University of Pittsburgh Department of English

Certificate in Composition, Literacy, and Pedagogy

This graduate certificate recognizes sustained, advanced study in composition, literacy, and pedagogy at the University of Pittsburgh. It can be awarded to students who have earned the MA, MFA, or PhD degree in the Department of English, and to those earning graduate degrees in other departments, programs, and institutions.

To qualify for the certificate, students must successfully complete ENGLIT 2500, Seminar in Pedagogy (or an equivalent course in writing pedagogy), and a set of additional courses described below: the MA and MFA certificate will require three (3), and the PhD certificate five (5) additional courses. These courses are selected from among an array of seminars that represent three intersecting strands of work in the Composition Program:

Composition, including study of the theories and practices of writing, within and beyond the field of Rhetoric and Composition;
Literacy, including research into public rhetorics and the literacies of diverse groups in the larger culture beyond the academy;
Pedagogy, including historical and critical inquiry into issues of schooling, teaching, and the institutions of academic writing.

PhD students completing the Certificate program must include at least one 3000-level seminar, in which they have an opportunity to pursue a self-chosen line of inquiry. In fulfilling course requirements for the certificate, students may petition the Director of Composition to approve relevant courses taken at other institutions. Appropriate courses in other departments at the University of Pittsburgh, and one course of Directed Study may also be accepted for the certificate, with the approval of the Director of Composition.

To qualify for the Graduate Certificate in Composition, Literacy, and Pedagogy, students are further required to produce a teaching portfolio. The portfolio assembles materials that document at least one of the following:

An ability to design and teach an effective undergraduate course or community-based writing workshop;
Significant work in support of teaching: for instance, as a mentor to beginning teachers, or as an assistant in the administration of the Composition Program, the Western Pennsylvania Writing Project, or the Writing Center;
Demonstrated ability as a writing tutor in the Writing Center, in other university support services, or in after-school programs for children.

Portfolios characteristically include teaching materials such as syllabi, assignments, exercises, student/participant evaluations, and observations by peers and faculty members. Administrative documents may include reports, proposals, newsletters, Web pages, and other materials that demonstrate the work of the position, as well as statements of evaluation. Portfolios are reviewed by a committee of the composition faculty.

Notice that students have been awarded the Graduate Certificate in Composition, Literacy, and Pedagogy appears on their final transcript for the MA, MFA, or PhD degree.

notes:

MA candidates without a teaching assistantship may replace English 2510 (Seminar in Teaching Composition) with another course in composition, literacy and pedagogy. Courses that satisfy this requirement are designated each year by the Director of Composition.

3000-level courses in composition, literacy and pedagogy will in most cases be offered every other year. Petitions to substitute a 2000-level course will be granted only in exceptional circumstances.

Candidates are urged to consult with a member of the composition faculty while preparing a teaching portfolio.