An essay's motive or research problem consists of the rhetorical moves illuminating why that essay matters--what puzzling elements of a primary source it resolves, which contradictions in the data it explains, or what gaps in the literature it fills. This article invites college instructors to dedicate some of their classroom time to teaching…

English teachers, as well as teachers within other disciplines, often boil down abstract principles to easily explainable bullet points. Students often pick up and retain these points but fail to grasp the broader contexts that make them relevant. It is therefore sometimes helpful to revisit some of the more common of these "rules of thumb" to…

One teacher devotes a portion of the college freshman composition course to an archetypal approach to literature, presenting students with basic story elements (archetypal patterns and characters) in myth and literature to which they can relate their own lives. Students create puppets and puppet plays in highly imaginative and entertaining ways.…

Letters over a period of 25 years from a Canadian who came to the United States after college graduation to teach in various parts of the country, then returned to teach in Canada, reflect substantial differences between the 2 educational systems in regard to the teaching and testing of writing. (MSE)

A college English teacher discusses how her experience in learning to play a guitar has illuminated the teaching and learning processes, especially for first-year composition students who are motivated but not talented, or not highly motivated and expect failure. It is concluded that patience and kindness are important teaching tools. (MSE)

A discussion of collaborative peer teaching as a method of college instruction looks at theoretical support for the approach and describes experiences with three courses using it: freshman composition; American studies; and international diversity. Perceived benefits of the experiences for both teachers and students are examined. (MSE)

Monmouth College (New Jersey) paired one section of freshman composition with introductory sociology. This section focused on expository composition skills serving sociological inquiry, such as comparing and contrasting, critically analyzing written text, and supporting a position through reasoned argument. The paper discusses theoretical…

A college teacher and student describe the rationale behind collaborative test taking and their efforts to implement it in a freshman English course. The approach, in which students learn to work collaboratively from the beginning of the course, allows participants to solve problems related to a writing task and teaches real-world work skills.…