Open AccessPhD Students Learning the Process of Academic Writing: The Role of the Rhetorical Rectangle
Author(s) -
Beverly FitzPatrick,
Michael Chong,
James Tuff,
Sana Jamil,
Khalid Al Hariri,
Taylor Stocks,
Christopher Cumby
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
discourse and writing/rédactologie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2563-7320
DOI - 10.31468/dwr.873
Subject(s) - rhetorical question , ethos , pathos , pedagogy , narrative , feeling , writing process , psychology , academic writing , professional writing , kairos , rhetoric , mathematics education , sociology , literature , art , social psychology , linguistics , philosophy
PhD students are enculturated into scholarly writing through relationships with their supervisors and other faculty. As part of a doctoral writing group, we explored students’ experiences that affected their writing, both cognitively and affectively, and how these experiences made them feel about themselves as academic writers. Six first and second year doctoral students participated in formal group discussions, using Edward de Bono’s (1985/1992) Six Thinking Hats to guide the discussions. In addition, the students wrote personal narratives about their writing experiences. Data were analyzed according to the rhetorical rectangle of logos, ethos, pathos, and kairos. Analysis revealed that students were having struggles with their identities as academic writers, not feeling as confident as they had before their programs, and questioning some of the pedagogy of teaching academic writing.