ABSTRACT

Although the range of genres is wide and varies somewhat across disciplines, a list of the most common academic genres might include scholarly books, edited volumes, chapters contributed to an edited collection, journal articles, book reviews, essays, textbooks, grant proposals-[action research projects, dissertations, masters degree theses, letters, and]—even syllabi and course material. (Rankin, 2001, p. 33)

Certain beliefs operate as the glue to hold together the otherwise disparate community of teachers, students, researchers, and scholars that compose the academic community … (Fulwiler, 2002, p. 57)

Even when “I” isn’t permitted, it’s still possible to convey a sense of I-ness … Good writers are visible just behind their words. If you aren’t allowed to use “I”, at least think “I” while you write, or write the first draft in the first person and then take the “I”s out. It will warm up your impersonal style. (Zinsser, 2001, p. 22)

Many educators want to write, and they are frequently expected to write as part of their work and as students of education. It’s important for you to think how these two roles often dictate the kinds of writing you have to do, and how you might have to reconcile the occasional conflicts that arise in your efforts to meet diverse writing expectations for different audiences and purposes. In this chapter, we would like to help educators become comfortable within whatever community they find themselves. As an educator, your community is different from the one you encounter as a graduate student working toward an advanced degree, and your writing demands reflect that difference. Of course, you may occupy both communities at the

same time, which may or may not prove stressful. The degree of stress will depend on how easily you can shift writing styles to accommodate different contextual expectations.