Although we have all put in our textbook orders for Spring, 2017 (thanks, Jason!), for those of us using Open Access texts in FYW courses, it is still (almost) not too late to make a few changes to our course texts, which generally include a Rhetoric, or approach to thinking and talking about writing, a Handbook, or style and usage guidelines, and Readings, or what students/writers in your course will be writing in response to. While we continue to work towards 100% Open Access course materials for FYW@City Tech, we are not yet quite there. Nevertheless, we are getting there. Here is a brief update regarding some recommended Open Access and low-cost texts for FYW courses:
Handbook
The Purdue OWL has become the de-facto standard for the Open Access English Handbook in FYW courses at City Tech and nation-wide. You may want to consider using this resource in your FYW course. For those looking for a slightly easier to use portal to the Purdue OWL, you may want to consider using Professor Rodgers’ Open Access English Handbook. These free, web-based resources are great for students who are comfortable working exclusively with online texts. However, for students who would prefer a print-based English handbook, you may want to consider using Good Writing Made Simple, a handbook written specifically for City Tech students, or the 8th edition of the MLA Handbook. Priced at $15 for a paperback print edition, this edition of the MLA Handbook has been very thoughtfully revised to assist writers in understanding the research process and research documentation in a new media context. What is more, the Purdue OWL now has a wonderful, brief, and rhetorically-oriented introduction to this edition of the MLA Handbook, along with a brief user’s guide. For instructors interested in incorporating an “English Handbook Assignment” into their FYW course, feel free to use this one.
Readings
While most FYW instructors incorporate some Open Access digital texts into their course, many still opt for a combination of print and digital texts. A significant number of FYW instructors have structured their courses around themes related to place-based writing and New York City and have, as a result, adopted The Place Where We Dwell. A number of FYW instructors have also opted to adopt an edition of They Say/I Say that includes readings. For those interested in exploring Open Access options, these abound, and, include:
City Tech ENG1101/ENG1121 Open Access Reader
Digital Composition Open Access Reader
Writing Spaces I: Readings on Writing
Writing Spaces II: Readings on Writing
Rhetoric
Having left it up to FYW instructors to select and/or design their own Rhetoric for FYW courses at City Tech, there has been, to date, little consensus regarding which Rhetoric to use. However, this may be changing as more and more instructors choose to incorporate either the Open Access Edition of the Norton Field Guide, or Professor Rodgers’ Open Access Rhetoric into their courses. For those teaching literature courses, the “Writing About Literature” resources on Norton’s LitWeb site are not to be missed, nor are the Purdue OWL Writing About Literature materials.
