Two Abilene Christian University professors have shown students how English is changing the world, and they are teaching other professors how to do the same.
The curriculum of Dr. B. Cole Bennett and Dr. Kyle Dickson, both assistant professors of English at ACU, encouraged ACU students to write essays decribing their closely-held beliefs based on the national "This I Believe" project. The two have developed the curriculum over the past year. Bennett and Dickson presented this curriculum for "This I Believe" essays at the recent Conference on College Composition and Communication.
Dickson spoke on "Teaching the Audio Essay: Podcasting and Praxis in the 'This I Believe' Curriculum," while Bennett presented on the topic "From Public to Private and Back Again: Recovering Delivery for Rhetorical Narrative."
"The 'This I Believe' curriculum we have developed asks students to not only tap into closely-valued individual creeds and beliefs and to articulate them, but also to ultimately present them to a listening radio audience, using illustrations from their own lives," Bennett said in his conference presentation. "These are sophisticated tasks, moving them away from the penchant to invoke grand narratives to the more subtle task of choosing representative, inductive vignettes."
According to their website, "This I Believe" is an "international project engaging people in writing, sharing and discussing the core values that guide their daily lives." People from all over the world submit essays containing their statements of belief.
Dickson's and Bennett's curriculum has been posted on the national "This I Believe" website and has been downloaded more than 500 times by people in all 50 states.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are a member of the media who would like more information about this release, please contact ACU's Public Relations Office .
