Many students presented research relating to Professional Writing and Rhetoric in Tuesday’s SURF Day as a part of Celebrate! Week.
There were a variety of projects ranging from discussions on social media, case studies on group work, and discussions of metaphors and how they impact our understanding of climate change.
Senior Emily Bishop participated in the SURF Day poster session on her Professional Writing and Rhetoric senior seminar project, “How Small Businesses Can Leverage Social Media Sites for More Sales.” In her poster, she compiled data on social media use and discussed it in the context of the small business world.
Students presenting at SURF. From left to right: Avery McGaha, Emily Bishop, Kim Lilienthal, and Kyle Whitaker
Kyle Whitaker also presented at the poster session about his study of how writing is valued by high school students in his project titled, “The Academic and Self-Sponsored Writing Lives of High School Students: Implications for Writing Curricula & Pedagogy”
Following the SURF poster session, Professional Writing and Rhetoric and Literature Double Concentration and Honors Fellow Kim Lilienthal presented her thesis research, “Using Critical Thinking to Enhance Second Language Acquisition: A Case Study in the Role of Group Work in Mainstream Classes.” Kim used one student as an example to showcase what she learned during her time in the classroom.
Avery McGaha followed with his project, “Melting Down the Rhetoric of Climate Change.” He discussed how the metaphor of “war” used in our discussion of climate change makes people feel as if they have to pick a side, politicizes the discussion of climate change, and makes it feel as if we need to or are being attacked, which limits our understanding and thought on climate change.
Interested in getting involved with SURF? Click here to learn more!
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