The UNC Charlotte National Writing Project Site
Fall Writing Conference
We are so excited to invite you to the Fall Writing Conference hosted by the Charlotte Writing Project at UNC Charlotte on September 21, 2023! Our conference will run from 9 AM to 4 PM, and registration includes a light breakfast, lunch, and parking, in addition to an amazing day of writing, pedagogy, and networking. Participants will be eligible for 0.6 CEUs OR a full 1.0 CEU (with some homework). We will feature presentations on ChatGPT, teaching grammar, writing process, and more! Plus, we are thrilled to welcome home Dr. Lil Brannon, who will talk about her new book! Please go ahead and register today! If you have any questions, reach out to Lucy Arnold at lperkins@uncc.edu or Heather Coffey at hcoffey@uncc.edu.
UNC CHARLOTTE WRITING PROJECT STATEMENT ON ANTI-RACIST EDUCATION
The UNC Charlotte Writing Project, a site of the National Writing Project, rejects racism. Racism, prejudice, hatred, bigotry, and bias have no place in our society, our community, and especially in our schools. As a teaching organization, we commit to shining light on the pervasive racism present in our country as exemplified by the history of murders of Black Americans at the hands of White Americans and more recently fueled by the recent murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd. As a group, we strive to bring attention to inequitable educational experiences and discrimination; and, moving forward, we also commit to supporting anti-racist education as a foundation of our organization and professional development. We challenge ourselves as members of a powerful teacher network to support anti-racist education by participating in personal professional development related to developing understanding of the systemic, institutional racism on which the United States has been built. We also commit to supporting members of our teacher network by developing a library of books and resources related to anti-racist education and an online respository of articles and guides for implementing anti-racist pedagogy in the K-12 classroom. Building on the work of several professional teaching organizations, we stand united with our Black brothers and sisters. We pledge to support the creation of space in our classrooms, schools, and communities to speak and act against injustice, racism and systemic oppression. We hold ourselves accountable for examining our own privilege, prejudice, and the stereotypes we sustain when we are complicit. Together, we can dismantle racism starting in classrooms across North Carolina and the United States.
A collection of resouces for anti-racism is accessible on the site resources page. All UNCCWP teacher consultants and other community members are invited to recommend additional titles. Email unccwritingproject@uncc.edu or post a message on UNCCWP’s Facebook
SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS
The Charlotte Writing Project offers customizable professional development in K-12 schools. Partnerships can take the form of workshops, two-week intensive summer institutes, or visits during PLC meetings. Click here for more information, or email unccwritingproject@uncc.edu.
NWP Philosophy
Our site is a member of the network of National Writing Project sites. The core principals of NWP are:
- Teachers at every level—from kindergarten through college—are the agents of reform; universities and schools are ideal partners for investing in that reform through professional development.
- Writing can and should be taught, not just assigned, at every grade level. Professional development programs should provide opportunities for teachers to work together to understand the full spectrum of writing development across grades and across subject areas.
- Knowledge about the teaching of writing comes from many sources: theory and research, the analysis of practice, and the experience of writing. Effective professional development programs provide frequent and ongoing opportunities for teachers to write and to examine theory, research, and practice together systematically.
- There is no single right approach to teaching writing; however, some practices prove to be more effective than others. A reflective and informed community of practice is in the best position to design and develop comprehensive writing programs.
- Teachers who are well informed and effective in their practice can be successful teachers of other teachers as well as partners in educational research, development, and implementation. Collectively, teacher-leaders are our greatest resource for educational reform.