22 Sep 2009

Teaching in Florida (1994-95)

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Teaching in Florida (1994-95)

Here, a link to my old homepage and two links to the syllabi of experimental classes I taught at the University of Florida, Gainesville in 1994-1995, within the Networked Writing Environment*.
  • EXPOSITORY AND ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING - (in the Network Writing Environment)
  • WRITING ABOUT LITERATURE
If we look at these syllabi now in terms of graphic layout and organization, they might seem very simple and naive. As a matter of fact, they are simple and naive. They are the hypertextualized versions of syllabi conceived for an "almost regular" (traditional?) class. However, some of the assignments (for example the final for the course on "Expository and argumentative writing") already try to expand the concept of traditional writing so as to account for the emergence of a multimedial and non-linear way of writing. At that time --almost 15 years ago (that it, in terms of Internet, ages ago) -- teaching on line was a very new idea and experience. The only reason I put these syllabi on line now is to give you some examples of the way I started working with the concept of teaching on line.
* "The Networked Writing Environment (NWE) at the University of Florida is a very large-scale, integrated system which has been designed to enable students and instructors to use computer technology in the teaching of writing. The system was designed and constructed using a $992,000 hardware grant from the IBM Corporation, along with generous support from the University of Florida. The original proposal, entitled Technology for the Teaching of High-Quality Writing, was authored by Dr. Michael Conlon, Director of Information Resources for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Dr. Samuel B. Trickey, Executive Director of the Office of Information Technologies and Services. Five classrooms of size thirty were constructed during the period August 1994 to August 1995 and have been used to teach a large variety of writing courses to over 10,000 UF students. The NWE is one of the largest computerized writing environments in the world.The environment integrates use of computers, hypermedia, in-class electronic conferencing, cooperative write and revise, Internet tools and library resources in the writing process. Research has been conducted and presented at national conferences regarding the NWE and writing." (Quoted From www.ucet.ufl.edu/writing/)