Where Teachers and Students Meet: Exploring Perceptions in First-Year Composition

Abstract

Although scholars have examined undergraduate learning associated with Writing about Writing (WAW), there are no detailed studies of what students think, nor do we know how they perceive the differences between WAW and other, more traditional first-year writing courses. My study explores the connections between teachers’ pedagogical choices in first-year writing courses and students’ perceptions of learning in these courses. Through personal interviews with students and teachers, I examine how students perceive their own writing and how teachers perceive what their teaching methods can accomplish in first-year composition.