Writing Centers: An Annotated Bibliography

by Joe Law, Christina Murphy, Steve Sherwood

Writing centers play an important role in secondary and higher education. This reference work synthesizes writing center scholarship and overviews 90 years of discussions of writing center theory and practice. The introduction places writing centers within the larger context of writing pedagogy and investigates the paradigms and philosophies reflected in the evolution of writing centers. The entries are organized in topical chapters, and the work addresses important subjects such as the relationship of writing centers to literacy education, writing across the curriculum, the discipline of rhetoric and composition, and writing program administration. With the growing emphasis on collaborative learning and the implementation of new approaches to teaching composition, writing centers have moved to the forefront of American education. Writing centers are found in high schools, community colleges, four-year colleges, and large universities, and thousands of students benefit from them. While writing centers provide students with practical assistance, the centers are firmly grounded in theory. This bibliography overviews the tremendous amount of scholarship on writing centers and provides a useful overview of ninety years of research in the field. The introduction places writing centers within the larger context of writing pedagogy and investigates the paradigms and philosophies reflected in the evolution of writing centers. The bibliographical entries that make up the bulk of the volume are grouped in topical chapters. Each entry includes a citation and a descriptive annotation. Topics covered include the history of writing centers, theoretical and administrative concerns, the relationship of writing centers to literacy education, writing across the curriculum, and the larger discipline of rhetoric and composition.

304 pages, Hardcover

First published September 30, 1996