Literacy is subversive

Recently, I had the pleasure with David Cutler to speak to Rae Pica from Studentcentricity, BAM Radio's Internet educator radio show . Radio interviews are fairly new for me; I haven't been on the radio since Jennifer Moranda and I hosted a sports radio show in high school! David Cutler and I on Studentcentricity, BAM Radio The interview pace zinged almost faster than my brain, but Cutler and I agreed on so much! Students need real writing tasks that they help choose with real audiences and real feedback. We both teach a class devoted to publishing ( the Modes of Writing has been producing great stuff! ) and trust that our students can handle real feedback that helps them grow as writers. Please give the 10-minute radio interview a listen. I could use feedback on how to improve my performance in that particular format; it's so different that than an elevator speech or hour-long professional development. You can read more about these ideas at Twitter:   @SpinEdu ,...

I would love feedback on this essay and poem pair to improve them and get them ready for publication. Please give me feedback in the comments. I want to have a serious discussion with you today about zombies. Although I like science fiction and fantasy, my identification with particular characters has never been strong. I’ve never felt the need to buy elf ears, vampire glitter, Star Trek uniforms, or Renaissance dresses. Perhaps my sense of whimsy is broken. But in the last decade, I have developed a fascination for zombies in my media: Day of the Dead, Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Walking Dead, etc. It wasn’t clear to me why. I don’t believe in actual zombies. They lack glamour for a good Halloween costume.  I dislike the genres of horror and goth usually. And yet. I needed to laugh at them, to shudder at their sudden flesh-eating appearance on screen. I eventually made the connection that I associate methamphetamine users with zombies. T...