For the first time, the major theoretical and pedagogical approaches to genre and related issues of social construction are presented in a single volume, providing an overview of the state of the art for practitioners in applied linguistics, ESL/EFL pedagogies, rhetoric, and composition studies around the world. Unlike volumes that present one theoretical stance, this book attempts to give equal time to all theoretical and pedagogical camps. Included are chapters by authors from the Sydney School, the New Rhetoric, and English for Specific Purposes, as well as contributions from other practitioners who pose questions that cross theoretical lines.
"Genre in the Classroom: "
*includes all of the major theoretical views of genre that influence pedagogical practice;
*takes an international approach, drawing from all parts of the world in which genre theory has been applied in the classroom--Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, the Middle East, the United States;
*features contributors who are all both theorists and classroom practitioners, lending credibility and authenticity to the arguments;
*combines theory and practice in every chapter, showing how particular theoretical views influence classroom practice;
*grounds pedagogical practices in their own regional and theoretical histories;
*openly discusses problems and questions that genre theory raises and presents some of the solutions suggested; and
*offers a concluding chapter that argues for two macro-genres, and with responses to this argument by noted genre theorists from three theoretical camps.

For the first time, the major theoretical and pedagogical approaches to genre and related issues of social construction are presented in a single volume, providing an overview of the state of the art for practitioners in applied linguistics, ESL/EFL pedagogies, rhetoric, and composition studies around the world. Unlike volumes that present one theoretical stance, this book attempts to give equal time to all theoretical and pedagogical camps. Included are chapters by authors from the Sydney School, the New Rhetoric, and English for Specific Purposes, as well as contributions from other practitioners who pose questions that cross theoretical lines.
"Genre in the Classroom: "
*includes all of the major theoretical views of genre that influence pedagogical practice;
*takes an international approach, drawing from all parts of the world in which genre theory has been applied in the classroom--Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, the Middle East, the United States;
*features contributors who are all both theorists and classroom practitioners, lending credibility and authenticity to the arguments;
*combines theory and practice in every chapter, showing how particular theoretical views influence classroom practice;
*grounds pedagogical practices in their own regional and theoretical histories;
*openly discusses problems and questions that genre theory raises and presents some of the solutions suggested; and
*offers a concluding chapter that argues for two macro-genres, and with responses to this argument by noted genre theorists from three theoretical camps.

"Teaching from a Multicultural Perspective, one of the volumes in Sage's Survival Skills for Scholars series, is a commonsense primer for developing multicultural pedagogies, courses, curricula, and most important, institutions. Helen Roberts and her associates set out practical strategies and principles for teaching, mentoring, and fostering the academic (and personal) success of minority and nontraditional students. Although this book covers issues relating to multiculturalism on campus that may already be familiar to many of us, it nonetheless should be of interest to advisors who also teach, who are involved in teacher training, or who are involved in resource networking, and who would like to share a basic introduction to the issues with new instructors or other advisors. . . . They valuably stress the role academic advisors can play in the success of minority students." --Brady Harrison in The Journal of the National Academic Advising Association How do you welcome the growing number of culturally diverse students in your classroom without alienating, condescending, or offending them? The authors of this collaborative volume, all experienced teachers and administrators in the ethnically heterogeneous California State University system, outline how to teach "multiculturally." They suggest a set of classroom strategies, curriculum reforms, assessment tools, and mentoring relationships that work for all students, regardless of their cultural background--or yours. The authors contend that cultural diversity is an issue for all faculty members to address regardless of your discipline or the ethnic composition of your campus. With the material in this volume, you can begin to meet the challenge of the truly multicultural university.

The idea of teaching writing through genres — rather than, say, through prescriptive forms, templates, and rhetorical modes — is intuitively appealing. Yet many teachers have questions, and they are absolutely right to ask them: What are genres? What is genre-based instruction? What do students write if they don’t write essays? Isn’t it easier to teach and learn five-paragraph essays? What’s the role of language in genre teaching? And many more. These are all excellent questions and ones that new and experienced teachers alike have also struggled with. This book sets out to tackle some of the most common questions that teachers, teacher educators, and administrators may have when moving toward a genre-based teaching approach.  

This volume explores fundamental issues relating to student literacies and instructor roles and practices within academic contexts. After presenting a brief history of literacy theories, the author argues for "socioliterate" approaches to teaching and learning in which texts are viewed as primarily socially-constructed. Central to socioliteracy are two concepts, "genre" and "discourse community," each of which is presented in some detail. The author then argues for roles for literacy practitioners in which they and their students conduct research and are involved in joint pedagogical endeavors with faculty and students. The final chapters are devoted to outlining how the views presented can be applied to a variety of classroom texts. Core curricular design principles are outlined, and three types of portfolio-based academic literacy classrooms are described.

Studying language, discourses, and contexts of use--as well as student needs, in the broadest sense--and "then "applying these findings to the pedagogical practices, is what distinguishes ESP from other branches of applied linguistics and language teaching. The fundamental arguments in this volume are that ESP researchers must use all of the tools available to systematically assess the needs, identities, and issues faced by learners and the language and discourses of their contexts--as well as the "frames" brought to the context by the researchers themselves. In addition, ESP researchers must continue to develop the convergence between research, teaching, and learning as the profession continues to advance. This volume has two parts: Issues in ESP Research, which includes chapters by Ken Hyland, Brian Paltridge and Wei Wang, An Cheng, Diane Belcher and Lauren Lukkarila, and Anna Mauranen, and Methodologies and ESP Research, which includes chapters by John Flowerdew, Christine Tardy, Sue Starfield, Ann Johns and Leketi Makalela, Lynne Flowerdew, and Magdi Kandil and Diane Belcher. Fittingly, John Swales, the father of ESP and author of "Episodes of ESP," has contributed some remarks to close this important volume about the future of ESP.

This volume was written to make the case for changes in second language writing practices away from the five-paragraph essay and toward purposeful, meaningful writing instruction. As the volume editors say, "If you have already rejected the five-paragraph essay, we offer validation and classroom-tested alternatives. If you are new to teaching L2 writing, we introduce critical issues you will need to consider as you plan your lessons and as you consider/review the textbooks and handbooks that continue to promote the teaching of the five-paragraph essay. If you need ammunition to present to colleagues and administrators, we present theory, research, and pedagogy that will benefit students from elementary to graduate school. If you are skeptical about our claims, we invite you to review the research presented here and consider what your students could do beyond writing a five-paragraph essay if you enacted these changes in practice." Part 1 discusses what the five-paragraph essay is not: it is not a very old, established form of writing; it is not a genre; and it is not universal. Part 2 looks at writing practices to show the essay's ineffectiveness in elementary schools, secondary schools, first-year writing classes, university writing courses, undergraduate discipline courses, and graduate school. Part 3 looks beyond the classroom at testing. At the end of each chapter, the authors--all well-known in the field of second language writing--suggest changes to teaching practices based on their theoretical approach and classroom experience. The book closes by reviewing some of the major questions raised in the book, by exploring which questions have been left unanswered, and by offering suggestions for teachers who want to move away from the five-paragraph essay. An assignment sequence for genre-aware writing instruction is included.

These essays guide teachers to understanding and acknowledging the complexities of today's college students and offer real world solutions. With the varied approaches and purposes of the chapters, diversity -- much like in the real world -- here is broadly defined and not neatly categorized.
All of the contributors are from San Diego State University, a place whose work on linked communities is well known. These diverse contributors have written about their own lives, work, and experiences inside the classroom.