Silences and occlusions represent ideological positions in the Writing Across the Curriculum movement. Several major professional associations have taken-up WAC through issuing position statements: NCTE, CCCC, CWPA, NWP, and INWAC. Presences and absences in this discourse suggest tensions embedded in WAC’s historical development, and provide insight into the state of the present movement in three areas: values represented by writing-to-learn, the movement toward WAC programs’ institutionalization, and the critical potential of teaching writing and rhetoric in the disciplines. Despite working as part of institutions that can perpetuate social disparities, scholars and educators have the opportunity to work against the discourses that make such inequitable structures possible, and innovate viable opportunities to change the terms of this encounter for their students.
Presented at Conference on College Composition and Communication, Houston, April 2016.
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