Colleagues,
The Association of Teachers of Technical Communication
is seeking proposals for its annual conference to be held
in conjunction with CCCC in San Francisco CA March 16 2005.
The cfp and submission instructions are available at
www.attw.org . I've also pasted the call below. Please
circulate freely. As this year's program chair, I'm
hoping to include some great presentations from colleagues
north of the border. If you have any questions please contact
me.
best wishes,
- brent
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Brenton Faber
Clarkson University
[log in to unmask]
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Call for Papers
Association of Teachers of Technical Writing
8th Annual Conference
Proposals due: October 08, 2004
Wednesday, March 16, 2005, 8:30 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
In conjunction with the 2005 CCCC Annual Convention (March 16-19)
San Francisco, California
ATTW invites proposals for papers, panels, and poster presentations to
be given at its annual conference immediately preceding the CCCC. The
full-day event includes concurrent sessions, poster presentations, book
exhibits, and opportunities for exchanging ideas, working on projects,
and networking in a supportive and challenging academic environment.
Conference theme: The public face of technical communication
This year's conference will focus on the public work of technical
communication. In addition to regular reports on disciplinary research,
teaching, and issues, the conference will pay specific attention to how
technical communication can better interface with external audiences.
Current events over the past year have provided us with tremendous
opportunities to help the American public better understand the role of
technical reports, reporting processes, organizational systems, and
problem-solving strategies for workplace communication. Whether these
issues concern Tax Forms, the Government Briefings, the design and
usability of websites and communication systems, or our field's
contribution to researchers in other fields, our field speaks to key
issues in how such "texts" are written, how audiences use our texts, and
who is given or denied agency in such discursive contexts. Our research
has also demonstrated the consequences of failed or poor communication
in key situations.
This year's ATTW conference will challenge researchers, teachers, and
practitioners of technical communication to find ways to expand, engage,
and attract a wider audience for our scholarship. How can we better
position our work in the public sphere? How can we place our knowledge
in the public spotlight? What would it mean for us to become (more)
public intellectuals? To do so would showcase technical communication
scholarship and its applicability within political, scientific,
business, technological, government, education, and health care arenas.
We are looking for contributions from those who have experience in
public venues, those who have examined key genres of public reporting,
those who have worked on multi-disciplinary teams, and those who teach
science writing, journalism, creative nonfiction, and other genres of
public engagement to share their experience and expertise with us.
Adopting a more public image does not require that ATTW take a
particular political stance, only that we develop effective methods for
situating ourselves within current discussions and events.
Some particular areas of interest include (but aren’t limited to)
research that examines,
* the implications, challenges, and rewards of academic technical
communicators working with non-academic peers,
* collaborations with other researchers outside our field,
* connections between current work, the private sphere, and the
public sphere
* projects intended to produce meaningful communications with broad
impact,
* the social value of technical communication for society at large
including the economic value, ethical implications, and value added of
technical communication,
* pedagogies that enable students to engage, address, and
participate with peers and collaborators in other disciplines,
* pedagogies that teach how to present our work in public contexts.
Proposals, limited to 200 words, are due October 8, 2004. We offer
three general formats:
Regular Sessions & Poster Presentations: 15 minute talks, 45-minute
panel presentations or day-long poster presentations. Submit proposals
for regular sessions via the ATTW website at http://www.attw.org.
Connect to the site, register (or enter your password), then follow the
links for conference paper submissions. We will include opportunities
for posters to be presented throughout the day with special times
dedicated for conversations and specific discussions regarding this
work. All proposals will be peer reviewed.
Workshop Sessions: We will make room for two 1 1/2-hour workshops as an
alternative to panels of speakers. Workshops might focus on pedagogical
issues, strategies for working with external partners, consulting, or
research issues. Please submit workshop proposals directly to Brenton
Faber at Clarkson University ([log in to unmask]).
Registration and updates will also be available on ATTW’s e-mail
discussion list (ATTW-L) and web site ( HYPERLINK "http://www.attw.org"
http://www.attw.org). For additional information, contact Brenton Faber
at Clarkson University ([log in to unmask])
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