Page 313 - Foundations of Learning, 4th Edition (Revised)

ACTIVITY 11.3

Interviewing about Reading and Writing in a Discipline

Learning skills: taking an interest in others, inquiring, exploring context

WHY

Although there are standard criteria for writing college essays, each field has its particular criteria for what
makes a strong piece of writing in that field. Knowing the criteria and tips for reading in that field will help
you read and write in that field. A literature instructor might ask you to reflect deeply on the connections of
a story to the “human condition” in an essay. This gives you the hint that you should look for such themes
in a work of literature. A chemistry instructor, on the other hand, might ask you to look for the specific steps
and parameters of an experiment when you are reading a chemistry textbook. This suggests that a chemistry
report should contain, as an old television character used to say, “just the facts, ma’am.” Interviewing a
variety of instructors from various disciplines and sharing what you have learned with your classmates will
give you a wider base of knowledge on which to gauge your reading and writing in specific disciplines.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Increase skills in scheduling an interview, asking relevant questions, taking notes, and processing
information.

2. Identify the different qualities valued in written work in various fields.
3. You should be able to read and write more effectively in different fields.

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA

Criterion #1: the interview questions you create
Attributes:
a. allow for personal and creative responses
b. allow you to obtain useful information

Criterion #2: the results you share with your group
Attributes:
a. are based upon the interview you conducted and notes you took or collected
b. share the important aspects of the interview responses

Chapter 11 — Writing in College 307