reading and writing

Robertson, Taczak, & Yancey “Notes toward a Theory of Prior Knowledge and Its Role in College  Composers’ Transfer of Knowledge and Practice”

Key Terms Prior Knowledge (include absent prior knowledge) Transfer (explain in more detail than with Wardle including near vs. far transfer, high-road vs. low-road transfer, positive vs. negative transfer, and hugging vs. bridging) Metacognition Boundary Crossers Boundary Guarders “not-talk” Assemblage Remix Critical Incidents

Guiding Questions (These are intended as ways of provoking your reflection and  thought; do not feel that you must answer all or even any of them. Your task is to reflect on and  respond the ideas of the article through analysis and comparison to your own experiences)

What might make transfer of writing knowledge so difficult (Think about how concepts like near vs. far and low vs. high-road transfer relate to writing)?

What role does prior knowledge play transfer? In learning? What experiences have you had with attempting to use prior knowledge in new situations? Was your attempt to use prior knowledge helpful or unhelpful?

Why might it be important to “accept noviceship” in learning to write? Why do Robertson, Taczak, and Yancey connect this to boundary crossers?

Why might a focus on “imaginative literature” in English courses in high school be a problem? How much of your previous writing experience was focused on analysis of imaginative literature or writing stories, poems, or personal essays? How does the writing of imaginative texts like stories, poems, novels, creative nonfiction essays differ from other types of writing?

Why might an assemblage approach to prior knowledge be a problem? Is remix the preferred strategy, or does it still have limitations as well? Could there be alternatives to assemblage and remix that do not require critical incidents?

Do you see yourself as someone who tends to practice assemblage or remix? Have you had any critical incidents? Did they lead you to change how you approached writing? How might you work at more effectively applying but also revising your prior knowledge?