Higher Education & Teaching
Overview
I have three years of experience teaching undergraduate adult students in composition, rhetoric, and creative writing at the University of Wyoming using Canvas LMS. My first two semesters of teaching started in person synchronously, but due to COVID-19, I was forced to quickly pivot instruction online, working with the English Department to transition our lessons to Zoom. Although this unprecedented change was one of the most difficult challenges I’ve faced in the workplace, I surpassed college and departmental benchmarks. Anonymous student evaluations called my approach “the best online experience” and “highly effective.”
Instructor León was always able to answer any questions that I had. Instructor León made the expectations for EVERY assignment clear by going through each part of the assignment and offering all information available. Feedback on written assignments was thorough, understandable, and helpful. Instructor León handled the debacle of in person classes, and subsequent wise changes back to virtual, that the University handed to us all very eloquently. The changes never disrupted the flow of the class thanks to Instructor León.”
After co-leading a version of this course with the former director of the UW Creative writing Program, I also developed an online asynchronous creative nonfiction course entirely through the Canvas LMS. My students include a diverse range of adult learners with varying learning needs and experiences.
Sample Course Walkthrough (Creative Autobiography)
Course Description: In this online asynchronous course, students document their personal experiences, expand the scope and parameters of first-person writing, and learn a range of craft techniques to polish the style and structure of their writing. They also examine and respond to innovative autobiographical pieces by both twentieth-century masters and contemporary artists. Assignments include formal creative papers, short response papers, informal feedback, craft exercises, and discussions. The majority of the online course is devoted to small-group writing workshops and full-class discussions of students’ creative papers.
Objectives: By the semester’s end, students will hone their unique voices as writers, work in a variety of interdisciplinary forms, and understand the rigors of the nonfiction writing process—brainstorming, drafting, researching, revising, rewriting, and polishing their work for presentation. They will develop thoughtful critiques to their fellow classmates and apply critical expertise regarding genre and craft to their work as well.
Target Learners: Undergraduate adult learners at the beginner or intermediate creative writing level
LMS Overview
All course content is chunked into weekly modules on the course homepage. Although readings and assignments are categorized consistently each week, they vary in theme, content, and activity type to support differentiate learning structures and increase engagement. Outside student input helped me refine the homepage page layout, develop more resources with instructions and screenshots to aid students new to online learning, and streamline weekly deadline times to reduce cognitive load. Abiding by these best practices helped students stay focused on the expected learning path.
Classroom Community & Instructor Presence
Although distance-learning environments can make creating an active classroom community challenging, I do all I can to ensure my course is interactive, collaborative, and supportive. My strategies include small groups and weekly peer-review assignments as well as personalized formative feedback on each assignment to instill a dynamic and engaging instructor presence. Community-building starts on day one through a group assignment that brings students together to create constructive and ethical peer review guidelines. I also send weekly reminders and recaps synthesizing discussion takeaways and trends.
Assignments
Workshops
This course follows a modified creative writing workshop model. Each week, students submit a rough draft of a nonfiction writing piece to a small group of 4-5 students and myself. After receiving peer-reviewed formative feedback, students then revise their pieces and present final drafts for full-class discussions. This method helps students instill some of the most important but also most difficult steps of the writing process such as revision. They also have more opportunities to polish their writing, consider their audience, and take risks as they develop their ideas.
Readings, Discussions, and Response Papers
Each week, students read and participate in online discussions of innovative nonfiction that vary from stand-up comedy and graphic memoirs to classics like Virginia Woolf and James Baldwin. Discussions begin with a series of open-ended probing questions from a few students each week and end with individual student response papers. Students apply their critical thinking skills to examine the piece’s style and genre as well as the author’s intentions. Students also consider how various craft techniques and other considerations such as ethics might be applied or subverted in their current and future projects. For the first week of class, I led the discussion to model desired learning outcomes and motivate confidence while the classroom community was still being formed. Preview the discussion below.
Craft Exercises
A key component of my course includes biweekly exercises that focus on a single element instrumental to the art of writing. Typically, these activities include short slide presentations or “exploratory visits” to an established writer’s craft, applied examples, writing exercises, and reflections. Craft exercises help students develop a personal writing toolbox, experiment freely with new techniques in a low-stakes learning environment, and reflect on their in-progress learning.
Evaluations
In addition to final evaluations, I also use mid-term evaluations to gauge student progress and hone my instructional strategies. My students’ honest feedback was instrumental in organizing modules and helping students consistently meet expectations. An advocate of student-centered learning, I also encouraged students to take charge of their learning by allowing them to choose the topic of the last craft exercise.
Anonymous Student Testimonials from Course Evaluations
This course has actually been a huge help in my personal life, and I can’t really explain why; this is the first class I’ve had in a long time where I really feel like I’m getting feedback that isn’t just ‘it’s not great, but it’s a start;’ there’s great suggestions for improvement but there’s also hugely encouraging statements for every piece and everybody. Thank you for providing that space.”
This has been a very good class. Every assignment has been an introduction to a new technique in writing. Each writer she introduced us to had a unique individual style that we could learn from. I think the class assignments have been challenging. Her feedback after every assignment was so helpful. I truly appreciate the way she responded to my emails in a timely manner. She encouraged us to reach out to her should we have any questions or concerns. Professor Leon’s variety of assignments and exercises have been great and effective teaching tools.”
A variety of sources and assignments were offered throughout the course, allowing for a generally holistic learning experience. While there was no direct connection between the professor and the students, the frequency and quality of her responses to students developed an association that made up for the gap.”
This has been one of my favorite courses in my four years of college! Winona combines encouragement with discerning feedback and helpful writing exercises. The class isn’t overly fluffy, but it also isn’t tedious or full of busywork. An instructive, fun experience! A smaller note: I appreciated Winona’s humility and tone with students. She seemed like a real person, and someone to respect.”
Professor Leon was very patient, encouraging, and helpful in feedback and all interactions with students. This was her first attempt at teaching the course asynchronously and because of that, there were some hiccups; despite this, she was very open to feedback, and looked for ways to improve it in the future. I refound my love of writing because of her class and supportive atmosphere; I hope to take a class from her again in the future.”
Professor Leon was a wonderful professor. As a student who dealt with many things this semester, including Covid and the death of a family member, she worked with me every step of the way to not only help me get caught up in a reasonable time frame but also to the point that I could prioritize my health and family when I needed to.”
Professor Leon has been an incredibly effective instructor in this regard, as many professors fail to remember that students have lives, too. Professor Leon was also accommodating with student suggestions as well. When it was suggested that assignments be due at 11:59 as opposed to 9pm or noon, Professor Leon changed them right away to make it easier for us. While the deadlines sometimes were difficult to follow, Professor Leon did a wonderful job emailing reminders and ensuring that we had every tool we needed to succeed.”
She is by far one of the best professors I’ve ever had. She is super kind and understanding to any situations we are having that can affect our work. She is super helpful when it comes to the course material and works with you to understand and fine tune your work. She is very dedicated to the job and she was an amazing professor.”
Teaching Philosophy
My teaching philosophy employs instructional design best practices alongside expressivist and literature composition pedagogies. I encourage students to develop their unique voices, take agency over their knowledge, and consider the social implications of their work. Given the differentiated learning structures in my classrooms, I aim to help students develop clear communication skills by distilling my lessons in a compassionate and accessible manner. I often encourage students to be honest with themselves and in their work and strive to mirror this transparency in my teaching. Although many students hail from atypical education backgrounds that may have decentered writing from their lives, I’m inspired to discover other avenues of connection. Instead of limiting studies to the classroom, I ask my students to think critically about the roles of literature, creative writing, and composition in their lives. I also incorporate a wide range of literary and cultural texts to promote a richer level of critical thinking in my classroom. By connecting students’ learning outcomes with their interests and viewpoints, I aim to improve both their critical thinking skills and confidence as they move forward with their aspirations.