The KNIGHTLYnews is an online forum where FWS instructors and other teachers of writing can swap and share ideas for best classroom practice. Weekly posts are designed to help teachers develop lesson plans and writing assignments, and respond to classroom challenges by introducing new teaching tools and sharing emerging pedagogical ideas. Posts also direct readers to program and campus resources that support teaching and learning, and provide opportunities for peer collaboration and mentorship.
Greetings FWS Instructors!
When you and your FWS students begin the second half of the semester, I hope you will consider how the Cornell Writing Centers (CWC) can support you and your students. Our peer tutors are eager to work collaboratively with all writers at Cornell, but especially FWS students. Our clients find their sessions with tutors an important part of their FWS experience -- providing opportunity to further develop writing skills while connecting with friendly and attentive peers.
Promoting the CWC
This semester, the CWC is offering both in-person and synchronous online tutoring. When classes resume after Fall Break, please post an announcement with our website link on your course Canvas site, and also remind students about the CWC when assigning papers or after a class peer review workshop.You might also consider approaching students individually to encourage them to make an appointment with a CWC tutor. You might remind them that tutors are friendly peers who are formally trained to work with FWS students. Here are some tips for how to talk about the CWC with students and ideas about how to assign extra credit assignments to further entice students to use this free resource. Here’s the link to our scheduling platform where students can see our schedule and make appointments. Tutoring resumes after Fall Break on Wednesday, October 11.
Accessing our Writing Guides
The CWC is building our collection of writing guides! We have compiled instructional materials -- handouts, videos, and online resources) -- that emphasize how particular types of writing work. These guides (linked here) can be given to students or used for classroom activities in ways that promote talk about writing. If you’re interested in a writing guide that you don't see, please feel free to reach out to Kate Navickas (ken43@cornell.edu).
With your help, we will continue to be a valuable resource on campus! I look forward to hearing from you with questions or ideas.
