Heather Falconer | Curry College (original) (raw)
Papers by Heather Falconer
Written Communication, 2018
Negotiating membership within a disciplinary community is as much an exercise in rhetorical facil... more Negotiating membership within a disciplinary community is as much an exercise in rhetorical facility as it is content expertise. Where individuals reside in the hierarchy of membership is determined by not only what they talk and write about, but how. Yet, there are many factors that can impact newcomers’ acculturation into a disciplinary community on a rhetorical level. In this article, I use positioning theory and intersectional identity to examine how Anne, a woman of color participating in undergraduate research in science, learned to read and write as a scientist and the ways her social position as a woman, person of color, and low-income and first-generation student influenced her perception and adoption of the discourse as her own. I argue that social positioning influences students’ views of scientific discourse and affects their rhetorical skill development as scientific writers. Because recognition as a group insider is heavily influenced by discourse, this research has potential implications for those interested in retention and persistence of women of color in STEM, as well as for those interested in changing learning cultures and incorporating writing instruction into disciplinary arenas.
For nearly fifty years, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) has been growing and evolving, from d... more For nearly fifty years, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) has been growing and evolving, from disparate composition-related activities run by individual instructors to coordinated efforts across institutions that involve both writing as a process of learning and discipline-specific rhetorical practices. In this time, WAC has developed a series of principles and practices that best exemplify what the successful incorporation of writing into coursework looks like, as well as who should be responsible for this writing instruction. In the "Statement of WAC Principles and Practices" (2014), endorsed by both the International Network of WAC Programs and the CCCC Executive Committee, the onus of disciplinary-specific writing instruction is placed on disciplinary instructors, noting that "writing in the disciplines (WID) is most effectively guided by those with experience in that discipline" (p. 1). Such a statement makes sense superficially, but begs the question: What does that experience and expertise look like in practice?
In this study, Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used to explore changes in the career int... more In this study, Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used to explore changes in the career intentions of students in an undergraduate research experience (URE) program at a large public minority-serving college. Our URE model addresses the challenges of establishing an undergraduate research program within an urban, commuter, underfunded, Minority-Serving Institution (MSI). However, our model reaches beyond a focus on retention and remediation toward scholarly contributions and shifted career aspirations. From a student's first days at the College to beyond their graduation, we have encouraged them to explore their own potential as scientists in a coordinated, sequential, and self-reflective process. As a result, while the program's graduates have traditionally pursued entry-level STEM jobs, graduates participating in mentored research are increasingly focused on professional and academic STEM career tracks involving postgraduate study. In addition to providing an increasingly expected experience and building students' skills, participation in undergraduate research is seen to have a transformative effect on career ambitions for many students at MSIs. While undergraduate research is often thought of in context of majority-serving institutions, we propose that it serves as a powerful equalizer at MSIs. Building on the institutional characteristics that drive diversity, our students produce scholarly work and pursue graduate degrees, in order to address the long-standing under-representation of minorities in the sciences.
Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 2013
Retention rates of undergraduates at large urban universities serving minority populations have b... more Retention rates of undergraduates at large urban universities serving minority populations have been problematic, especially among students in science and technology fields. John Jay College of Criminal Justice has designed a cohesive collegiate retention program according to the Tinto model of retention. This article details the strategies utilized as they relate to known factors affecting college persistence. Preliminary outcomes of this work are also explored in terms of student involvement and institutional support.
Conference Presentations by Heather Falconer
At its core, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) is about people. It begins with faculty, as Barb... more At its core, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) is about people. It begins with faculty, as Barbara Walvoord (1997) has noted; with individuals from a wide-range of disciplines who have perceived a need for the utilization or improvement of writing in the classroom. It continues as a conscious agenda for change – “as a comprehensive program that transforms the curriculum, encouraging writing to learn and learning to write in all disciplines” (McLeod, 1997, p. 4). Drawing directly on the individuals within an institution, WAC programs are bespoke, reflecting the people who create them and who are served by them. At their best, these programs apply theories from writing studies, education, psychology and other disciplines to the practice of writing in a wide variety of academic and disciplinary contexts. They complete a feedback loop for those interested in the ways in which individuals learn and the role of writing in that learning, continuously being revised to meet the needs of the students they serve.
Yet, it is precisely this bespoke nature and the populations served by WAC initiatives that complicates our discussions of it as a practice and as an intellectual movement. Though WAC has a rich history of drawing on individuals from across the disciplines and roots in concerns of educational equality, discrepancies persist with regard to who is represented in the literature and who is served by such programs. One area where this is clear is in the literature surrounding WAC/WID and the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). While there is a significant body of literature on the rhetorics and conventions of these discourses, little of it addresses the ways in which these white, male-dominated rhetorics marginalize women and people of color. It has been understood for some time that students’ cultural and personal identities play critical roles in their level of engagement with coursework, the institution as a whole, and ultimately their chosen discipline, but little time or attention has been given to the way the disciplinary rhetorics can present tensions for students and how those tensions are surmounted (Sternglass, 1997, p. 70).
This paper will present early research on how a culturally responsive approach to teaching science writing helps to acculturate women and people of color into the community of practice. Such an approach allows students to examine what the community as a whole values, its organizing structures, its discourse conventions, its intellectual currencies, and its knowledge-making practices, which ultimately assists in breaking the “code” of science; of understanding how its culture is shaped and reinforced by the community. By making this culture transparent, I argue, traditionally marginalized students are able to negotiate the discourse so as to both find a space for themselves within it, as well as critique it from the inside.
Where we come from, what we believe, and what we are trying to accomplish all contribute to the s... more Where we come from, what we believe, and what we are trying to accomplish all contribute to the selections and interpretations we make surrounding genre. By making transparent the ways in which genre affordances and constraints allow for particular knowledge creation within a community of practice, we can help students understand how their unique background knowledge, ideology, and motivation for being not just in the classroom, but in their respective discipline, influences their performance with specific genres.
Students bring to the classroom a host of misconceptions about writing in general, and the process of knowledge creation in particular. This presentation will discuss how the explicit discussion of the ways ideology, background knowledge, and motivation all contribute to an individual’s choices with regard to genre use can help students understand the process of discovery in their respective disciplines. In particular, the presentation will use the case study of the discovery of ozone depletion by Nobel laureates F. Sherwood Rowland and Mario J. Molina to highlight how one genre can create an exigence for another, helping to unlock new knowledge along the way.
In her text Rhetorical Strategies and Genre Conventions, Laura Wilder draws attention to the marg... more In her text Rhetorical Strategies and Genre Conventions, Laura Wilder draws attention to the marginalizing effect of acquiring disciplinary genre knowledge tacitly. She notes that it “can be so stressful and frustrating that some otherwise-motivated students turn away from – or are turned away from – further disciplinary participation” (p. 111). When discussing the educational experience of underrepresented minorities in science, this marginalizing effect is enhanced significantly due to the white- and male-dominated rhetoric of science. Minority and female students face not simply the challenge of understanding the dominant ways of seeing, thinking, and knowing in science, but also the challenge of confronting those ways that work to suppress and subvert them as individuals. Drawing on the work of Wilder, this paper explores how explicit instruction in the rhetorical practices of scientists during the proposal writing process allows underrepresented minorities within an undergraduate research program to identify appropriate and unique research problems and internalize criteria for evaluating these problems effectively. This paper argues that these practices culminate in a refined view of the nature of scientific knowledge and improves performance with scientific genres – practices that transfer across disciplines and may be of interest to those workings with traditionally underrepresented student populations.
Editorials by Heather Falconer
Most teachers of English language learners are not fl uently bilingual, and many don't receive fo... more Most teachers of English language learners are not fl uently bilingual, and many don't receive formal professional development in teaching emergent bilingual students. Thus, they aren't always adequately prepared to meet the challenges of working with this growing demographic of K-12 students. Alvarez argues that teachers' greatest resources are the students themselves, with both a facility in their home language and ties to their home communities.
In this collection, Claire Lutkewitte and her contributors explore both writing for and about mob... more In this collection, Claire Lutkewitte and her contributors explore both writing for and about mobile technologies and writing with mobile technologies.
Research in the Teaching of English, 2017
By joining NCTE, your membership introduces you to a diverse and knowledgeable community of peers... more By joining NCTE, your membership introduces you to a diverse and knowledgeable community of peers. Whether you are passionate about a special interest area or looking to connect with colleagues on a local level, you'll find it here.
Book Reviews by Heather Falconer
Written Communication, 2018
Negotiating membership within a disciplinary community is as much an exercise in rhetorical facil... more Negotiating membership within a disciplinary community is as much an exercise in rhetorical facility as it is content expertise. Where individuals reside in the hierarchy of membership is determined by not only what they talk and write about, but how. Yet, there are many factors that can impact newcomers’ acculturation into a disciplinary community on a rhetorical level. In this article, I use positioning theory and intersectional identity to examine how Anne, a woman of color participating in undergraduate research in science, learned to read and write as a scientist and the ways her social position as a woman, person of color, and low-income and first-generation student influenced her perception and adoption of the discourse as her own. I argue that social positioning influences students’ views of scientific discourse and affects their rhetorical skill development as scientific writers. Because recognition as a group insider is heavily influenced by discourse, this research has potential implications for those interested in retention and persistence of women of color in STEM, as well as for those interested in changing learning cultures and incorporating writing instruction into disciplinary arenas.
For nearly fifty years, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) has been growing and evolving, from d... more For nearly fifty years, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) has been growing and evolving, from disparate composition-related activities run by individual instructors to coordinated efforts across institutions that involve both writing as a process of learning and discipline-specific rhetorical practices. In this time, WAC has developed a series of principles and practices that best exemplify what the successful incorporation of writing into coursework looks like, as well as who should be responsible for this writing instruction. In the "Statement of WAC Principles and Practices" (2014), endorsed by both the International Network of WAC Programs and the CCCC Executive Committee, the onus of disciplinary-specific writing instruction is placed on disciplinary instructors, noting that "writing in the disciplines (WID) is most effectively guided by those with experience in that discipline" (p. 1). Such a statement makes sense superficially, but begs the question: What does that experience and expertise look like in practice?
In this study, Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used to explore changes in the career int... more In this study, Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) is used to explore changes in the career intentions of students in an undergraduate research experience (URE) program at a large public minority-serving college. Our URE model addresses the challenges of establishing an undergraduate research program within an urban, commuter, underfunded, Minority-Serving Institution (MSI). However, our model reaches beyond a focus on retention and remediation toward scholarly contributions and shifted career aspirations. From a student's first days at the College to beyond their graduation, we have encouraged them to explore their own potential as scientists in a coordinated, sequential, and self-reflective process. As a result, while the program's graduates have traditionally pursued entry-level STEM jobs, graduates participating in mentored research are increasingly focused on professional and academic STEM career tracks involving postgraduate study. In addition to providing an increasingly expected experience and building students' skills, participation in undergraduate research is seen to have a transformative effect on career ambitions for many students at MSIs. While undergraduate research is often thought of in context of majority-serving institutions, we propose that it serves as a powerful equalizer at MSIs. Building on the institutional characteristics that drive diversity, our students produce scholarly work and pursue graduate degrees, in order to address the long-standing under-representation of minorities in the sciences.
Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 2013
Retention rates of undergraduates at large urban universities serving minority populations have b... more Retention rates of undergraduates at large urban universities serving minority populations have been problematic, especially among students in science and technology fields. John Jay College of Criminal Justice has designed a cohesive collegiate retention program according to the Tinto model of retention. This article details the strategies utilized as they relate to known factors affecting college persistence. Preliminary outcomes of this work are also explored in terms of student involvement and institutional support.
At its core, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) is about people. It begins with faculty, as Barb... more At its core, Writing across the Curriculum (WAC) is about people. It begins with faculty, as Barbara Walvoord (1997) has noted; with individuals from a wide-range of disciplines who have perceived a need for the utilization or improvement of writing in the classroom. It continues as a conscious agenda for change – “as a comprehensive program that transforms the curriculum, encouraging writing to learn and learning to write in all disciplines” (McLeod, 1997, p. 4). Drawing directly on the individuals within an institution, WAC programs are bespoke, reflecting the people who create them and who are served by them. At their best, these programs apply theories from writing studies, education, psychology and other disciplines to the practice of writing in a wide variety of academic and disciplinary contexts. They complete a feedback loop for those interested in the ways in which individuals learn and the role of writing in that learning, continuously being revised to meet the needs of the students they serve.
Yet, it is precisely this bespoke nature and the populations served by WAC initiatives that complicates our discussions of it as a practice and as an intellectual movement. Though WAC has a rich history of drawing on individuals from across the disciplines and roots in concerns of educational equality, discrepancies persist with regard to who is represented in the literature and who is served by such programs. One area where this is clear is in the literature surrounding WAC/WID and the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). While there is a significant body of literature on the rhetorics and conventions of these discourses, little of it addresses the ways in which these white, male-dominated rhetorics marginalize women and people of color. It has been understood for some time that students’ cultural and personal identities play critical roles in their level of engagement with coursework, the institution as a whole, and ultimately their chosen discipline, but little time or attention has been given to the way the disciplinary rhetorics can present tensions for students and how those tensions are surmounted (Sternglass, 1997, p. 70).
This paper will present early research on how a culturally responsive approach to teaching science writing helps to acculturate women and people of color into the community of practice. Such an approach allows students to examine what the community as a whole values, its organizing structures, its discourse conventions, its intellectual currencies, and its knowledge-making practices, which ultimately assists in breaking the “code” of science; of understanding how its culture is shaped and reinforced by the community. By making this culture transparent, I argue, traditionally marginalized students are able to negotiate the discourse so as to both find a space for themselves within it, as well as critique it from the inside.
Where we come from, what we believe, and what we are trying to accomplish all contribute to the s... more Where we come from, what we believe, and what we are trying to accomplish all contribute to the selections and interpretations we make surrounding genre. By making transparent the ways in which genre affordances and constraints allow for particular knowledge creation within a community of practice, we can help students understand how their unique background knowledge, ideology, and motivation for being not just in the classroom, but in their respective discipline, influences their performance with specific genres.
Students bring to the classroom a host of misconceptions about writing in general, and the process of knowledge creation in particular. This presentation will discuss how the explicit discussion of the ways ideology, background knowledge, and motivation all contribute to an individual’s choices with regard to genre use can help students understand the process of discovery in their respective disciplines. In particular, the presentation will use the case study of the discovery of ozone depletion by Nobel laureates F. Sherwood Rowland and Mario J. Molina to highlight how one genre can create an exigence for another, helping to unlock new knowledge along the way.
In her text Rhetorical Strategies and Genre Conventions, Laura Wilder draws attention to the marg... more In her text Rhetorical Strategies and Genre Conventions, Laura Wilder draws attention to the marginalizing effect of acquiring disciplinary genre knowledge tacitly. She notes that it “can be so stressful and frustrating that some otherwise-motivated students turn away from – or are turned away from – further disciplinary participation” (p. 111). When discussing the educational experience of underrepresented minorities in science, this marginalizing effect is enhanced significantly due to the white- and male-dominated rhetoric of science. Minority and female students face not simply the challenge of understanding the dominant ways of seeing, thinking, and knowing in science, but also the challenge of confronting those ways that work to suppress and subvert them as individuals. Drawing on the work of Wilder, this paper explores how explicit instruction in the rhetorical practices of scientists during the proposal writing process allows underrepresented minorities within an undergraduate research program to identify appropriate and unique research problems and internalize criteria for evaluating these problems effectively. This paper argues that these practices culminate in a refined view of the nature of scientific knowledge and improves performance with scientific genres – practices that transfer across disciplines and may be of interest to those workings with traditionally underrepresented student populations.
Most teachers of English language learners are not fl uently bilingual, and many don't receive fo... more Most teachers of English language learners are not fl uently bilingual, and many don't receive formal professional development in teaching emergent bilingual students. Thus, they aren't always adequately prepared to meet the challenges of working with this growing demographic of K-12 students. Alvarez argues that teachers' greatest resources are the students themselves, with both a facility in their home language and ties to their home communities.
In this collection, Claire Lutkewitte and her contributors explore both writing for and about mob... more In this collection, Claire Lutkewitte and her contributors explore both writing for and about mobile technologies and writing with mobile technologies.
Research in the Teaching of English, 2017
By joining NCTE, your membership introduces you to a diverse and knowledgeable community of peers... more By joining NCTE, your membership introduces you to a diverse and knowledgeable community of peers. Whether you are passionate about a special interest area or looking to connect with colleagues on a local level, you'll find it here.