LibGuides: A Guide for English Professors at Odessa College: Helpful Readings and Conferences

Lib Guides

Here is a list of guides that might be helpful in your English courses.

APA Style
- A guide to using APA formatting.
Chicago/Turabian Style Guide
- A guide to Chicago and Turabian Style.
Citation Guide
- Use this citation guide to access style manuals and tools to help you cite your papers.
English (Literary Studies and Composition)
- Resources for literature and composition courses.
Grammar Guide
- A guide to general grammar.
Literature Reviews and Annotated Bibliographies
- How to write literature reviews and annotated bibliographies.
Professional Writing
- This guide helps with how to compose resumes, cover letters, and e-mails.
Research Steps for Beginners
- This guide will walk you through the steps of gathering sources for your research paper.
The Power of Analysis: Tips and Tricks for Writing Analysis Essays
- This guide provides tips and techniques for analyzing academic writing critically and effectively, as well as strategies for writing effective analysis essays.
Writing Center
- A guide to the writing center, including tutoring and different programming offered by the center.
Writing Essays
- A guide to writing essays from beginning to end.
Writing Essays - Choosing a Topic and Topic Sentences
- How to choose a topic and create topic sentences.
Writing Essays - Thesis Statement
- How to write a great thesis statement.

Pedagogy Recommendations

American Women Writing Fiction by Mickey Pearlman (Editor)
ISBN: 9780813116570
Publication Date: 1989-01-01
American literature is no longer the refuge of the solitary hero. Like the society it mirrors, it is now a far richer, many-faceted explication of a complicated and diverse society—racially, culturally, and ethnically interwoven and at the same time fractured and fractious.Ten women writing fiction in America today—Toni Cade Bambara, Joan Didion, Louise Erdrich, Gail Godwin, Mary Gordon, Alison Lurie, Joyce Carol Oates, Jayne Anne Phillips, Susan Fromberg Schaeffer, and Mary Lee Settle—represent that geographic, ethnic, and racial diversity that is distinctively American. Here is a readable critical discussion of ten important contemporary novelists who have broadened the pages of American literature to reflect more clearly the people we are.
The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop by Felicia Rose Chavez
Call Number: 808.042 C512 ANTI
ISBN: 9781642592672
Publication Date: 2021-01-05
This easy-to-use guide explains how to recruit, nourish, and fortify writers of color through innovative reading, writing, workshop, critique, and assessment strategies. A captivating mix of memoir and progressive teaching strategies,The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop: How to Decolonize the Creative Classroom demonstrates how to be culturally attuned, twenty-first century educators.
Creative Writing Pedagogies for the Twenty-First Century by Alexandria Peary; Tom C. Hunley
ISBN: 9780809334032
Publication Date: 2015-05-22
In Creative Writing Pedagogies for the Twenty-First Century, editors Alexandria Peary and Tom C. Hunley gather experts from both creative writing and composition studies to offer innovative alternatives to the traditional creative writing workshop.
From Disagreement to Discourse by Beth A. Durodoye (Editor); Rhonda M. Bryant (Editor)
ISBN: 9781641138369
Publication Date: 2019-12-05
Education has always been influenced by economic, political, and social factors, leading educators and stakeholders to take various positions in delivering instruction. The ethics and justice of education vary based on global context, with education often being an initial step in cultural immersion. Despite differing opinions, prioritizing student welfare remains key. Yet, educators frequently find themselves amidst debates, shaping this book's focus on present American educational disputes.
Heritage and Hate: Old South Rhetoric at Southern Universities Book Jacket Series: Rhetoric, Culture, and Social Critique by Stephen M. Monroe
ISBN: 9780817320935
Publication Date: 2021-06-01
Stephen M. Monroe's study delves into the ongoing struggle of southern universities in the US to grapple with the persisting influence of Old South traditions, which are entrenched in divisive words and symbols. Focusing on predominantly white institutions, Monroe examines how these symbols, like rebel flags and exclusionary yearbook practices, hinder racial harmony and perpetuate oppressive cultures. He introduces the concept of "confederate rhetoric" to highlight the impactful role of these symbols in shaping historical events and human behavior. Drawing from various disciplines, Monroe analyzes examples of this rhetoric at work in southern universities, revealing the deep-seated conflicts that persist, even as African Americans gain agency. Despite the tensions, Monroe remains hopeful, emphasizing the potential for words and symbols to shift from divisive to unifying, thus envisioning a transformed future for the South.
How to Teach Adults by Dan Spalding
Call Number: 374.973 SP734H
ISBN: 9781118841365
Publication Date: 2014-04-28
Your hands-on guide to teaching adults. . . no matter what the subject In this expanded edition of How to Teach Adults, Dan Spalding offers practical teaching and classroom management suggestions that are designed for anyone who works with adult learners, particularly new faculty, adjuncts, those in community colleges, ESL teachers, and graduate students. This reader-friendly resource covers all phases of the teaching process from planning what to teach, to managing a classroom, to growing as a professional in the field.
Rhetorical Feminism and This Thing Called Hope by Cheryl Glenn
ISBN: 9780809336944
Publication Date: 2018-09-04
In "Rhetorical Feminism and This Thing Called Hope," author Cheryl Glenn introduces a novel theory of rhetorical feminism, advancing the feminist rhetorical project. This theory challenges conventional Western rhetoric by emphasizing openness, authentic dialogue, collaboration, and progress. It supports inclusivity, alternative delivery methods like silence and listening, and redefines traditional rhetorical appeals. The book discusses the theory's potential to bridge misunderstandings, enhance feminist research, and invigorate practices in academia. Glenn also explores its impact in classrooms, mentoring, and administrative roles, making a case for its widespread application at the intersection of rhetoric and feminism.
The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker
Call Number: 808.042 P655S
ISBN: 0670025852
Publication Date: 2014-09-30
In The Sense of Style, the bestselling linguist and cognitive scientist Steven Pinker applies insights from the sciences of language and mind to the challenge of crafting clear, coherent, and stylish prose. In this short, cheerful, and eminently practical book, Pinker shows how writing depends on imagination, empathy, coherence, grammatical knowhow, and an ability to savor and reverse engineer the good prose of others. He replaces dogma about usage with reason and evidence, allowing writers and editors to apply the guidelines judiciously, rather than robotically, being mindful of what they are designed to accomplish.
Teaching with Tenderness by Becky Thompson
ISBN: 9780252041167
Publication Date: 2017-08-03
Imagine a classroom that explores the twinned ideas of embodied teaching and a pedagogy of tenderness. Becky Thompson envisions such a curriculum--and a way of being--that promises to bring about a sea change in education. Teaching with Tenderness follows in the tradition of bell hooks's Teaching to Transgress and Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed, inviting us to draw upon contemplative practices (yoga, meditation, free writing, mindfulness, ritual) to keep our hearts open as we reckon with multiple injustices.