It’s about more than just content… — In 1988, when Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) first premiered on a small cable channel in Minneapolis, there was no Web 2.0 or maker culture. Local cable was the closest you could get to your own distribution channel. I remember seeing the first episode of MST3K and being completely blown…

It’s not about the genes — Last week, my wife and I sat down to our quad-annual ritual of watching two hours of sports during the winter Olympics. I was stunned to hear commentators’ references to genes and pedigree. It goes something like this: With Olympians as parents, so and so has the genes to make…

Saying goodbye to a 120-year-old failed technology — I’m finally doing it this semester. I’m getting rid of grades in my writing classroom. It’s been a long time coming. As with many things, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has pushed it over the edge. Why continue supporting a 20th-century technology that demonstrably does not work? Honestly, I’ve tried to…

Understanding cultures of critique — “How dare you? I’m almost twice your age.” I received this response from a student in my early days of teaching. I often taught at a community college where at least half my students were twice my age. Middle-aged adults don’t always take criticism well from a freshly-minted college graduate. …

Especially for short-term, faculty led trips — A good study abroad needs good students. This summer I took 11 students to Krakow, Poland to research professional writing communities. The trip was an astounding success because these top-notch students were independent, adaptable, and ready to try new things. …

It’s not about sight-seeing… it’s about people-meeting — This week I finished my first-ever undergraduate research lab in Krakow, Poland — what we often call a short-term study abroad. I wanted to build an affordable and accessible cross-cultural experience … that was also an authentic and immersive cultural experience. A true study abroad experience means creating a community…

Especially if you are afraid of missing out — Too many study abroad programs suffer from FOMO — Fear Of Missing Out. But I am a big believer in sitting still in one place when I travel, resisting the temptation to see as many things as possible. It’s important to focus on exploration and really get the feel for…

… and increase student intercultural competence — I’ve been teaching intercultural writing for over a decade, but I have never led a study abroad until this year. I have mostly worked across cultures online. That work helped me realize undergraduate research can enhance this learning in ways I never thought. In 2020, COVID cancelled the study abroad…

My take aways from the greatest content conference in the world — This week I attended the best content conference in the world … Soap! After a two-year hiatus, we spent 3 days discussing how the future will change the world of content and writing. In our posthuman age, humans and technology cannot be separated. We cannot understand humans without understanding technology…