EXPRESSIVE AND EPISTEMIC PEDAGOGIES: A BLENDED APPROACH TO VOICE DEVELOPMENT

As contemporary basic writing courses lean on Current Traditional texts that emphasize the inductive nature of thought in its relation to truth, this thesis explores expressivist and epistemic pedagogical approaches complemented by metacognition in their contribution to the development of voice with respect to student disengagement due to a disconnect in the understanding of writing for the academy in the basic writing student. The elements of the expressivist methodology as embodied in Writing with Power by Peter Elbow and the epistemic in Facts, Artifacts, and Counterfacts by Dave Bartholomae and Anthony Petrosky each contribute to the research of this thesis in its exploration of specific assignments from each text that prove useful in the endeavor of voice development through their active involvement in the processes of reading and writing within a basic writing course. The blending of these methods offers basic writers opportunities to benefit from the introspection afforded by expressivism and the collaborative nature of epistemic evaluating the process of thought through metacognitive exercises allowing the learning experience to be at the hands of the students. This thesis ultimately culminates by providing a sample of such activities through a unit of curriculum influenced by the aforementioned incorporation of pedagogical approaches specifically created as a means to allow basic writers to connect with their ethos along with potential cultural and social influences and engage with their cognitive process for the sake of voice development.