Rhetoric in the Schools—A Seminar for Denver Metro and Boulder High School Teachers

Leaders: Roger Cherry, Ohio State University; David Jolliffe, University of Arkansas

Rhetoric in the Schools—A Seminar for Denver Metro and Boulder High School Teachers

Roger Cherry, Ohio State University
David Jolliffe, University of Arkansas 

Let’s face it, you can’t walk to your mailbox without encountering rhetoric.  Just a little reflection tells us that the more we know about the nature of rhetoric and how it is used, the better informed we will be as consumers, critical thinkers, and citizens.  Yet few of us have had the opportunity to study rhetoric in any detail.  This seminar fills that gap by looking at the nature and purpose of rhetoric, then asking what we should teach students about this ubiquitous and most important communication skill.  The course will provide some initial background in the history of rhetoric but then move rather quickly to examine theoretical and applied questions about the role of rhetoric across the school curriculum.  Participants will hone their skills in rhetorical analysis and then explore (1) the best ways to teach students how to do rhetorical analysis and (2) the most fruitful ways students in a wide range of classes can employ rhetorical analysis. We will explore how teachers can enrich a variety of assignments by situating those tasks within a designated rhetorical context.  Perhaps more important, we will explore how teachers can help students create their own rhetorical contexts and thereby construct more meaningful assignments for themselves. 

The audience for this workshop is Denver/Boulder area high school teachers, though the workshop leaders welcome rhetoric faculty at the university who are interested in the project of linking secondary and post-secondary rhetorical instruction.

Questions? Contact Roger Cherry, cherry.3@osu.edu