Dear Dr.

Hartman,
Specificity. If I had to boil down my experience of designing this assignment into
one word, that would be it. How specific do I need to be in a handout for a semester
long project? How do I avoid overwhelming the student then? These were the
questions I struggled with early on, and after having actually assigned this, I have
similar questions. One of the key points of feedback on this assignment, both from you
and from Student Shana also had to do with specificity, in that the directions for the
text entry didnt talk about length, there was a complete lack of directions for the
reflective essay, and the assignment schedule in general caused confusion on when
these things would be addressed.
While Ive tried to revise my WAD to address all of these things, Ive also realized
that some things can only be done in the classroom, that is, some of the problems my
student reported likely would not have occurred if I was actually teaching this as
intended. For instance, a specific comment addressed what I meant by the exploiting
the affordances of multimodality, which is something I would have addressed if I had
been teaching this over the course of a semester, where I could have taken the time to
really dig into each modality in individual units, but when I had to condense it for this
assignment, I clearly made some mistakes that I honestly dont think I would have
otherwise.
Of course, thats not to say I didnt learn anything from that mistake, since it
certainly disabused me of any notions I had about how simple designing, assigning, and
assessing an assignment, particularly something as inherently open-ended and
creativity focused as a multimodal assignment, would be. Thats something Im happy

about, because the last thing I want is to go into the classroom (or writing center) that
unprepared. So if the goal of the WAD was to get us thinking about how assignments
work in the realm of the practical vs. the theoretical, then its safe to say that goal was
met. If only I could say that about all the goals of this assignment! Alas, onward and
upward.
Sincerely,
Amanda Shoaf

Amanda Shoaf
ENED 683
Dr. Shana Hartman
24 April 2016
Writing Assignment Design: Multimodal Writing (Phase 1)
Overview:
What is writing in 2016? This is a complex and thorny question, and so is the focus of
much research and scholarship in Rhetoric and Composition, which is why this
assignment isnt trying to answer it. However, we also cant ignore that the question is
being asked, or that multimodal and visual communication is fast becoming standard,
both in our personal and professional lives. Neither can we ignore the growing need for
collaborative writing skills in the marketplace. With that in mind, we must prepare our
students to communicate effectively in this environment, in well-organized, rhetorically
effective language and to think critically about the methods they are using.
That is the purpose of this assignment, a semester long, research-based composition
project culminating in the completion of a group wiki, utilizing three other modes besides
text. By immediately introducing college Freshmen to the idea of multimodal composing
and giving them practical skills in it, this assignment will allow students to move forward
into their chosen disciplines with an understanding of 21 st century communication.
Students will also learn to produce content collaboratively, on top of further developing
their craft.
Context:

Designed for a First Year Writing classroom that meets three times a week, this
assignment will be the culmination of a semesters worth of work, with individual
modules introducing and building the technical, critical thinking, and composition skills
needed to complete the group wiki. Groups will be randomly assigned by the end of the
first week of class, and each module will include low-stakes individual assignments that
allow for practice and self-assessment, in order to prevent problems only becoming
apparent at the end of the project. At the end of the semester, the groups will publish
their completed wiki entry and each individual group member will write a short essay
wherein they explain the rationale for their rhetorical choices.
Goals/Objectives/Standards:
*adapted in part from Gardner Webb Universitys Writing Program

Develop practical skills in multiple, non-textual modes

Learn necessary 21st century communicative skills
Use conventions of format and structure appropriate to the rhetorical situation

(GWU Writing Program)

Focus on purpose (GWU Writing Program)
Understand a writing assignment as a series of tasks, including finding,
evaluating, analyzing, and synthesizing appropriate primary and secondary

sources (GWU Writing Program)

Compose in various genres and modes (GWU Writing Program)
Understand the collaborative and social aspects of writing processes (GWU

Writing Program)
Integrate their own ideas with those of others (GWU Writing Program)
Learn to critique their own and others works (GWU Writing Program)
Learn to balance the advantages of relying on others with the responsibility of
doing their part (GWU Writing Program)

Use a variety of technologies to address a range of audiences (GWU Writing

Program)
Understand and exploit the differences in the rhetorical strategies and in the
affordances available for both print and electronic composing processes and

texts (GWU Writing Program)

Learn common formats for different kinds of texts (GWU Writing Program)
Develop knowledge of genre conventions ranging from structure and

paragraphing to tone and mechanics (GWU Writing Program)

Practice appropriate means of documentation (GWU Writing Program)
Control such surface features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling
(GWU Writing Program)

Works Cited
Hartman, Shana. ENG 101: Composition I. Fall 2014. Department of English
Language and Literature, Gardner Webb University, Boiling Springs, NC. Adobe
PDF file. 19 Feb. 2016.

21st Century Composition: Creating a Multimodal Wiki

Introduction
This is your major assignment for this course, and it will extend over the entire
semester. Well begin with group selection, with 3-5 to people to each group. In the
following two weeks each group will decide on a topic (an issue, an event, a person,

etc.) and begin their research. After topics are chosen, we will begin to build the
technological and rhetorical skills needed for this multimodal wiki entry. We will spend
time discussing the affordances of and working with images, video, and audio, with
each unit allowing for small stakes individual experimentation. You will collaborate with
your group, determining whether you wish to divide the entry into sections or work on
each section together, and during this time, peer feedback from your group members is
an essential element of the collaborative process. At the end of each unit groups will
also have the opportunity to comment on the level on group participation on their
respective entries in order to prevent any one member from neglecting their
responsibilities. Once your wikis are completed, we will publish them so that everyone
in the class has the chance to view them. Finally, once the wikis are published,
everyone will write a short essay reflecting on their groups rhetorical choices.
Purpose
As young adults in 2016, you all likely have already used multimodal communication in
your everyday life, even if you dont realize it. This group wiki is an introduction of sorts,
teaching you to think critically about that intuitive communication and why and how you
communicate visually, spatially, and aurally. Its also about helping you recognize and
develop the rhetorical strategies of non-textual communication so that you can compose
thoughtful, coherent, and well-developed multimodal projects in the future, both inside
and outside of academia. There are many ways to write besides putting black words on
white paper, and I want to show you that with this project.
Requirements

Groups are free to choose whatever topic they want, but it should allow for a

minimum of 3-5 sources.

All group members must agree on the chosen topic.
All group members must participate equally. Group participation will be

monitored and failure to do so will result in a lowered grade.

All wikis must exhibit knowledge of each mode of communication we cover this
semester. This means each groups wiki should have at least one example of
text, images, video and audio, though more of one mode after this requirement is

met is perfectly acceptable.

Wiki entries should be coherent, i.e. develop a thesis for your topic and make
sure your wiki reflects that thesis.
o Ex: If your writing about Marie Antoinettes fashion, focus on that, not on

her childhood, her marriage, etc.

Text entries should be at least 200 words and conform to the rules of syntax,

grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

All resources should be cited correctly, using current MLA standards.

Notes
Choose something your passionate about! Youre going to be spending a lot of time on
this project, so choose a topic youre actually interested in, not one you think I want to
read.
Due Dates
Week 1: Groups are randomly assigned on Friday
Week 2: Discuss the parameters of the reflective essay (introduce rhetorical concepts
and language)

Week 3: Continue discussing some fundamental rhetorical concepts; Final group topics
should be submitted by Friday
Week 4: Begin Image Module
Week 5: First surveys on group participation due
Week 6: Begin Video Module
Week 7: Second surveys on group participation due
Week 8: Begin Audio Module
Week 9: Third surveys on group participation due
Week 10: Begin Text Module
Week 11: Fourth surveys on group participation due
Week 13: Draft of wikis due
Week 14: Feedbacks given on drafts; review of MLA citation rules
Week 15: Group wikis due; will be shared in class on Friday
Week 16: Reflection essay due
Rubric
Project Requirements

GWU Writing Program Requirements

Exceeds

Meets

Meets Some

Does Not Meet

Expectation

Expectation

Expectation

Expectations

s (4 pts)

s (3 pts)

s (2 pts)

(1 pts)

Wiki exhibits knowledge of

each mode of communication,
with at least one example of
text, images, video and audio
Compose in various genres and modes (GWU
Writing Program)
Use a variety of technologies to address a
range of audiences (GWU Writing Program)
Understand and exploit the differences in the
rhetorical strategies and in the affordances
available for both print and electronic
composing processes and texts (GWU Writing
Program)

Wiki entries are coherent,

developing a thesis for the
chosen topic, with the wiki
reflecting that thesis
Focus on purpose (GWU Writing Program)

Group members collaborate

equally to create a coherent
single entry
Learn to balance the advantages of relying on
others with the responsibility of doing their part
(GWU Writing Program)
Integrate their own ideas with those of others
(GWU Writing Program)
Understand the collaborative and social
aspects of writing processes (GWU Writing
Program)

All text entries conform to the

rules of syntax, grammar,
spelling, and punctuation
Control such surface features as syntax,
grammar, punctuation, and spelling (GWU
Writing Program)

All 3-5 resources are cited

correctly, using current MLA
standards
Practice appropriate means of documentation
(GWU Writing Program)

Reflection shows an
understanding of rhetorical
concepts and uses the
language learned in the
course.
Use conventions of format and
structure appropriate to the rhetorical
situation (GWU Writing Program)
Understand and exploit the differences
in the rhetorical strategies and in the
affordances available for both print and
electronic composing processes and
texts (GWU Writing Program)

WAD: Assign and Assess

Assignment (What was given to Student Shana):

First, I'll reiterate (even though it's in the description) that this is open
topic. You can choose any issue, place, person, etc. to research and
write about so long as you develop a cogent thesis

In order to modify this for one "student" over a shorter period, I'd like
you to concentrate on completing just one section of the wiki, which is
likely what you would do if you were working on this with a group.

In that one section I'd like to see evidence of two modes: text and one
other that is not linguistic based, i.e. images, video, audio clips.
Choose whichever you are most comfortable with since the in-class
work designed to build up the practical skills necessary are not possible
in this format.

Also, instead of the 3-5 sources required, use 2-3. These sources
should be cited in accordance with MLA guidelines.

Finally, you should complete a short essay (1-2 pages) reflecting on

your rhetorical choices and your experience with multimodal
composition. For example, discuss why you chose a specific image and
how it interacts with your text, or your goals in designing your wiki
page (color, format).

Just to be clear before moving to Resources, you can use copyrighted

images so long as they are available for non-commercial use and cited
correctly.

Resources:

Wiki Setup page: http://www.wikia.com/Special:CreateNewWiki

Create New Wiki - Wikia

www.wikia.com
Create New Wiki. Start a wikia. Build a website, grow a community, and embark
on your ultimate fan experience.

Wiki Setup Tips: http://community.wikia.com/wiki/Help:Contents

Help:Contents - Community
Central - Wikia
community.wikia.com
Getting Started Where& how to get started
on Wikia Contributing How to contribute
and format content

Purdue OWL (MLA): https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/08/

Purdue OWL: MLA

Formatting and Style
Guide
owl.english.purdue.edu
MLA (Modern Language Association)
style is most commonly used to write
papers and cite sources within the liberal
arts and humanities. This resource,
updated to ...

Open Source software suggestions: Pixabay (images), Creative Commons

(image), GIMP (image editing software), SoundCloud (record or embed
audio), YouTube (record or embed video), Jing (screencast software),
CamStudio (screencast software)

NOTE: Embedding screencast video is likely to be the most complicated, so

don't feel obligated to include it.
Tutorials (just a sampling; there is a wealth of them on
YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P143GdVeMjE (GIMP)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pQPvWx7saU (Jing)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ApGjzjrgMCw (SoundCloud)

4/8 How To Set Up Your

Podcast With SoundCloud |
Start A ...
www.youtube.com
SoundCloud is the #1 place to host your
podcast if you want more listens. Here
are the step-by-step instructions on how
to set up your podcast with SoundCloud.
LINKS ...

GIMP 101 Tutorial for

Beginners: Learning the
Basics 2013
www.youtube.com
How to use GIMP for those whom are
new to the program! Beginners
welcome! View Part 2 here:
https://youtu.be/eRTQeJ01ZL4

http://www.youtube.com/DaviesMediaDe
sign This ...

Attached Assignment Document (Was also given to Student Shana):

21st Century Composition: Creating a Multimodal Wiki
Introduction
This is your major assignment for this course, and it will extend over the entire
semester. Well begin with group selection, with 3-5 to people to each group. In the
following two weeks each group will decide on a topic (an issue, an event, a person,
etc.) and begin their research. After topics are chosen, we will begin to build the
technological and rhetorical skills needed for this multimodal wiki entry. We will spend
time discussing the affordances of and working with images, video, and audio, with
each unit allowing for small stakes individual experimentation. You will collaborate with
your group, determining whether you wish to divide the entry into sections or work on
each section together, and during this time, peer feedback from your group members is
an essential element of the collaborative process. At the end of each unit groups will
also have the opportunity to comment on the level on group participation on their
respective entries in order to prevent any one member from neglecting their
responsibilities. Once your wikis are completed, we will publish them so that everyone
in the class has the chance to view them. Finally, once the wikis are published,
everyone will write a short essay reflecting on their groups rhetorical choices.

Purpose
As young adults in 2016, you all likely have already used multimodal communication in
your everyday life, even if you dont realize it. This group wiki is an introduction of sorts,
teaching you to think critically about that intuitive communication and why and how you
communicate visually, spatially, and aurally. Its also about helping you recognize and
develop the rhetorical strategies of non-textual communication so that you can compose
thoughtful, coherent, and well-developed multimodal projects in the future, both inside
and outside of academia. There are many ways to write besides putting black words on
white paper, and I want to show you that with this project.
Requirements

Groups are free to choose whatever topic they want, but it should allow for a

minimum of 3-5 sources.

All group members must agree on the chosen topic.
All group members must participate equally. Group participation will be

monitored and failure to do so will result in a lowered grade.

All wikis must exhibit knowledge of each mode of communication we cover this
semester. This means each groups wiki should have at least one example of
text, images, video and audio, though more of one mode after this requirement is

met is perfectly acceptable.

Wiki entries should be coherent, i.e. develop a thesis for your topic and make
sure your wiki reflects that thesis.
o Ex: If your writing about Marie Antoinettes fashion, focus on that, not on

her childhood, her marriage, etc.

Text entries should be at least 200 words and conform to the rules of syntax,

grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

All resources should be cited correctly, using current MLA standards.

Notes
Choose something your passionate about! Youre going to be spending a lot of time on
this project, so choose a topic youre actually interested in, not one you think I want to
read.
Completed Assignment (Student Shanas work):
Amanda,
As requested, I am submitting my one section of the wiki, with two modestext
and a video
My Wiki
site: http://goodfoodforthinking.wikia.com/wiki/Goodfoodforthinking_Wi
kia
Attached is my reflective essay
Here were some questions I had (acting as student right now so you get that
perspective)
1. Which part of the Word attachment was I, as student, supposed to focus on?
I concentrated on the part that said Introduction to the end of the document.
Hope that was ok.
2. I appreciated all of the links at the end of the email with instructions, but I
was a bit overwhelmed on where to begin. I thought maybe you would launch
the wiki for me or have some clearer steps on what to do first (ex. set up the
wiki space first? pick the topic? start my research?)
3. Finding sources was a bit of a struggle, so I chose not to worry too much
about that right now for what I am submitting to you. I put a placeholder in to
note that I needed to go back and work on this. I understand that this will affect
my grade.
4. I also procrastinated and thus didnt submit as much as I wanted to have
done by March 18 due date
Reflective Essay:
Shana Hartman
3/18/16
Multimodal Wiki
Composition 101

Choices and Reactions: A Wild Ride

My choices for this part of the project began when I picked the web address
and template format for my wiki page. Since I chose to focus my topic on what
good food means in todays society and the importance of making good food
choices, I chose the URL goodfoodforthinking.wikia.com. I thought this was a
unique title of sorts, and a way to catch viewers attention; it seems different,
unique. In addition, I selected a vibrant, purple-based background because I thought
I might latter connect this to the importance of having a colorful plate when making
good food choices.
I chose to include the trailer clip from SuperSize Me because this movie is a
creative documentary that highlights the idea of paying attention to what you eat
and not just eating whats easiest and cheapest, like fast food. Should I continue, I
would do more with this clip, perhaps splicing it with text and factual information or
questions for viewers to consider regarding their food choices.
Despite the enjoyment I had in making color, content, and video choices for
this part of the project, I definitely felt overwhelmed and uncomfortable working
with the tools suggested. While Ive created a Wiki page before, I have never used
Wikia and found it to be a bit busy. I know I you provided me with access to help
pages, but I still felt I needed more help or more choices to see which Wiki space fit
me and what I was trying to do. My current piece feels clunky and undone in many
ways, like not citing images (though I used Pixabay to access open sourced materal)
or losing my writing due to some glitch on the Wikia website.
Overall, this piece is nowhere near complete, but its a start. I think I could do
a lot more with the multimodal approaches to sharing information surrounding my
topic. I look forward to working with this more in the future.

Rubric
Project Requirements

GWU Writing Program Requirements

Exceeds

Meets

Meets Some

Does Not Meet

Expectation

Expectation

Expectations

Expectations (1

s (4 pts)

s (3 pts)

(2 pts)

pts)

Wiki exhibits knowledge of each

The wiki

mode of communication, with at

exhibits

least one example of text,

knowledge of

images, video and audio

a mode of

Compose in various genres and modes (GWU

communicatio

Writing Program)

n besides text,

Use a variety of technologies to address a range

of audiences (GWU Writing Program)
Understand and exploit the differences in the

but fails to
integrate it

rhetorical strategies and in the affordances

available for both print and electronic composing
processes and texts (GWU Writing Program)

fully or exploit
the
affordances of
multimodality.

Wiki entries are coherent,

The chosen topic

developing a thesis for the

was clear, and was

chosen topic, with the wiki

reflected in the focus

reflecting that thesis

of the written work.

Focus on purpose (GWU Writing Program)

However, the text

entry was far too

short, ended abruptly,

and so ultimately did
not produce a cogent
thesis statement or
argument.
Group members collaborate

This was

equally to create a coherent

done alone,

single entry

as expected,

Learn to balance the advantages of relying on

so this metric

others with the responsibility of doing their part

(GWU Writing Program)
Integrate their own ideas with those of others

is not
applicable.

(GWU Writing Program)

Understand the collaborative and social aspects of
writing processes (GWU Writing Program)

All text entries conform to the

The text entry,

rules of syntax, grammar,

by and large,

spelling, and punctuation

conforms to

Control such surface features as syntax, grammar,

these rules,

punctuation, and spelling (GWU Writing Program)

but because
the text entry
is unfinished,
to the degree
that it ends
mid-sentence,
I cannot say
that it meets

all the
expectations
of this
assignment or
the
corresponding
writing level.
All 3-5 resources are cited

There are no

correctly, using current MLA

citations at all, which

standards

is a problem

Practice appropriate means of documentation

considering the use

(GWU Writing Program)

of a copyrighted
video. The use of
open source Pixabay
is noted however, as
was the use of at
least two sources.

Reflection shows an

Outside the rubric, I also

understanding of rhetorical

wanted to comment on

concepts and uses the

your reflection, which is a

language learned in the

course.

key part of this

assignment and its goals

Use conventions of format and

structure appropriate to the rhetorical

regarding understanding

situation (GWU Writing Program)

and exploiting the

Understand and exploit the differences

in the rhetorical strategies and in the
affordances available for both print and

differences in rhetorical
strategies. Largely, your

electronic composing processes and

texts (GWU Writing Program)

reflection did meet that

goal, as when you
connected your color
choice to your subject
matter and discussed
how the Supersize Me
clip could be edited into a
multimodal piece on its
own. However, I also saw
opportunities where you
could have gone deeper,
like when you discussed
your color choice for
instance, which would
have really shown an
understanding of the
stated goals. I wont
penalize you for this
though, because
ultimately it was a failure

on my part to not provide

with the language to do
just that. I was also glad
to see that you recognize
you have a lot more work
to do, and I look forward
to seeing you improve
this project.

Total Grade: _70_