Emily Kobel
SUPA 2021
WRT 105
Workshop Reflection & Flashpoints
1. “Many of the tools, materials, and procedures are familiar to you. Most of the types of furniture you are
supposed to build have legs and tops, like footstools, but some do not, and there are also drawers, doors,
shelves and frames, hinges and pulls, dovetail or mortise and tenon joints…” (Hjortshoj, 34).
➔ This is one of the first points of the workshop that really stuck with me. I am a very visual learner, so
situations where I can visualize a concept are really helpful to me. The extended metaphor in
Hjortshoj’s Footstools and Furniture showed me the importance of genre. This is something I’ve
learned about and touched on in previous classes...but the way Hjortshoj outlines the way we learn
to write in school is so important. When first coming into this workshop, I was already feeling a
little “ashamed” of the work I’ve done in the past few years with middle schoolers. This work was
the classic footstool essay...teaching students how to outline their ideas and connect them back to
sources in a very formulaic manner. Hjortshoj explains that this work is not inherently “bad” for the
writing process, it is just important to know that footstools are footstools. The skills learned in
building them can be applied to other pieces of furniture...but not always. In these cases, it is
extremely important to get uncomfortable and experiment with genre.
2. “A common misunderstanding about the thesis is that it must appear throughout the paper in essentially
the same form- fixed and unchanging. In fact, it is only a weakly developed thesis thus that, like an inert
material, neither makes anything happen nor undergoes any change itself…” (Writing Analytically, 182).
➔ Yet again, another point in the workshop that stuck with me! This was an entirely new idea for me,
where Footstools and Furniture expanded my thinking. I was always taught that a thesis needs to be
strict and fixed. Throughout high school, throughout college, throughout professional development.
The thesis was always something that brings the reader back to the point. Reading about the
evolving thesis made a lightbulb go off in my head. Why should a thesis be fixed? Why shouldn’t a
piece of writing mimic a human thinking process...changing and evolving ideas as new information
is presented and analyzed? This section made me excited to get to work on thesis construction with
my students!
3. “There are multiple purposes attached to rhetorical sourcing: to appreciate and engage with sources not
simply as “information” but as arguments with distinct purposes and perspectives that require
interpretation and negotiation…” (Rhetorical Sourcing Heuristic).
➔ This point reinforced something that I’ve had a lot of trouble teaching in the past few years. I really
believe the readings, exercises and conversations in this workshop helped me learn the best way to
get students to interact with their sources. Much like we discussed in the workshop, many students
avoid working with sources as much as possible. They find a source, see a quotation on the second
page that could fit with their writing, and move on. The source isn’t always used in an analytical way,
but rather a way to reaffirm students’ own writing. Source work can really open up multiple
perspectives and can help students go really interesting directions with their writing. Students
should look at sources from a rhetorical standpoint and interact with them, not just use them
quickly and move on. This workshop helped me explore how to dive deeper into analysis with many
heuristics like this one, also including: the critical summary heuristic and the focused free write
heuristic.
Demographic & Departmental Report on Mount Morris Junior/Senior High School
Mount Morris Junior/Senior High School is the upper level school in Mount Morris Central School District.
The Junior/Senior High School includes grades 7-12 and is located in the same building as the elementary school.
Mount Morris Junior/Senior High School has roughly 240 students in total. Our graduation rate is 93% and we are
on a level 4 on a scale of College, Career & Civic Readiness (rating from 1 to 4). Most students enrolled are of low
socioeconomic status. Our school is a small, very tight knit community that encourages multiple pathways after
graduation.
This course continues to fit into the departmental offerings of Mount Morris because of its versatility. While
our school has a high graduation rate, many students are headed into a career rather than going to college. This
class is beneficial for both because it will transfer to many local colleges, but will also be relevant writing for many
possible careers. The skills learned in WRT 105 are many that can carry on into multiple careers and life situations.
Overall, this is the only advanced English course at Mount Morris. Students are in a normal progression
through standard English classes until they get the chance to take WRT 105 and ENG 192 their senior year. This
class offers the students who want more in English and writing to experience just that, and it gives them a sense of
what they will experience in college. This course gives students an opportunity to achieve more in an English class
and experience an advanced way of writing and analysis.