Wednesday Workshops
Weekly Wednesday Workshops (Online 2:00-3:00PM Atlantic Time)
The Writing Centre’s Weekly Wednesday Workshops are a series of synchronous sessions on a variety of important topics in academic writing. The sessions are led by experienced Writing Centre staff members and run every Wednesday from 2:00-3:00PM Atlantic Time (with the exception of a few cross-listed sessions marked with an asterisk that are 90 minutes in length). The sessions are free to join, and no pre-registration is required. You can join the session through this link.
If you are interested in any of the topics we have covered in the past, please check out our Online Resource Guide or email Kala Hirtle for video recordings.
Winter 2024 Schedule
Jan 17: Going Beyond the Grade: Learning from Feedback
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Instructor feedback is foundational to learning from your written assignments; yet, in the rush of the year, students sometimes neglect to take the time to examine and consider the feedback they’ve received, focusing instead exclusively on the assignment grade. In this seminar, we’ll discuss how to understand the feedback you have received and how to use it to empower future writing.
Jan 24: Critical Thinking for Research
Collaboration between the Writing Centre and Health and Wellness
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Successful academic writing requires the ability to think critically about the questions you want to ask in your research, the materials you encounter in trying to answer those questions, and the way you incorporate those materials into your own work. This workshop will give students the opportunity to practice asking critical questions to improve their academic research and writing skills.
Jan 31: Managing Multiple Writing Assignments
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Writing is a multi-stage process, from brainstorming, researching, outlining, drafting, writing, and revising. Often, students find themselves with multiple writing assignments across courses during a semester. This workshop will cover strategies for organizing and prioritizing writing stages and tasks for students who are balancing a number of writing assignments. Organizing these tasks ensures the writing process is as organized and stress-free as possible so students can feel confident in their writing.
Feb 7: Finding your Voice: Building Confidence as an Undergraduate Writer
Collaboration between the Writing Centre and Health and Wellness
This workshop aimed at undergraduate students identifies the qualities and characteristics of traditional academic writing and offers participants techniques and strategies for finding their own unique academic voice. The workshop will ask participants to reflect on and apply the knowledge presented through a short, independent writing activity. For this, they should bring a paragraph or two of recent academic writing to the session. Participants will leave with tangible resources as well as techniques to further develop and hone their academic voice.
Feb 14: Writing the Literature Review
*Library sessions on Researching the Literature Review on Wednesday, Feb 14, 2024 from 11:00am - 12:00pm
https://dal.libcal.com/event/3769350
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
A literature review attempts to analyze what scholars have written about a given topic or question. Comprehensively and critically reviewing the literature allows authors to not only situate their own work but to persuade readers that the work is necessary and worthwhile. This workshop will focus on structuring the literature review using writing strategies to summarize and synthesize the literature while maintaining or establishing your own voice.
Feb 28: Getting the Most out of your Word Count
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Academic writing requires an economy of expression—stating your ideas clearly and succinctly. This workshop will discuss ways of reducing wordiness and improving the clarity of your writing, while being mindful of appropriate use of academic “jargon.” Reducing wordiness not only improves the clarity of your writing, but it ensures you have the most opportunity to express your ideas fully. This workshop will include hands-on activities to practice the skills learned and participants will leave with a “reducing wordiness” checklist to help guide their future academic writing.
March 20: Telling your Story: Statements of Intent
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Collaboration between the Writing Centre and Career & Leadership Development Centre
This workshop guides you through the process of writing an effective personal statement and will provide strategies for helping you begin your draft as well as revision and refinement. Statements of intent or personal statements can be part of applications to graduate programs, co-op placements, and funding applications.
March 27: Finding your Voice: Building Confidence as a Graduate Writer
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Collaboration between the Writing Centre and Health and Wellness
This workshop aimed at graduate writers identifies the qualities and characteristics of traditional academic writing and offers participants techniques and strategies for finding their own unique academic voice within graduate writing genres. The workshop will ask participants to reflect on and apply the knowledge presented through a short, independent writing activity. For this, they should bring a paragraph or two of recent academic writing to the session. Participants will leave with tangible resources as well as techniques to further develop and hone their academic voice.
April 3: Critical Thinking for Revision
*Cross listed with GradPD but open to everyone (90 minutes)
Successful revision requires students to think critically about the material they have written. The writing process can sometimes make it difficult for writers to distinguish between what actually appears on the page and what they believe appears on the page. This workshop will allow students to practice asking critical questions to guide their revision process.