Book Title: Polyphony: Reader and Explorations for First-Year Writing

Book Description

Polyphony is a functional, creative, and radical resource for facilitating critical conversations about multilingualism, the politics of language, and linguistic justice in the first-year writing classroom. Moving away from conventional textbooks and composition handbooks, this book emphasizes open pedagogy, collaboration, and “polyphonic” approaches to first-year writing. The Reader includes key texts (written, audio, and video) that reflect diverse perspectives on themes like silencing/voicing, language extinction and reclamation, (in)visibility, translation, agency, and validation, among others. The Explorations section includes reading, writing, discussion, and research activities designed around each text in the Reader, and range from shorter in-class activities to longer plans that could span a week or two of class meetings. Designed for use by both instructors and students, this book is meant to be used in a variety of combinations and highlights multiple modes of writing, including personal narrative, textual analysis, argumentation, reflection, and research. Embracing a “polyphonic” approach to first-year writing, this book presents connections between texts, authors, and ideas that actively engage students and instructors in critical conversations about language, education, and the institutionalization of both.