Thinking Through Theory: Vygotskian Perspectives On The Teaching Of Writing

Thinking Through Theory: Vygotskian Perspectives on the Teaching of Writing

We live in a time of theory. But what kind of intellectual work does theory accomplish? What sort of relations might exist between theory and writing practices? What might the teacher and student of writing have to say to the theorist? And, finally, what are the limits of theory? These are some of the questions that Thinking Through Theoryexplores.Thinking Through Theory tracks one teacher's encounter with theory for over a decade. It investigates theory arising out of a Russian and eastern European tradition of language study. Relying mostly on the work of Lev Vygotsky, but making use of related theory found in Volosinov, Bakhtin, and Lotman, the author composes his own classroom-based theory of writing in sixteen accessible essays that explore the contexts, texts, subjectivities, and collectivities that writing constructs. He examines the history of a concept as that concept is tested, revised, and refined, and then shows how this process reflects the history of debates in the field and practices in the classroom.Review"Zebroski's book is a needed bridge uniting Vygotskian theory and composition studies."-Rhetoric Society QuarterlyAbout the AuthorJames Thomas Zebroski has taught in a variety of contexts for over twenty years. After five years of teaching in public schools at the junior and senior high levels, he studied at Ohio State University where he received his doctorate in 1983. He has taught college writing from the freshman course to the doctoral seminar and has published widely on the social dimensions of the composing processes. Presently, he is associate professor of writing and English at Syracuse University where he teaches undergraduate writing studios and graduate courses in composition theory, history, and politics. Growing up in what is now known as the Rust Belt, but at the time was called the heartland, Zebroski is currently interested in his working class and ethnic heritage and the ways that cultural difference contributes to development.