Blog #8: First Post

The chapter on "Communication Across the Curriculum" by Young describes what CAC entails. Communication across the Curriculum is similar to WAC but recognizes the importance of oral communication, visual communication, critical thinking, collaboration, problem-based learning, and other active leaning strategies (55). I believe this is very important to include in a classroom because you are challenging a student to use every aspect of their mind to promote learning. There is no set way to teach students so If you incorporate many different strategies you can reach more students. Many students will find it boring to write about a newspaper article, and those students can use their visual communication skills by writing about a picture in the newspaper rather than reading.

Chapter 3 of WACNM discusses how electronic communication tools are reshaping and expanding academic instruction, adding dimensions of learning not possible in the traditional way of getting students to learn. Do you think using electronics to promote learning is useful? What problems may students have with using electronics in the classroom?

I found it quite ironic that Kress' article English at the Crossroads, discusses how visual media and print has changed over the year and how it effects its audience, and the article itself was visually impairing to read because it was sideways. I am not that computer savvy and do not know how to rotate a web browser window. Maybe electronics should have been implemented more when I was in grade school. Anyhow I believe this article was very interesting because I never really analyzed or even considered how visual media effects people. According to Kress, "The visual is becoming more prominent in many domains of public communication. This is to realize that written language is being displaced from its hitherto unchallenged central position in the semiotic landscape, and that the visual is taking over many of the functions of written language" (68).

I fell like there was so much information on this section of readings that It was to much to cover in just one 450 word blog.

Do you think that WAC should be replaced by Communication across the Curriculum and Electronic Communication Across the Communication, since this the world is becoming more computer savvy and more a more college students are using distant learning for higher education?

Do you think learning the fundamentals of writing will become obsolete with the advancement of auto summary, spell check and proof reader?

--Morales

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