"Evolution in Composition Studies"

Review of Writing Research

• Braddock, Llyod-Jones, and Schoer: Research in Written Composition (early 20th-1962)
• Hillocks: Research on Written Composition: New Directions for Teaching (1963-1983)
• Smagorinsky: Research on Compositions: Multiple Directions on Two Decades of Change (1984-2003)

Themes

• Marking Disciplinary Identity
• Negotiating Constructs of Knowledge Production
• Locating Expertise

Patterns

• Epistemological Shifts
• Interdisciplinary Influence
• Ethics and Representation

Orthodoxies

• Move from "medieval origins to a state of rational inquiry."
• "Cover the maturity of composition's age of reason"
• "Focus on the situated nature of teaching and learning"

The Field Re-imagined

A Legitimate Field of Study

• Journal of Basic Writing('75)
• WPA('77)
• JAC('81)
• Rhetoric Review('82)
• Computers and Composition('83)
• Journal of Second Language Writing('92)

Qualitative Research

Current Interests

• Effective practice
• Equity
• Gender
• Cultural practice
• Social relationships
• Tacit heirarchies
• Power relatioships
• Social nature of textuality

Guiding Questions