Writing Across the Modes Collection

Writing Across the Modes CollectionECI 509, Integrating Writing and Technology

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Part I. Expository Writing

My Scribe ReportOn the morning of April 20th, the gray slate of the NC State clock tower faded quietly into a similarly gray sky. The uncharacteristic windy chill and the light drizzle of rain both seemed to say: soon, you will all be in England – so here is a taste of that famous English weather. A warm and brightly lit room met the newest students of ECI 509: Integrating Writing and Technology. We took seats at festively decorated tables that featured small Union Jack flags and maps of the University of Surrey campus. A few participants found comrades from past classes, happily sharing recognition hugs or handshakes. Others sat amongst all strangers but quietly and slowly made acquaintances with neighbors. As group members continued to trail in and collect their nametags, the small space in Poe Hall filled with nervous but excited chatter. In the backdrop, pictures and video from the 2011 class scrolled across the smart boards and projection screens that wallpapered the room. 

The purpose of the morning was to meet one another and review course basics, but the underscore was a theme of resources and advantages. The following review summarizes the main points of the morning under this theme: our unique course is a wealth of benefits set against unmatched value. 

Stretching the Borchardt Dollar (or, pound!)

In every discussion of processes and policies, the value of this trip became increasingly apparent. 

Program Cost: The program directors and instructors are waiving their salary, which is one of the reasons the program is affordable.  

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Included Resources: The program directors have ensured that resources like digital cameras, power adapters, and more will be available for student use during the trip. 

Campus Resources: The campus is providing classroom space for free, and the accommodations—even though they include the luxury of private rooms and private baths—are affordable and include cost-saving features like Wi-Fi and kitchen spaces. One of the greatest features will be breakfast; not only will a hot breakfast be provided daily to stave our appetites, it’ll also be a great way for us to meet every morning and share announcements.

Easy Shopping: Sara shared a great reminder for us all about nearby stores. The on-campus store is a small convenience mart, but there’s a large store, Tesco, very close by. On day one, we’ll all take a trip to the large store down the street, which will help us to (1) stock up on supplies (for cheaper eat-in lunches and dinners) AND (2) avoid the temptation of a first-day nap as we adjust to the time change. 

Transportation: While all transportation isn’t included, a lot of the transportation—including airport transit, a trip to the market, travel to course excursions, and train passes for the first free weekend--isprovided. 

Course Credit: The greatest advantage of this program is that, even though the instructors have waived their salary, students can receive three graduate-level credit hours for completing this program. As such, some of the cost spent on the trip can be considered "tuition" (as we do not have to pay extra tuition on top of our trip costs, even though we are securing course credit). 

In one discussion, Dr. Ruie Pritchard compared our program to another Borchardt program, one that takes fewer students for less time. Clearly, our program is able to accomplish so much more with the same funding because the directors have ensured that every dollar—or pound!—spent provides a rich but affordable learning experience. 

Diversity amongst Participants 

The day one meet-and-greet activity was a “Signature Hunt,” requiring participants to meet students that fit one of many criteria (ex. “I have green eyes” or “I have a motorcycle license” were two examples, but my favorite

Student Name: Sarah Glova

criterion was the slightly personal "I am available for dates.") This activity was a great way for us to get out of our seats and meet one another, but more important, it was a way to highlight our many different experiences. The program is well balanced, despite the relatively short period it was advertised. A huge pool of applicants had to be reduced by half, and the results included: 

1 higher education instructor 2 middle school instructors (both 6th grade) 9 high school instructors  9 elementary school instructors

May won the timed Signature Hunt challenge, securing 14 signatures. The class mean was 10 signatures, and the “deepest” participants (named such because these participants were obviously more in-depth conversationalists) collected 8 signatures. 

This activity, along with other activities during our first day, helped to highlight the immense value behind the diversity of our participants. I look forward to learning from everyone, with their different background and experiences, as we complete this adventure together. 

Measurements

Another added value of this course is that the directors have spent time planning how to study the impact of the course on us, the students. We briefly reviewed a series of assessments during the morning session, talking in detail about The Technology Assessment, the Writing Apprehension Instrument, and the Intercultural Development Inventory: 

The Technology Assessment survey, developed in part by Michael and his team at Clemson and in part by Dr. Kevin Oliver, is an in-depth survey asking students to evaluate their use of and comfort with technology. This survey is available online through Moodle; you will have access to it once you complete the consent form. 

Student Name: Sarah Glova

The Writing Apprehension Instrument is based on the research of John Daly and Michael Miller (1975). We completed this survey on paper during the morning session. After answering 26 questions about our writing apprehension, we received a rating from 26 to 130 (mean score 79.28, standard deviation 18.86). We were asked to give ourselves a pseudonym when reporting our scores, so that we can keep our answers confidential but be able to track our pre- and post-course results. (Sara helpfully reminded us all to write down our pseudonyms in our new “day books,” as she had trouble remembering her own last time!)

The Intercultural Development Inventory is a measure that asks students, “What is most challenging for you in working with people from other cultures” and other intercultural questions. Instructions for completing this have already been emailed to students. 

Our First Lecture: Jane Austen, by Dr. Elliot Engel

Another example of amazing value is the speaker on the very first day of class. If Dr. Elliot Engel is any indication of the in-depth, brought-to-life author discussions we'll be having through this class, we're all in for a bargain of a rich scholastic adventure. 

Dr. Engel was an engaging, provocative speaker who brought Jane Austen to life by reviewing her history, the context of her time period, and her overall impact as, “Absolutely the first great author in the English language who was not a man.”  It was a fantastic way to begin our academic journey together. The following summary attempts to review Dr. Engel's main points.  

Dr. Engel began by reviewing why women did not become great authors until Jane Austen. His thesis was this: men controlled the field of literature. He supported this argument with these main points: 

Men controlled what you could write about in the first ages. All the genres, from epics to love sonnets to the restoration period pieces, excluded women by their inherent subject/character requirements. 

The very English language is “anti-feminist.” Dr. Engel argued, “If you are a writer, the tools you have are words. Even the words in our

Student Name: Sarah Glova

language tend to make women second-class characters, and make them think twice about using this language as an artist.” His specific examples were: • the unfair differences between terms like “tomboy” and “sissy,” “masculine” and “effeminate”; • the offensiveness of the word “rapist” instead of “raper”; • the very word “author” as it comes from “an authority,” which women of the time were not allowed to be; and even, • the origins of “pen” from the Latin term “penis” (which Dr. Engel clarified as meaning “a tail,” but identified as inherently against women.)

So, Dr. Engel argued, not until the novel was created in England in the 1740s and 50s was there a space where women could write successfully. 

Of course, as he points out, Jane Austen was not immediately successful. She tried to write an epic poem at age 13, but it was—in a word—unimpressive. (“She got up and went to dinner. After which, she wasn’t thinner,” Dr. Engel quoted.) Next, she tried to become the first female historian of England, but as Dr. Engel pointed out with the example of her quipping chapter on Henry the VIII, she did not thrive at that, either. 

Finally, at 17 years old, she starts and then finishes her first novel in 21 months: Sense and Sensibility (a nice title change from Eleanor and MaryAnne). Dr. Engel reviewed the timeline of her next two novels, Pride and Prejudice and Northanger Abbey, revealing that she published them all before 23. This is a stark contrast from what others are doing at 22. 

Austen’s life was forever changed by two later events: first, her family moves from the small city of Steventon to the big city of Bath; next, her father dies, and her family’s fortune is spread to distant relatives. Austen, her sister, and her mother experience eight years of homeless house-hoping from brother to brother. Finally, her brother Edward secures a small fortune from an adopted family, which includes an extra house that he gives (rather than rents, luckily) to his mother and sisters. It’s not until Jane has this house to live in safely that she can write again. She will almost immediately write what most English professors consider her masterpiece, Emma. 

Student Name: Sarah Glova

In 1811, Austen is finally published. The title page of first published novel, Sense and Sensibility, reads:  

Dr. Engel commented on the byline "By a Lady," but noted the change in her next publication. 

In 1812, Pride and Prejudice was published. This time, the title page read: 

Dr. Engel pointed out that the title page was just one reflection of how women, even women as successful as Jane Austen, were not accepted as authors. When Austen died in the hospital of Addison’s Disease, she was far too young; yet, she was a very accomplished author. Still, on the monument by her grave, the inscription sings of her piety, her care for the less fortunate, her love for her family… but it says nothing of her written

Student Name: Sarah Glova

works. 

Despite her accomplishments, Dr. Engel pointed out that Austen’s writing life was not easy. She kept a parlor door unfixed on purpose, inviting the squeaky hinge to alert her of visitors when she was writing in the parlor. When she heard the squeaky warning, she would quickly hide her writing and then pretend to be knitting or sewing. (Hopefully, we’ll all get to hear the door squeak during a visit!) Additionally, Austen had to write on whatever she could find—backs of envelopes and scrap pieces of paper—because, “Women weren’t allowed to write on regulation paper. She would sew [scraps] together on the end and hold it together in her hand to see how much she had written.” Just one more example of how Austen was a female author in the age of no female authors. 

Dr. Engel’s closing argument was this: Austen was “the greatest comic ironist in the English language” who wrote what she was good at, which was following a few families through the adventures of marrying their daughters. Dr. Engel helped us review basic irony (ex. “The fire station is unsafe”) and great irony (ex. “The fire station burnt down”), using the famous first line of Pride and Prejudice as a prime example. 

If Dr. Engel’s book A Dab of Dickens & A Touch of Twain is anything like his live talk, it will be an interesting, funny, real-life portrayal of the great authors of that age, with provocative commentary and sharp literary points. Added fun is when we all get to decide: Are we warm and fuzzy Dickensians, or sharp, irony-loving Janeites? 

More about Dr. Engel: http://www.authorsink.com/about-dr-elliot-engel/

Sense of Humor

To close my summary, I’d like to recap some of the funnier moments in the morning session. 

When discussing Downton Abbey, Dr. Pritchard joked, “It’s the best soap opera without tattoos.” 

Dr. Pritchard shared that Dr. Oliver demanded the breakfast on campus because he loves the bangers, which brought on a great

Student Name: Sarah Glova

bangers debate. Dr. Oliver implored repeatedly, “I never said that.” (Notably, Dr. Pritchard later admitted that she’s very fond of provoking Dr. Oliver.) 

As we reviewed the campus map, which featured helpful arrows for important locations, Dr. Pritchard pointed out one specific arrow: the one directed at Chancellors, the on-campus pub. She said, “…You go to England, you walk right in and there’s a pub right on campus! It also has pretty good food.” We all look forward to visiting this notable campus location.

When discussing journal writing, Dr. Pritchard shared an in-case-something-happens-to-me plan with a close friend. This friend has strict instructions to find Dr. Pritchard’s journals and “burn ‘em” because: “I don’t want my family to know how raunchy my life has been!”   

This one stands alone: “Go ahead and write on this instrument if you’d like to because I’ve already spilled coffee on it.”

We were all asked not to be concerned if Dr. Oliver is spotted rummaging through the recycling: he collects bottle tops to redeem points online. 

Before Dr. Pritchard shared Dr. Engel’s background with us, he waived her off and said, “Leave out the Nobel Prize; it separates me from the common people.” 

“Why did it take 1800 years after Jesus to produce a great female author?” asked Dr. Engel, opening up what would be a great discussion. 

“Even I am hoping that they do not come out with another version of Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility on PBS,” said Dr. Engel. 

Student Name: Sarah Glova

CLOSINGIn summary, the first class was an enjoyable session; we met one another, we discussed the course, we better introduced ourselves to Jane Austen, and we dove further into the processes and assignments that will guide our adventure together into Merry Old England. I look forward to seeing you all at the next class!

Reminders about Upcoming TasksThe following is my brief summary of reminders that the instructors shared during the morning session. 

Remember the measures we have been asked to complete. The online consent form is easily accessible through Moodle. Also remember that we are not required to take part in these data collection methods or to continue surveys after starting. There is no consequence for note completing these measures. If you accept the consent form, the Technology Assessment will begin immediately; Mike asked that we plan an hour for this task. Instructions for completing the Intercultural Development Inventory have already been emailed to students. 

Reading with purpose: When completing our required readings, keep this note from Dr. Pritchard in mind: “Hypertext is not linear. New literacy is one new way to think about writing. Note these differences as you read the chapter.” 

Student Name: Sarah Glova

One-Sentence Summary

A One-Sentence Summary: The Epic Day Trip

Arriving early at the station, we excitedly asked the gentleman at the train information desk what tickets we would need to fulfill our plans, but he stared at us blankly (finally asking, “You want to do all that today?”); however, we successfully responded to his high-eyebrow stare by using the next 15 hours to have an epic adventure.

Summary Paragraph

On one of the early day trips, Adrienne leaned over to study the flower carefully, saying, “I don’t even know what this one is. I know most flowers at home, but there are so many here I don’t recognize.” Suddenly, the pretty flowers around me became beautiful examples of local culture and history. A few days later, Frank beamed as he gestured toward the large red bus. “This is the bus I drove through London for four years,” he said, going on to describe the route he still had memorized. Magically, the plain bus became a shining ruby on four wheels, a romantic beacon of yesterday. Near the end of the trip, the older couple smiled at us when we said goodbye to them, thanking them for sharing their insights of the Cotswolds. “Enjoy your dinner,” the man said. “You’re really in a classic pub; the owner has barely changed anything since the 70s.” And with that, the faded pictures on the walls became classic pieces of a forty-year history that I felt lucky to witness. With every encounter, I learned that it’s the people—their stories adding to the context, of the things around us—who make traveling so wonderful; without them, I would have just seen flowers, busses, and old pictures, if I had even noticed them at all.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

1st Additional Expository Writing: Composed Reflection on My Book Inventory

WAIT! Before we even get started, please understand three things:

1. Books are my souvenirs.When I travel, I don’t collect snow globes or teaspoons or jewelry… I collect books. I bring them home and enjoy them, and I always remember where they came from. Like that copy of Dubliners that I bought in Dublin, or the Joan Didion I found in Arizona… that tattered Matilda paperback I found my first trip to London, or the Leaves of Grass special edition I found in New York City’s Strand… it’s my travel thing.

2. I only purchased books by English writers.Really! I was very careful. I looked at staff recommendations, read About the Author pages, and even researched some authors when I returned to my dorm room.

3. I didn’t purchase everything I wanted.I have TEN SEPARATE NOTES in my phone, now full of book recommendations, author names, and more, because I didn’t purchase everything I’d seen and liked. So I showed some restraint.

Alright, let’s get started.

The following reflection shares details about the small library I assembled in England. I have cataloged my books by the bookstore in which they were found, and I’ve also shared a small reflection on the genres I have read through so far.

Books by Bookstore:

Waterstone’s, Guildford: Our Spoons Came from Woolworths — New, fiction; paperback Charlotte Street — New, fiction; paperback 17 Equations that Changed the World — New, non-fiction, history; paperback Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand — New, fiction; paperback

Winchester Thrift Shop, Winchester: All Tucked In — Used, romance; paperback, gift

P&G Wells, Winchester: Night Knight — New, children’s; paperback, gift Shh! Don’t Wake the Royal Baby — New, children’s; paperback, gift

The London Review, London: Things I Don’t Want to Know — New, essay; hardback England: The Autobiography — New, non-fiction, history; paperback

Skoob, London: The Pickwick Papers (edition published 1907) — Used, fiction, classic; hardback David Copperfield (edition published 1892) — Used, fiction, classic; hardback The Canterbury Tales (edition published 1948) — Used, anthology, classic; hardback A Winter’s Tale (edition published 1901) — Used, classic; hardback, gift

Slightly Foxed, London:

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Keats Poetical Works (edition published 1940) — Used, poetry; hardback Cockatoos — New, children’s; paperback Quentin Blake’s Nursery Rhyme Book — New, children’s; paperback

Oxbow Books, Oxford: A Book of English Poetry (edition published 1963) — Used, poetry; hardback

The British Library, London: Discovering Words — New, non-fiction, language & grammar; paperback,

autographed Discovering Words in the Kitchen — New, non-fiction, language & grammar;

paperback, autographedJane Austen House Bookshop, Chawton:

Northanger Abbey — New, fiction, classic; paperback Emma — New, fiction, classic; paperback The Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Jane Austen — New, non-fiction,

critique; paperbackThe Bath Abbey, Bath:

The Picador Book of Wedding Poems — New, poetry; paperbackSouth Kensington Books, London:

NW: A Novel — New, fiction; paperback

Also, these are only the bookshops where I purchased items. I left many bookshops empty handed, which was extremely difficult… but also necessary, as there were limits to both my luggage weight and my husband’s patience.

Reviews:

Fiction: So far, I’ve finished all the new novels (the classic ones I haven’t started). I LOVED Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand and Charlotte Street for wonderfully different reasons, and I’ll be recommending both to friends/family. I finished Our Spoons Came from Woolworths in a day and thought it was okay (I can see why the recommender compared it to Didion, but I don’t agree). I also finished the much-longer NW: A Novel in a day, but more than anything it was because I wanted to finish it… it. was. AWFUL. Not an awful book necessarily, but definitely not my kind of book.

Non-fiction: I’m almost through with 17 Equations that Changed the World, which is extremely enjoyable but not the kind of book you read in one sitting. I’m also reading England: An Autobiography, which is very easy to read straight through. I’ve gotten from Caesar up to William the Conquer pretty quickly. I’ve read parts of Discovering Words, but it’s more of a reference book than a read-through book (it lists words similar to a dictionary layout and shares their strange origins). The introduction was fantastic, however.

Children’s: Of course, I read and loved all the children’s books I purchased while still in the bookstores. Two will be gifts and two will stay with us to start off our children’s book library!

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Poetry: I’ve read the introductions to Keats Poetical Works, A Book of English Poetry, and The Picador Book of Wedding Poems, as well as select poems in each, but I doubt I’ll read any of those straight through.

Others: There are two things I want to do more research on before starting… the Things I Don’t Want to Know essay, which is written as a response to another essay called Why I Write by George Orwell, written in the 1940s. I also want to skim through the Austens I’ve read and then read the two I purchased before jumping in to The Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Jane Austen.

Classics: Ahhh… the classics. I can’t wait to break into these. But I didn’t want to start until I got home. Now that I’m home… I’m looking forward to some page turnin’!

Happy Reading!

Student Name: Sarah Glova

2nd Additional Expository Writing: A Composed Reflection on The British Library

Let me start this recap with a warning: I didn’t take a single picture at The British Library. One. Single. Picture.

This is going to sound extremely corny, but in a way, it was just too magical for picture stops. From my first step in, I morphed from normal Sarah to observe-EVERYTHING Sarah, wide-eyed in every direction. I saw grand, wide staircases up multiple floors, hinting at the intricacy of the building and the layers of treasures that must lie inside; I saw throngs of pensive people with laptops or notebooks, camping out in corners or seated at the large library cafe; I saw small groups of students, swimming through the crowds like schools of fish, down corridors and into exhibit rooms on every floor; I saw high, white walls, bland to contrast the attention rightly deserving of the things being housed, rather than the house itself; and tall, tall ceilings, everywhere.

And, my favorite: Around the cafe, and stretching up two floors above with no impediment, were the giant encased bookshelves. These three-story shelves house old-style books–the classic kind you imagine in Hogwarts’ restricted section or in the Beauty and the Beast library. They’re quietly separated from the bustle of the surrounding areas by a pane of glass. From the bottom, you look up and three stories of books are looking back at you; from the top staircase, you look down to what seems like books going on forever. It’s beautiful. If I could, I would make every wall in my house look just the same.

Of course, that’s just the building and people. The EXHIBITS! The LECTURES! It was an amazing day. The evening after this trip, I wrote a first-person account of my experience so that I never forget the magical feeling I had at The British Library.

First, we are taken on a tour. Our group is split into two so that the parties would be smaller, and my group is led away by a small, unassuming middle-aged man in a too-large suit jacket and skinny tie. With his mostly-bald head, typical scholar glasses, and quiet British voice, he seemed pretty much the same as every man I’ve passed on the tube for the last 10 days. His name tag read Julian Walker, and it turns out, he’s not the same as every man in London. He’s a brilliant language scholar. But more on that later.

Of course, upon meeting him, my assumption was: here’s our tour guide, employed by the British Museum. Neat. And for the purpose of the day, he was. He took us into the Sir John Ritblat Treasures of the British Library Gallery, the most popular exhibit in the library. It houses the most famous documents, like:

The Beowulf Manuscript, 11th century, The Magna Carta from, of course, 1215, A Mamluk Qur’an from 14th century Egypt, An original Gutenberg Bible from 1454, Aesop, Fables printed by William Caxton in 1484, Tyndale’s New Testament from about 1526, Shakespeare’s First Folio from 1623, Handel’s Messiah, composed 1741,

Student Name: Sarah Glova

letters of famous people like Sir Isaac Newton and Charles Dickens, and original, handwritten Beatles lyric notes (written on everything from cards to

envelope backs).

But it was like no tour I’ve ever been on. Instead of just telling us what these documents were, he encouraged us to have critical conversations about them. Why wasn’t the Beowulf manuscript originally considered more important? (It almost wasn’t saved from a great fire, and by the time it was saved, it had to be dunked in water because the edges were smoldering.) Why was the publishing of a bible in English originally considered heretical? Who owns some of these documents, especially if the library bought them from countries or governments who were accused of stealing them in the first place? How many words from Old and Middle English can we recognize today? If we analyze which languages certain words derived from, can we differentiate between which classes used these languages? What does that mean in a historical context? Do we care that there are different versions of the same Shakespeare plays? What makes a certain version “official”? And in broader context, what do we mean by “correct” English, especially when some of our most common words were derived from printing mistakes? (Example: THE. Ask me to tell you that story sometime.)

It was an amazing morning, just because he posed such thought-provoking questions and really encouraged us to consider them. I’ll remember more from his talk than I would from a fact-based lecture. He was constantly including us in the conversation.

After our rushed lunch, we hurried to make our next workshop on Digital Texts. But there was some confusion at library about the dates. At first, I was so disappointed. What was happening? What were we supposed to do now?

But then something MAGICAL happened. LIBRARY MAGIC, I’m telling you.

Julian, our tour guide from the morning, came back to save the day. He said he would be happy to fill in our empty workshop time and provide a session on the English language. Our instructors were a bit hesitant and were discussing what to do, but I immediately made my vote known: Julian lecture! Language lecture! Please!

So we split into two groups again, and those who were most interested in Julian’s lecture (I’m not just a crazy fan; he had developed quite a base within our morning group) left with him. For the next two hours, he delighted us with a more in-depth discussion about the English language as it’s known today, how it developed, what its roots are, and more. We talked about everything from dialects to invasions, from ancient letters to modern spellings, and even from proper grammar to modern profanity.

My favorite part of the discussion: He explained his theories about inherent class structure in the language. Basically, the Norman Conquest of 1066 brought a French dialect to England, a country that was speaking a more Germanic English dialect. The conquest was successful, obviously, and as such, French words came to represent more high-class things (example: the word “chair”), while the old English words came to represent more lower-class versions

Student Name: Sarah Glova

of the same thing (example: the word “stool,” which was originally used to mean any kind of chair, but evolved to mean only a rudimentary version of a chair after the Norman Conquest). It was absolutely FASCINATING.

By the end, we had learned that Julian was in fact not an employee of the British Library, but an author, a traveling lecturer, and scholar. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English in the 70s at Scotland’s St. Andrews University (their first university est. 1413!), and he’s earned a myriad of degrees since. He has three (THREE!) books about language for sale in the library and more coming out soon.

After Julian’s talk, we had another workshop by other library scholars called “What is Writing.” It was fun, but it was designed for K-5 teachers, so I spent most my time daydreaming about the things I had learned during the earlier workshop. I think I have a serious love for grammar, and today just really inspired me.

After our last workshop, I nearly SPRINTED to the Library’s store so I could purchase Julian’s books. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough copies for everyone in his fan group (i.e. my class) so my classmates and I compromised. Some picked their favorite one to leave copies for others… I was selfish and grabbed TWO different ones. (It was a struggle not to be selfish and take one of all three, but no one did that; there just weren’t enough to go around). Then, before we left, Julian came down to the shop to sign all our copies.

We had some time to kill before the bus took us home, so a few of us went across the street to a pub. After I ate a plate of mashed potatoes, I immediately read the introduction of Julian’s Discovering Words. It was just as great as I thought it would be.

Overall, it was a full day of walking, standing, reading, and lecturing; it was a lot of bus riding, 3 hours total; and, it was a long day away from Guildford, almost 12 hours. But it was worth it!

After the day, my classmates shared these pictures:

Student Name: Sarah Glova

I’m pretty sure I had this look on my face all day: satisfied awe.

This is the OTHER group’s lecturer. They all said she was very enjoyable as well. Behind her is the very bottom of one of the book walls (but the picture doesn’t do it

justice).

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Julian signing my new book at the end of the day!

I spent all evening writing this summary after a long day, but I couldn’t stop. And I’m so glad I didn’t. I will never forget my day at The British Library.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Part II. Poetic Writing

Where I’m From Poem

Where I’m From Poem about The McKone GirlsAvailable in Prezi form.

Hair rollers and Sunday dresses,

Easter baskets and scraggly-haired dolls.

A packed house, full of books,

full of laughter, within stenciled walls.

“Are all these yours?”

As we giggled, squished together,

in one restaurant booth

across our Mother.

“These are my girls.”

Four daughters, and their pretty leader,

made six green eyes, four blue.

The McKone Girls, all small and strong,

built of frills and fortitude.

Raised by hand-me-downs—your bigger sister’s clothes,

the previously untied shoes,

the second-hand Barbie, the mismatched crayons,

all together, all used.

“It won’t hurt you to want something.”

Clanking cereal bowls, fuzzy socks,

Student Name: Sarah Glova

and Saturday morning cartoons.

How fast it all changed,

gradually, then suddenly, we all grew.

Then it was coffee cups and first cars,

messier rooms with makeup brushes.

Clothes no longer shared, but stolen…

then taken back loudly, and guarded.

Rinse and repeat.

Older and away, we’ve grown up and grown tall,

young women with the same smile.

We make our separate lives, our separate adventures,

a sum of our parts, but individual.

Still, and always, endlessly linked,

grouped, apart, and together.

I am, we are,

McKone Girls, now and forever.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Poems Created in Class with Dr. Buckner

Little Sister

As unique as they come, everyone marvels -    but to us, she's warm and familiar:   she's our little sister.She's a petite frame, a pretty face,   and the loudest walk you've ever heard. She's a small-but-powerful unafraid opinion,   always armed with 100 other surprises. She's there with River dog, stuck by her side,   both trying to match one another's mood. She's the smell of Earth and sunshine and rain,   and the adventure of long, winding hikes. She's a strong laugh, hearty as honeysuckle,   and a voice that skips to us,   like carefree childhood days   and the smell of home you never forget. 

Matt

His serious face, forever pensive,is thoughts and plans framed by dark hair. Watchful eyes, careful listening,standing tall, shaking hands.  

But some know that – lying in wait – there’s another side to see. There’s a genuine, boyish smileand a laughter, spread big and free.

Happily, I spend my lifewaiting for that smile to debutdancing, and joking, and storytelling, doing all I can to coax it through.

Until – huzzah! The smile breaks, Illuminating blue eyes with stars,A daily reward, my beloved purpose, the happiness that’s uniquely ours.

His grinning face, transformed by light, is jokes and pranks and tousled messy hair, dancing eyes, warming humor, fingers interlacing my hand.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Bio Poem About Self

SarahPositive caretaker, organized and cautious,Sibling of Caitlin, and Courtney, and Siobhan, and Reese, and Everett, and Jarrett.Lover of reading stories and packing lunches, of making Lego castles and inventing dinosaur races,Who feels serious about a big sister’s role, Who needs family close, for visits happy and often, Who gives hugs and compliments and encouragement freely, who gives advice sometimes unsolicited, sometimes appreciated, and sometimes unwelcome, Who fears trials ahead for those she loves, the things she can’t protect them from,Who hopes to see her siblings succeed, independent and happy,Resident of Raleigh, but at home when with family, Glova.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Biographical Poem about an Author: Jane Austen

The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid.

In Winchester Cathedral, you’ll find the dark, cool slate commemorating a benevolent reverend’s daughter,one that speaks of her devotion and purity.

What it does not say, almost more loudly than what it does,is that she is a wildly successful writer. Famous for many novels, for classic love stories,for being a female pioneer in authorship,she is the mother of beloved novels, of characters discovered and rediscovered through time.

Known for romantic fiction among the landed gentry,her sharp irony, and her “comedies of manners”that are full of parodies and dialogue, of precariously perched women teetering between marriage and ruin:

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”

Her books lay quietly in the fiction section, waiting proudly to be found by new generations, waiting to be loved by new, hungry eyes.

This day, as we walk reverentlypast her gray marble stone, we read again the description that omits her profession,the truth in character, but lie in omission,and we send up a quiet prayer: Jane, if you’re listening, please knowthat you’re remembered, that you’re celebrated,for your words.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Acrostic about London

Lovely views of the city of Westminster,Of Ben, of Parliament, ofNoisy double-decker bussesDriving through pedestrian-sweated streets.Only thing missing from this trip: No book club friends to share it with!

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Part III. Expressive Writing

All About Me

I am Sarah, a tall, outspoken female with long hair and a wide smile. But I am also just me, quietly reading on a Saturday night, preferring peaceful to parties.

I am 17 weeks, about to be a Mom. But I am still a kid, a Keds-wearing PopTart eater watching Harry Potter movies past bedtime.

I am a technical writing instructor, teaching college juniors and seniors about writing in engineering. But I am still a student, working toward my PhD with multi-colored post it notes and unnecessarily decorative folders.

I am a wife, focused on building a strong marriage with wide foundations. But I am still a love-struck teenager, leaving my husband love notes on the dashboard of his car.

I am one of the oldest of seven, setting an example and babysitting younger siblings. But I am in awe, looking up to my younger siblings who show bravery and love in ways I’m still learning.

I am a contradiction, an INFJ who’s sometimes an ENFJ, a bleeding heart who can also be a harsh grader, a fun-loving free spirit who lives by to-do lists and careful rules, a reckless 20-something who’s still learning who understands her 401K plan and budgets every expense carefully.

I am so grown, I am still growing; I am so experienced, I am still learning what I don’t know.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Design A Room

In the hectic crafting of a normal evening, tasks are spun together quickly as we needle through cooking and dishes and laundry and emails and, finally, a restless night’s sleep. We plan our next day, we worry about practicalities, and we end with little appreciation for the gift of another day.

But this evening, I curl slowly into the comfort of home, appreciating every stitch in the tapestry of our quiet romance. The expansive couch, with its deep, lush cushions, stretches through our living room while the soft glow of the Christmas tree adds romantic shadows to the floor. The quiet holiday music sings in harmony with the snowflakes floating outside. The evening air chilling the window makes our warm home feel even more welcoming than usual.

Laying my plaid fleece blanket aside, I stretch slowly toward the side table, pulling myself up for just long enough to draw the long-stemmed red wine glass from the wooden side table. Swirling it lazily, I smell the Cabernet’s deep fruit and vanilla aroma. After I take a sip, another arm reaches toward me. Attached to that arm is a man, sitting just as comfortably next to me, waiting for his turn with our shared treat. When he looks at me, the soft light catches his face, brightening his blue eyes and affectionate smile. Attached to that man, just as permanently as his arm, is my heart.

The evening ages peacefully as we quietly sit together, both lost in the slow art of making a memory.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Impressions of England

My Impressions of England piece is based on three different categories of experiences: “the good,” which are the things I’ve most enjoyed about this country; “the meh,” which are the things to which I’ve had trouble adapting; and “the interesting,” which are the things I’ve found most curious.

You can view my impressions piece here: seglova.edu.glogster.com/impressions-of-england-by-sarah-glova/

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Post Cards Home

Lovely views of the city, of Westminster,Of Ben, of Parliament, ofNoisy double-decker bussesDriving through pedestrian-sweated streetsOf pubs and parks and shops, allNestled in the hot English summer air

Name Address City, State, Country Zip Code

Even though the country is beautiful, thoughNew adventures excite at every turn, thoughGood food and drink abound, thoughLaughs and friends are easy to find, thoughAccents are different and exciting, and thoughNice memories have been made, through it allDon’t you know—I’ve missed you so.

Name Address City, State, Country Zip Code

Student Name: Sarah Glova

A Day in the Life

A Day in the Life of a Pregnant Traveler at Lunch

There she goes again, armed withmaternity clothes, snacks in her purse, prenatal vitamins,tired, cranky, hungry,avoiding the nauseating waft of Asian food from other dorms,bad smells that are like her kryptonite.She hungrily seeks the warm, familiar taste of mashed potatoes,the white billows, the welcome clouds,buttery, salty, and smooth.

The plate, the fork, the meal,greeted like an old friend—she grins and claps when it arrives at the table!Happy, excited, grateful, a hungry diner, a weary traveler, a pregnant mess.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

1st Additional Expressive Writing: Memory Monologue about The University of SurreyToday, on July 18th, I arrived at the place I’ll be staying for over two weeks: The University of Surrey in Guildford. It’s a beautiful, green college campus in the center of a mid-sized town, and I am excited to learn more about it.

The university is relatively new; it was established in 1894 as The Battersea College of Technology but moved to the town of Guildford in 1964 and became the University of Surrey (as Guildford is the county town of Surrey).

The University of Surrey’s entrance features a stag statue because the university’s main campus lies on what is called Stag Hill.

The campus features a large student union, an on-campus restaurant and bar called Chancellor’s Pub, a cafeteria that serves breakfast and lunch, and a large lake with accompanying walking trails.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

My classmate Elliott at Chancellor’s Pub on campus, showing off the Pimm’s and lemonade carafe she

was sharing with others at the table.

My map of the university. I’ve highlighted the location of my dorm relative to the on-campus pub and lake.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

The university sits in the middle of Guildford, meaning there are bus stops on campus that can connect you to most of the places in town. Guildford is a medium-sized city with a castle, bustling downtown shopping district, and of course, the university.  It’s located just 27 miles (43 km) southwest of London.

Guildford on the map.

Of course, we’ll be taking day trips from Guildford to many places around the country, but overall, Guildford is where we’ll be calling “home” until August 3rd.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

2nd Additional Expressive Writing: Memory Monologue

Snowshill is a very small town in the Cotswolds, a scenic, quiet area known for its quaint villages and farms. My classmate Amy and I both wanted to see *quintessential England*, so we decided that we would try to spend an afternoon here.

We left the city of Bath around 1:30 p.m., after spending a short but enjoyable visit in the popular town. We actually had to travel back south a bit, switch trains at a larger station, and then head north again, to make our way to Snowshill. The further we went on the second train, the less and less civilization we saw.

View from the train–starts to get a little “empty” out there!

We arrived in Moreton-in-Marsh around 3 p.m. The small station only had two terminals! We were relieved to see that there were two taxis available from the entrance. We walked out and asked if we could have a ride to Snowshill. One of the two taxi drivers looked at us, laughed, and walked away. (Clue. Not many American girls rolling up to the Moreton-in-Marsh station asking for taxis to Snowshill.)

The second gentleman agreed to take us. Once we were in the car, we asked if we could have his taxi number, so we could call him when we were ready to be picked back up that evening. He said he was already busy, but he came up with a unique solution. He said that he would drop us off at the lavender fields, the local attraction. Apparently they were very close to Snowshill, and “The shop will have plenty of taxi numbers for you,” he said. So, off to the lavender fields we went.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

The car ride alone was magical. From the moment we left Moreton-in-Marsh, we could tell we were where we wanted to be. The taxi driver waived with friendly recognition to nearly every person he saw on the quaint, cobblestone streets. We past little shops and tiny pubs before reaching the limit of the very small town. Buildings gave way to hills and fields, and Amy and I stuck our arms out rolled-down windows and into sunshine like little kids. We passed farm after farm, eventually driving on a tiny, one lane road.

Then we arrived at the lavender fields.

Arriving at the lavender fields.

We were amazed. The fields weren’t originally on our itinerary; we were only going there because the taxi driver’s advice had seemed good. But we were hooked. We thanked the taxi driver profusely and poured out of the car, running into the little shop across from the fields. Of course, the shop was a tiny wooden store with lavender -themed everything: chocolate, soap, clothing, ice cream, and even leather.

After asking the shop owner for some local taxi numbers (she had them printed out on a little piece of paper), we crossed the street to the fields. We paid a few pounds to get in and took some silly pictures:

Student Name: Sarah Glova

It’s hard to describe how it felt to be there. The sun was bright, but the breeze kept it from being too hot. It smelled like lavender everywhere, but not in an overpowering way… just in a magical, enjoyable way.

After we’d had our lavender field fill, we headed out. We asked the woman sitting by the fence, the one who had taken our pounds to tour the field, how we could get to Snowshill. Her suggestion was the same as the taxi driver’s: walk. Here were her exact directions:“Walk down this road here a bit. When you arrive at the fork in the road, go to your right. Then keep walking. You should be there in ten minutes.”

So from fields to Snowshill in ten minutes… with one right turn.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

And with that, we walked! We walked down a one-lane road, along lavender fields, hoping we were going the right way. We walked without seeing any signs of civilization. We walked and laughed, in utter disbelief about our remote journey.

Here’s a photo reap of the walk:

Amy, starting out on the road.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

The fork in the road. We went right like we were told. I was half expecting a cowardly lion to jump out and guide us the rest of the way.

Scenes of nothing along the walk.

First sign of life! This guy came walking up to us unexpectedly. Amy talked to him for a bit.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

A sign! Unfortunately, the sign was still in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. No sign of a town anywhere near this sign.

After about ten minutes, we got to this sign and the entrance to what looked like a neighborhood.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

We assumed we should go straight, and eventually we came down a hill that did lead us to a town.

Into a beautiful, quaint town. It was exactly what we wanted.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Student Name: Sarah Glova

We reached the town “center” after a few minutes of walking. We’d been walking with jaws dropped, in awe of the surroundings. Amy said it looked like the “shire” (from Lord of the Rings).

The “center” we arrived at was simply a large green grassy area, surrounded by houses, next to the one lone pub of the town.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

The town’s main attraction: Snowshill Arms

We were so relieved to see the pub; it was only 5, but we were starving!

Unfortunately… the pub was CLOSED until 6.

So, we sat down in the grassy area, figuring we would enjoy the real-life postcard we were in until the pub opened.

A few people did walk by, and we talked to a nice older couple about who we were and why we were there. They were extremely nice and encouraged us to see more of the Cotswolds in the future.

At one point, a young girl rode through the town center on a horse. On. a. horse.

Amy was fascinated, so she decided to walk down the same road, following the girl and her horse to see what else was around. Happy in the sun, I agreed to sit with our things while she went. She ran around for about a half an hour. She did find a lot of sheep on her hike.

When she got back, I was busy writing down all my thoughts about Snowshill, so she snapped a picture of me writing.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Amy’s picture of me writing in the town center; click to enlarge.

By then, it was finally time for the pub to open. We walked happily up to the doors…

…but they were still locked. And there were NO lights on inside.

We looked at our watches. 6 p.m.! We started to get a bit worried–there was no one around at this point, and we were really hungry…

But after a few minutes, another couple walked up. They weren’t at all worried about the doors not being open yet. They said the owner was probably still “upstairs” and that he’d probably be down soon.

The pub finally opened about 10 minutes past six. The owner, a tall, older gentleman, opened the doors with a gruff and no apology.

I don’t think this town runs on the same clock that the London trains do, if ya know what I mean.

We all filed in.

The place was classic. Wooden paneling and tables, wooden floors, different kinds of chairs and benches scattered throughout. An old, expansive bar, pictures of hunting dogs and horses on the walls, and this tired-looking bar owner.

We asked for menus, and the owner told us he wouldn’t be ready to cook anything until at least 6:30. I was ready to eat my own arm at this point, but of course we said that was fine, because… what else could we do?

Student Name: Sarah Glova

The rest of the evening was pretty uneventful. We both ordered fish and chips with water, guzzling it so quickly that he finally just brought us over a pitcher of water, setting it down unceremoniously on our table. The pub filled up quickly, and each time someone filed in, the pub owner or a waitress (a few of them trickled in after the place opened) said hello to them by name. People mostly left us alone but one couple did ask us where we were from.Waiting for the fish and chips to arrive, I thought I’d be responsible and call the taxi companies to arrange for a pickup after dinner. We’d have to get back to the train station soon, after all. But this proved to be more difficult than I originally thought. I called EIGHT taxis–EIGHT! No one could pick us up; they were too far out, already busy, or their numbers weren’t connecting. FINALLY I caught someone who said he could pick us up–but he couldn’t be there until at least 8:00. That’s later than we wanted, but I was so relieved to have any ride at all, I eagerly accepted.

Hanging out in the pub an extra hour until 8 was… well, it wasn’t bad. We were tired at this point and would have liked to be on our way. But it did give us the chance to overhear town gossip and observe the locals.

When it was time for us to leave and wait outside for the taxi, the pub was really full. As we walked out, a couple older men at the bar–who had previously ignored us so well!–wished us loud “good travels” with a few winks. They were harmless, but we both laughed and said it was a sign–it was time for us to get on our way home.

I could write another whole post about the next four hours of my life… how we cheered happily when the taxi pulled up, and how he happily rushed us to the station so we wouldn’t miss our train.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Victory! We got back to our train station. 

How we had to wait alone at Moreton-in-Marsh for almost 30 minutes because I’d read the train table wrong, meaning the train left 30 minutes after I had originally thought (which we realized right after that “victory picture” was taken–oops).

How we arrived at Reading Station for our next train at almost 10:30 p.m., exhausted. How the train conductor, an older man who’d been with us from Moreton-in-Marsh to Reading, helped us find our next train since he was done with his shift. How on the way to that terminal, the conductor introduced us to some of the “best ice cream” from a local stand that, turns out, sells homemade ice cream in the train station.

How we finally boarded our last train and tried not to fall asleep, afraid we’d miss our stop.

How we rode through eight miserable stations before we finally got to Guildford. How we got to our home station so late that the ticket taker was gone–we just walked right through the turnstile. How we had to walk back to our dorms with tired feet.

How I collapsed into my room at midnight, almost in disbelief that I’d finally make it back.It definitely wasn’t the most fun part of the day, getting home. But we did it. It was such an adventure, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Plus, we got home, right? Sure, we were a little tired in class today after such a late night… but it was worth it.

Student Name: Sarah Glova

Part IV. Reflection

Reflection on Myself as a Writer In my parent’s attic, there’s a box full of my elementary school memorabilia: class pictures, art class paintings, and reports cards. In it, you’ll also find my old journals. Unlike other sticker-happy kids my age, I was not the second grader who wanted to write about my day or my dog or my best friend Lilly down the street whose parents always let her drink soda with dinner when mine never would. Instead, I wanted to write poems or songs, or stories or newspaper articles, or rhyming greeting cards with hand-drawn illustrations. The longest story I wrote at that age was about thirty pages; it was the story of four kids who explored an old, abandoned house on Halloween, even though they knew they weren’t allowed to go inside. The brave girl in the story, who was obviously much cooler than other three boy characters, ends up stepping on a broken staircase and breaking her leg. The other kids have to be brave to help her get out, but they do, and then the girl goes trick or treating with her new cast. It’s a silly story, confusing to read because I didn’t know what quotations marks were at the time, but I love that my parents still have it. It’s a reminder of where I was as a writer and how much I’ve changed since those carefree days of pencil and paper in my backyard apple tree. Almost 20 years later, I teach technical writing to engineers, focusing on comma splices, concise phrasing, and dangling modifiers, almost never giving time to the younger me who wanted to write a ghost story about a brave girl with freckles.

In the summer of 2013, I joined a class study abroad trip to England, ECI 509: Integrating Writing and Technology. The course was a part of my fast track to a PhD, another adult-self goal that my younger self might not have understood. When I signed up for the class, I anticipated learning more about technology, integrating technology into lesson plans, and writing with new media. I thought I was going forward, learning the new trends and how to bring them into my classroom. I had no idea that focusing on the different modes, expository, expressive, and poetic, would instead help me go back to find the freckle-faced writer I once was.

Expository writing is comfortable for me, and out of all the assignments in ECI 509, those were the ones I thought would be the easiest. After earning my master’s in technical communication and teaching writing for four years, I looked at the scribe report as a chance to show off my technical reporting skills. I eagerly signed up for the first slot available, thinking I could quickly write a meeting-style minutes summary of the first class. But on that first day, Dr. Pritchard changed my mind and my focus with special instructions. “Make sure you make this report your own,” she said. “Don’t just report on the day—share your reflections, your insight, what you saw and felt that day.” That afternoon, I went home with my notes and tried to change the “first we… then we…” language into a more personal account and reflection. I was surprised by how long it took me to complete, how hard it was to shift from my report-style writing nature. After so many years of trained technical writing, my instincts fought the notion to add reflections and insight. I experienced similar issues when I worked on the informal essay; my instinct was to concisely report the facts, when my goal was to comically explore what I thought could have been. Through the process, I found

Student Name: Sarah Glova

what felt like a new voice – but what was, in the end, a voice I’d once had, and just been ignoring.

Expressive writing required even more reflection. I’ll never forget the class when we had to design a room from memory. I sat with a blank mind, trying to picture a room – any room! – but could not think of how to start. Then, slowly, as we went through the exercise, memories began floating in, reminding me of smells, sights, and feelings. I had trouble grabbing these and writing them down at first, like trying to cup water in my hands. But as we kept writing, I found it easier to grab these memories and record what they were to me. After that assignment was over, I felt proud and strangely open. It was one of our shorter assignments, but it’s one of which I am the most proud. It wasn’t easy to do, but once I was able to get started, I found myself expressing sounds and thoughts and images… things that a kid me would have been able to pen easily, but an adult me had been out of practice at for some time.

The most difficult mode, by far, was the poetic mode. In every class, I was constantly reminding myself to try and think of my own course objectives, to consider how each assignment could relate to my technical writing students. When I came at our poetry assignments with this mindset, I hit a brick wall. Writing the Where I’m From poem, I tried to consider how the assignment might benefit my engineering students. Maybe they could try this on the first day? I thought. As a way to get to know one another? But no, my program director would have my head on a platter if he knew I wanted to start a technical writing class off with a reflective poem. And that was my distracted thought process as I sat amongst ECI 509 classmates who were eagerly jotting notes about their childhood homes. Finally, like a light bulb turning on, it hit me—this class is for me, not my students. Of course, there are many things I will take away from this course to help me in the class that I teach. But approaching each poem with the task of adapting it to my course did a disservice to the assignment and also to myself. Instead, I needed to focus on the writing task at hand. Once I did, allowing myself to think about a different kind of writing without trying to translate it into technical writing terms, I found myself exploring a new space. I was looking at words not for their overall merit in a sentence but for their individual weight in a line; I was listening to the sounds words made instead of just the one-sided meanings they held; and I was twisting metaphors to fit emotion behind my thoughts instead of trying to write for clarity, clarity, clarity. Overall, the assignments were the furthest from the kind of writing I do every day. But as I wrote acrostic poems and biographical poems, I found myself stretching my writing walls. I was being more creative, I was using words not in my typical lexicon, I was pulling for double meanings to help express complex ideas. The most surprising result was that, after resigning myself to the assignments and ignoring my instinct to adapt things to technical writing, I found myself expanding my writing skills in a way that could benefit all my writing, including my technical writing skills.

Overall, I’ve changed the way I see myself as a writer. I’ll always have a passion for technical writing, for designing audience-centered reports and manuals that make document design look like an art form. But after writing across the modes, I can see how practice in any mode helps writing skills overall. It’s like working out a muscle – you would never try just one exercise and expect that single exercise to build your muscle. No, real exercise involves

Student Name: Sarah Glova

a myriad of different moves and techniques, differing in time and strength and process. And so it is for writing; always writing in the same mode, taking your mind through the same exercise, is not the way to strengthen your writing skills. Instead, exploring many types of writings, challenging yourself out of your writing comfort zone, helps to strengthen all writing skills.

I had to go all the way to England to rediscover the mousey-haired girl I once was, the one who wasn’t scared to write anything. But doing so taught me a lesson I won’t soon forget. I’m not just a technical writer; I’m a writer. And I’ll try any kind of writing.