all students’ development as writers in a diverse world.

Led by Rebecca Valdovinos (INTO OSU)

2012

Led by WIC Assistant Coordinator Zach Pajak and WIC GTA Allen Sprague

Led by WIC Intern Jeff Breitenfeldt, Sara Jameson (English), and Jon Dorbolo (Technology Across the Curriculum)

Led by Tara Williams (English), Jon Dorbolo (Technology Across the Curriculum), and WIC Director Vicki Tolar Burton

Led by Dan Edge (Fisheries and Wildlife), Becky Warner (Sociology), and Kevin Boston (Forest Engineering)