Johnson-Eilola (2005) *Datacloud: Toward a New Theory of Online Work"

Johnson-Eilola, Johndan. Toward a New Theory of Online Work. Cresskill, New Jersey: Hampton Press, Inc., 2005. Print.

Authors as Symbolic-Analytic Workers

People in this type of work identify, rearrange, circulate, abstract, and broker information in response to specific, concrete situations. They work with information and symbols to produce reports, plans, and proposals. They also tend to work online, either communicating with peers (they rarely have direct supervision) or manipulating symbols. (28)

Johndan Johnson-Eilola’s description quoted above is in reference to “symbolic-analytic workers”—those folks working under titles such as “investment banker, research scientist, lawyer, management consultant, strategic planner, and architect” (28). I imagine for individuals researching in the field of comp/rhet—like me—this passage can be read synonymously as the work of writers writing. We too “identify, rearrange, circulate, abstract, and broker information in response to specific, concrete situations.” We too “work with information and symbols to produce reports, plans, and proposals” among other genres of writing. We too “tend to work online either communicating with peers…or manipulating symbols” through various avenues of collaboration, most times without “direct supervision” or explicit direction or guidance from our mentors or superiors. For me, writers—whether we’re novice students writing in first year comp or we’re seasoned professors writing for publication—can be seen as “symbolic-analytic workers.” While I imagine for compositionists this analogy may not be all that surprising, I was struck by imagining this analogy, mostly because I personally hadn’t ever given much attention to analyzing the role of digital technology when it came to “academic writing.” Of course, I considered the possible limitations of generic formats such as Word when it comes to composing (which the author nicely criticizes on page 105 as too linear for the ‘clouds of data’ strategically negotiated and creatively assembled by today’s digital worker), and I’d considered how much technology impacted our research practices, but I guess I just hadn’t given much credit to (nor really acknowledged the potential possibilities of) digital technology when it came to our writing formats and practices. I was realizing the limitations of writing genres, but I wasn’t realizing any real alternatives for transforming them.

Johnson-Eilola, a teacher of writing and innovator of transformative approaches to genres for writing, (see Johnson-Eilola and Selber’s “Plagiarism, Originality, Assemblage,” which I need to revisit since now buying into Johnson-Eilola’s argument here) apparently makes similar connections as mine as is apparent with his likening of symbolic-analytic workers to rhetoricians. His emphasis, though, remains on the intersection of technology and rhetoric: “we might think of symbolic-analytic workers as technical rhetoricians or rhetorical technologists” (29). When it comes to the modern understanding of the term “rhetoricians,” it’s now a bit challenging for me to separate the two terms “rhetoric” and “technology,” especially when it comes to writing (which, as I can’t seem to stress enough, surprised the hell out of me).

If ya’ll are interested—as I am now—in learning about some of the ways that Johnson-Eilola has implemented a transformed approach to writing genres in the writing classroom, you might want to check out his article from Computers and Composition, “Plagiarism, Originality, Assemblage,” that he co-authored with Selber. We read this in Becky’s authorship class and I plan to revisit it since now buying into many of Johnson-Eilola’s arguments in Datacloud. See my blog below to read the summary I wrote on this text last semester.

Johnson-Eilola and Selber (2007) "Plagiarism, Originality, Assemblage"

Johnson-Eilola, Johndan, and Stewart Selber. "Plagiarism, Originality, Assemblage." Computers and Composition 24.4 (2007): 375-403.

Summary

In their article titled, “Plagiarism, originality, assemblance,” published in Communication and Composition in 2007, authors Johndan Johnson-Eilola and Stuart A. Selber propose a new approach to composition instruction, one that complicates traditional views of plagiarism and originality. They construct their argument by first criticizing the common practice in composition instruction where assessment of student writing is based on students’ ability to produce original ideas as inspired by their reading of other texts—projects where students are asked to illustrate their new and unique perspectives, using sources in their arguments or analyses only as secondary background information or supporting evidence. The authors criticize this traditional method for maintaining hierarchical assessment practices, where exceedingly more value is placed on the students’ unique contributions and originality, rather than the student’s practices of consulting, framing, modeling, and/or quoting texts during the composition process.

It is suggested that the traditional approach assumes that students’ ideas and writing are the intellectual property of students and not the product of social, cultural, and historical contexts—contexts where writing is inherently shaped by discursive practices and the intertextual nature of texts. The authors demonstrate that traditional practices, therefore, reinforce notions of the “lone, creative genius” and ultimately weaken other scholars’ recent attempts for reimagining complicated concepts such as plagiarism, authority, and creativity (Howard, 2000; Porter, 2006; Price, 2002; and Spigelman, 2000 are cited as examples). The authors further explain that placing such value on student originality is counterproductive since it results in students being more likely to plagiarize: if teachers value most students’ unique creativity, students may be more inclined to hide their borrowing and appropriation of texts in order to appear as the original authors of ideas or sentences.

In response to their criticism of the traditional approach, Johnson-Eilola and Selber argue that instructors should design projects where students problem-solve through “assemblance”—a practice where writers borrow, remix, and reformulate texts into new texts. Instead of instructors valuing most a students’ unique originality and fresh contributions, this approach recognizes that all writing is an assemblance of ideas, words, and discursive practices and that students can find creativity in reconstructing this information in new ways. Since the authors claim that such borrowing and sharing of practices have been accepted and widely adopted in other disciplines and contexts, they support their argument for this new approach with examples of “remix” and “assemblage” found in web design, music, films, and architecture.

Ultimately, their examples work to illustrate a number of qualities apparent in this new approach: how originality is accomplished through assemblance of other texts, discourses, and formats; how authors and creators borrowed are still cited or otherwise acknowledged when remixed; how assemblance requires substantial rhetorical sophistication and should not be viewed as mindless copying and pasting; how plagiarism likely decreases with approaches such as assemblance since writers are less inclined to hide their borrowing of sources; and how common creativity is promoted through the remixing of others’ ideas and texts. While it is not their goal to have remixing practices replace all approaches to teaching composition, the authors ask that instructors at the very least include new practices in hopes of deconstructing hierarchies that limit the value of remix, collage, and assemblance in composition.

CCR 760: Dias, Freedman, Medway, and Pare (1999) *Worlds Apart*

Dias, Patrick, Aviva Freedman, Peter Medway, and Anthony Pare. Worlds Apart: Acting and Writing in Academic and Workplace Contexts. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1999.

Chapter 1: “Introduction: Researching Writing at School and at Work

Reading Notes (scroll to end for my questions)

· Research question driving this book: “What are the relationships between writing as it is elicited in the university and writing as it is generated in the workplace? A particular stress we give to that question is: how and to what extent can we speak of writing in school settings as preparation for writing at work?” (3).

· A fantastic take on writing! They “acknowledge that writing is not a single clearly deniable skill acquired once and for all; that writing is shaped fundamentally by its sociocultural context; that writing is often more than transcription or communication, and that, certainly in school, writing functions as a way of learning and knowing (and not just a way of demonstrating learning and knowing); that the functions of writing carry widely—from making discoveries to impacting knowledge, from persuading to asserting status, from establishing credibility to negotiating power; that there is considerable variation in strategy—by individual and by task or context; that, in some settings, composing is an intensely collaborative activity, involving intricate layers of responding and revising, each with its own complex political and social dimensions. Writing, in other words, is a very complex act; to understand what is being accomplished in writing in any social setting requires lengthy in-depth observation and analysis” (4).

· Writing based on the social theory of writing: “[Writing] is not discrete clearly definable skill learned once and for all; moreover, both in school and at work, writing is seldom the product of isolated individuals but rather and seldom obviously, the outcome of continuing collaboration, of interactions that involve other people and other texts. Writing practices are closely linked to their sociocultural contexts, and writing strategies vary with individual and situation” (9-10).

· History of composition as related to their text:

o >1960s: writing was teaching rhetorical structures; modeling and imitation privileged; student experiences central to content; no research/investigation

o 1970s: student population changes so teaching changes too

§ focus on writing as a process: invention, writing, and revision are key

§ WAC helps make all disciplines responsible for students learning to write

§ New Criticism (writing as stagnant) switches to New Critical (writing as context-specific)

o 1980s: genre theory helps folks to see writing as social, context-specific, not autonomous, and discipline-specific

· The study

o Investigated 8 settings (4 academic, 4 workplace), comparing among location and among discipline, asking “what functions did the writing perform” and “how do sociocultural settings shape writing practices” (11). Used “a multiple-case study approach” focused on participant perspectives (12). Gathered the following data: inventory of genres, document histories, document criteria, ethnographic observations, interviews, and participant validation (12-13). Data analysis consisted of textual analyses, analyses of oral discourse, and sociolinguistic analyses (13-14). They aspire to help “develop appropriate programs to help facilitate the transition between the two environments [academic and workplace settings]” (14-15).

Quotes ‘n’ Questions o’ Concern:

The authors point out in their introduction that—historically, in the field of rhetoric and composition—genre theories and social theories of writing led folks across the disciplines to consider writing as a social, collaborative activity dependent upon cultural discourse conventions specific to particular communities and readership. They further imply the extreme (dis)advantage facing writers who can(not) conform to such conventions: they acknowledge that “texts must often stay within strict guidelines (stylistic, legal, procedural) and the consequences of ignoring those rules can be severe” (9). Just a paragraph later, the authors summarize their views of writing by explaining that “[Writing] is not a discrete clearly definable skill learned once and for all; moreover, both in school and at work, writing is seldom the product of isolated individuals but rather and seldom obviously, the outcome of continuing collaboration, of interactions that involve other people and other texts. Writing practices are closely linked to their sociocultural contexts, and writing strategies vary with individual and situation” (9-10).

What strikes me about these two passages is how, taken together, they present an unfortunate position for novice writers: we composition folks understand that writing experiences and processes will be unique for each writer, especially considering the combination of historical, cultural, political, and social forces impacting the rhetorical situation; at the same time, however, we also understand that writers must conform to very specific writing conventions and genres if they are to gain entrance within certain academic communities (and, furthermore, we composition teachers are often gatekeepers to such communities). I wonder, then, to what extent has the field worked to challenge such fixed and communal formats in accordance with the recognition that writing is a fluid and individual phenomenon?

Sure, we tell our students that the five-paragraph essay limits creative possibilities, that they should explore alternative organizational schemes and take some chances, yet most of us don’t hesitate to conform to the writing conventions of the journal we’re submitting to, all the while taking few rhetorical risks since we strive for every advantage for eventual publication. I know I’m being general, and I’m sure many of us take risks when writing for academia (otherwise things would look the same as they did fifty years ago…and, they don’t). I also recognize that to some extent public documents might serve readership if there are similar formats and processes adhered to. I also know this topic happens to a personal area of frustration for me, so I’m sure I’m coming on strong. Still, I’d love to hear what folks have to say about this topic. Here are questions I’ve often wondered, questions that this text re-invited into my imagination: How much space does textual formatting leave for change in knowledge-production? How might genres limit creativity? How might novices and/or outsiders be at a disadvantage when (and if) format trumps content? How are we putting students at a disadvantage if we don’t explicitly teach them genre conventions of their discipline? How are we putting students at a disadvantage if we do?

Last note: These questions of concern are obviously related to our recent discussions of how to situate technical communication as a rhetorical activity and how to design our tech writing classes to promote student creativity as well as foster individuals’ attention to ethics and critical reflection, all while remembering that focusing on such transformative skills may contradict the demands and professional constraints in students’ future employment (i.e., when their job privileges their formatted accuracy over their rhetorical attention to creative solutions and social justice). It remains unanswerable for me, then, just how we go about negotiating this dilemma. It appears, though, that the authors hope to provide at least some insight into solving the tensions between academic approaches and practices and workplace approaches and practices.