The Medium is the Message: Reading Literature on the Page

Reading on the screen relies more on the visual cortex and reading on the page relies more on the language centers. When we read a page, our eyes move in a series of short, rapid movements called saccades, followed by a brief pause during which the brain processes the information. This process is called the "fixation-regression" cycle, and it allows us to comprehend and retain information efficiently and it takes place in our language centers. It also means that during this process we translate the information into symbols and mediate it through what I would term imagination, or the ground of what John Keats calls our “negative capability.”

Compound Phrasing in Bangla (notes from Syed Mujtuba Ali)

I was reading a short essay by Syed Mujtaba Ali titled "ভাষা"। In it he points out the peculiar feature of Bangla where we create compound words where the first term is Bangla and the second term is a same word in another language. This second words tend to come from Arabic, Hindi, Farsi, English, …

Framing 101: How to Take Back Public Discourse

That is what framing is about. Framing is about getting language that fits your worldview. It is not just language. The ideas are primary and the language carries those ideas, evokes those ideas.

using the progressive disclosure principle in academic writing

I work a lot with artists and designers. Because I’m a bit of a magpie, I have a habit of collecting – and then using – their principles and approaches. A lot of them are interesting, because they make you – well, they make me – stop and think a bit.  I reckon that visiting …

New chapter on plurilingualism and religious texts by 19th century Muslim Bengali communities (ask me if you need a copy)

Rabbi, S. “The Sociolinguistics of South Asian Cosmopolitan Literature: The Dubhasa (Mixed Language Modes) of the Puthi Tradition in Muslim Bengal.” In J. Lee (Ed.) The Sociolinguistics of Global Asias (pp. 156-170). New York: Routledge. Abstract: Scholars of language have long been interested in the widespread plurilingualism of South Asian communication. These linguistic practices provide …

The Heart of the Learner

Today’s blog outlines five steps educators can implement to ensure that we are approaching our work from a learner first perspective. Thank you to …The Heart of the Learner

Some nice ideas on marking and feedback

https://researchschool.org.uk/durrington/news/responsive-teaching-in-turbulent-timesSome nice ideas on marking and feedback

Classroom Engagement

https://teacherhead.com/2021/12/07/five-ways-to-sustain-student-attention/Classroom Engagement

Piece on the Uptake Processes of Feedback in the Journal of Response to Writing

This is my new article in the Journal of Response to Writing titled "Uptake Processes in Academic Genres: The Socialization of an Advanced Academic Writer Through Feedback Activities." In this study I examine and interpret the case of a graduate student negotiating in-person and textually mediated feedback in research group meetings and reviewers' letters. I …

Writing as an imaginary conversation with your reader

It’s the end of #acwrimo!! Did you take part in Academic Writing Month this year? I certainly did. It was lockdown, so this year we made a big deal of it at ANU. Not to put too fine a point on it, I taught my ass off. You can see some of the workshops I…Writing …