Engaging Ideas 2e

by John C. Bean, Maryellen Weimer

Learn to design interest-provoking writing and critical thinking activities and incorporate them into your courses in a way that encourages inquiry, exploration, discussion, and debate, with Engaging Ideas, a practical nuts-and-bolts guide for teachers from any discipline. Integrating critical thinking with writing-across-the-curriculum approaches, the book shows how teachers from any discipline can incorporate these activities into their courses. This edition features new material dealing with genre and discourse community theory, quantitative/scientific literacy, blended and online learning, and other current issues.

Genres: Teaching, Education, Writing, Nonfiction, Academic, School, Reference

384 pages, Paperback

First published March 27, 1996

Reviews

[Cathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been dipping in and out of this book all summer, and it's one of the best teaching resources I've ever read. John Bean has been a college English professor for 40 plus years, and he draws from a wide range of research on teaching, motivation, and cognitive learning strategies to ground his book. What results is an eminently practical, comprehensive discussion of ways to integrate writing (and by extension, active learning) into one's course. I especially like his idea of "microthemes," brief writing assignments to help students write analytically about texts. I also appreciated that Bean's approaches are designed to help professors who teach introductory courses or courses with large enrollments. I've only had the book a few months, and already it's dog-eared and madly colored with page flags. An excellent resource.

[Gaijinmama · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely the best book I've read on teaching writing and critical thinking skills. The reference list alone is worth the price of the book.

[Diz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a valuable resource for university lecturers who include writing as a part of their course. There is a lot of good advice on how to construct writing assignments in ways that encourage students to engage in critical thinking. Of particular use is the advice on how to grade papers in a way that reduces the work load for professors while still focusing on the most important aspects of writing. Finally, there is also a good section that addresses students' weakness with academic reading. If you're teaching at the university or high school level, this is a good book to have in your library.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading the introduction and the opening chapters, I keep thinking "I know all this." That thought raises the uncomfortable question: If I already know this, why am I not doing it?

[Lauren Salisbury · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this (ahem, skimmed) for the Writing Across the Curriculum seminar I'm doing as part of my new teaching position. Though there are some valuable tidbits here and I could see this being eye opening for folks who haven't taught writing central courses before this wasn't exactly uncharted ground for someone familiar with rhet comp. This might be more useful for folks beyond the discipline teaching writing courses for the first time or for younger instructors without the disciplinary familiarity.

I read the second edition, so I'm not sure of the changes made in the latest edition, however, it's worth pointing out that all of Bean's commentary assumes face-to-face instruction. The activities, advice, and even common struggles discussed in this edition won't be of much use to new online instructors who aren't used to adapting for the online environment. The unique issues impacting online learning environments aren't considered here. Again, hopefully, this oversight is corrected in the newest edition.

I also want to point out one of the most frustrating sections of this text. In the section on dealing with the labor load of grading papers, Bean writes about not providing feedback on final drafts because students don't need to revise them again. While I understand this is mostly meant for instructors not teaching composition courses and perhaps for those really bending under the stress of the grading crunch, I fundamentally disagree that "final" drafts have to be read as final. In my world, I assume that the second drafts students turn in is still in progress, but even beyond that we should assume that the feedback students receive on any and all writing is targeted toward their growth as writers. Assuming students don't need or want additional feedback on something just because its "final" contradicts the essential truth that all writing is recursive and social.

[Jes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible. Longer review later (I always say that, don’t I?) but this might be one of the most useful teaching books I’ve read yet. SO much good stuff in here. I can already tell I’ll be returning to this over and over again. Splurge on the print edition instead of getting the Kindle version—it has nice big margins and you are going to want to mark it up/scribble notes to yourself on almost every page.

[Betsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a bit baffled by the bad reviews from people who seem to think that this book should teach them how to write or how to teach writing from scratch. The subtitle says exactly what the book does: it’s a guide (not a how to manual) for professors across the disciplines, about integrating writing, critical thinking, and active learning into the classroom. And it does just that, extremely well. It is not lesson plans or worksheets. It does not have assignments you can copy into your syllabus. Instead, it guides you to develop your own plans, syllabi, assignments, and worksheets that are aligned with the subject matter you are teaching. I read the first edition of this book in grad school and am very happy with the third edition, which is thoroughly updated to reflect recent developments in the fields of writing studies and education. It is written in an accessible tone and the authors provide ample examples to help professors develop their own instructional plans to help students at all levels (undergraduates are the focus, but the ideas work well for high school and graduate students as well).

[Micah Spiece · Rating 5 out of 5]

While it’s not exactly a fun read, this will stay in my office within easy access because it offers so many brilliant and useful tools for active engagement when it comes to purposeful, meaningful writing activities in the classroom. And it’s generally applicable to any discipline, which is pretty cool!

[Ashleigh West · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had a lot of great writing tips for teachers that could be adapted for multiple grade levels, not just college. However, it is very example heavy and I wish it discussed more of the editing and revising portion of a writing process.

[Peaches · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book isn't awful. Bean knows what he's discussing and I applaud anyone who attempts to get professors to integrate active learning in the classroom instead of performing monologues to students. I also liked how he links writing to thinking, especially how revision is a form of complex critical thinking.

But I mainly liked the first two chapters. The activities weren't very useful to me, and I imagine most of the people in my department are used to them. Arts-based activity suggestions would have greatly enhanced this book.

[travelgirlut · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent look at how to make writing assignments into critical thinking problems and how to use critical thinking to improve writing and how both combined make for a better learning experience overall. The book is written to college professors to use in their courses, but there's plenty that can be used in the lower grades as well. I will admit to having skimmed over a couple chapters that weren't pertinent to me, as they discussed applying writing assignments across college departments and such things, but I took copious notes on all the rest. I plan on implementing some of Bean's ideas and methods into our homeschool curriculum.

The ideas in this book complement those in How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading by Mortimer J. Adler, which focuses more on the reading side of critical thinking, and especially Writing to Learn: How to Write--And Think--Clearly about Any Subject at All by William Zinsser, which covers very similar topics as Engaging Ideas but in a more broad and easy-going manner. Both of these books would make excellent follow-up reading to Engaging Ideas, or even better yet, pre-reading.

[DWRL Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely helpful to the beginning writing teacher!! So much so, that I'm buying the book for myself. Considered to be an "Owner's Manual" for using writing as a method of critical thinking. Author offers instruction on planning your course through writing assignments (especially good for when you need to write your 309K proposal), and concrete ideas for creating those writing assignments.
Chapter 4 presents a helpful way to deal with and think about student errors with grammar and correctness, and offers ways to comment on papers to address error without being bogged down by it.
Chapter 5 presents the nuts and bolts of formal writing assignments from conception through hand-outs, and small prep assignments that work toward the larger assignment.
The bulk of the book focuses on the teacher as "coach" -- a guide through the process of learning to think critically and express ideas through writing. Chapters include examples of short writing and classroom assignments. Author also gives ways to use writing assignments to help students with the process of reading difficult texts.
Chapter 12 discusses ways to break down the tasks of research papers, and would be helpful for anyone teaching 306.
The final chapters of the book focus on the process of commenting on and grading written assignments -- excellent reading for anyone faced with giving revision comments for the first time.

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I LOVE this book!!!

I heard about this book at a workshop on the teaching of writing in college-level courses.

This book is intended for instructors who teach in any discipline and contains lots of specific examples from a wide variety of disciplines.

The book is very appropriate for instructors who have little to no specialized training in the teaching of writing. Yet, it has so much great content, I'm very confident it would also be useful for instructors who already have had some training in teaching writing and some successes incorporating writing in their courses.

I would say that this book is not really about how to teach writing; it's more about how to incorporate writing into your courses to help your students better learn the material you already want them to learn.

I've learned much from this book. It has stimulated me and inspired me and empowered me to incorporate more writing into my courses.

One thing about the Kindle edition: Unlike many Kindle books, this one doesn't have "real page numbers" (just locations and % of book completed). This is unfortunate because in almost every chapter, Bean refers to things on specific page numbers in other chapters. So, I'd recommend the printed version. I like this book so much, I will likely buy the printed version even though I've already purchased the kindle version.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great text for a college writing instructor or any instructor who uses writing in the classroom. It breaks down the concepts and provides research in easy to digest ways and more importantly has so many helpful tips, exercises, and samples to pull from on topics of critical reading, analytical writing, and commenting on student papers. I have written up many new class activities and prompts while reading this book. I am sure I will be coming back to it again and again.

[Katrina Sark · Rating 4 out of 5]

1 – Using Writing to Promote Thinking

p.8 – Develop Strategies to Include Exploratory Writing, Talking, and Reflection in Your Courses – Good writing grows out of good talking – either talking with classmates or talking dialogically with oneself through exploratory writing.

2 – How Writing is Related to Critical Thinking

p.22 – The View of Knowledge Underlying Academic Writing – For the most part, formal academic writing requires analytical or argumentative thinking. Such writing is initiated by a problem or question and is typically characterized by a controlling thesis statement supported by a hierarchical structure of reasons and evidence. The thesis statement is the writer’s one-sentence summary of his or her argument – the writer’s “answer” or “solution” to the question or problem that drives the essay.

p.30 – Present Knowledge as Dialogic Rather Than Informational – We need to show students that our course readings (and our lectures) are not “information” but arguments.

p.33 – A Positivist Model of the Writing Process:
1. Choose a topic
2. Narrow it
3. Write a thesis
4. Make an outline
5. Write a draft
6. Revise
7. Edit

p.35 – Suggestions for Encouraging Revision:

1. Problem-driven model of the writing process – instead of asking students to choose “topics” and narrow them, encourage students to pose a question or problems and explore them
2. Give problem-focused writing assignments – students are most apt to revise when their essays must be responses to genuine problems
3. Create active learning tasks that help students become posers and explorers of questions
4. Develop strategies for peer review of drafts, either in class or out of class
9 – Helping Students Read Difficult Texts

p.170 – Teach Students “What It Says” and “What It Does” – A “what it says” statement is a summary of the paragraph’s content. A “what it does” statement describes the paragraph’s purpose or function within the essay: for example, “provides evidence for the author’s first main reason,” summarizes an opposing view,” “uses an analogy to clarify the idea in the previous paragraph.”

p.174 – Help Students See that All Texts Are Trying to Change Their View:
1. Before I read this text, the author assumed that I believed…
2. After I finished reading this text, the author wanted me to believe…
3. The author was / was not successful in changing my view. Why or why not?
13 – Designing and Sequencing Assignments to Teach Undergraduate Research

p.229 – The Difficult Subskills of Research Writing:
1. Ask research questions that are interesting, significant, and pursuable at the undergraduate level
2. Establish a rhetorical context (audience, genre, and purpose)
3. Integrate sources into the paper
4. Take thoughtful notes
5. Cite and document sources

p.250 – Explaining the “moves” in an academic introduction:
1. Begin by explaining the problem your paper will address – the writer’s goal is to hook the reader’s interest in the problem being examined, showing why the problem is problematic and what is at stake in solving it.
2. Present your paper’s purpose or thesis
3. Provide an overview of outline of your paper “First, I will show…; the second part of the paper explores…’ finally, I show…”

15 – Coaching the Writing Process

p.293 – Paired Interview Questions:
1. What problem or question is your paper going to address?
2. Why is this question controversial or problematic? Why is it significant? What makes this a good question to address?
3. What is your one sentence answer to this question?
4. Talk me through your whole argument

p.295 – Have Students Submit Something Early in the Writing Process:
• Two Sentences: Question and Thesis – ask students to submit two sentences: a one-sentence question that summarizes the problem the paper addresses and a one-sentence thesis that summarizes the writer’s argument in response to the question.
• Abstract – ask students for a 100- to 200-word abstract of their drafts. The act of summarizing one’s own argument helps writers clarify their own thinking and often reveals organizational and conceptual problems that prompt revision.

p.296 – In-Class Peer Review Workshops – students exchange drafts before class and do the reviews as homework, following the instructions on a peer-review sheet prepared by the teacher. Peer Reviewers then meet with writers in class to discuss their reviews.

p.297 – Questions for Peer Reviews:

1. Does the paper have a thesis statement? (underline it)
2. Is the thesis clear?
3. Is the paper clearly organized? (make an outline)
4. Does the writer use evidence effectively to support the argument? (Which evidence do you think is the strongest, which are the weakest? Make note.)
5. Is the paper clearly written (highlight any passages you had to read more than once to understand what the writer was saying)
6. How persuasive is the argument? (do you agree or disagree with the writer’s position? Why or why not?)

p.307 – Make an idea map to brainstorm for more ideas, make an outline to help with organization, have students talk through the ideas to clear up confusing spots (“my purpose in this paper is…” “my purpose in this paragraph is…”

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book. Great tool for the writing classroom and beyond.

[Ellyn Lem · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not typical "pleasure reading," but instead part of a "reading circle" with other professors who were interested in gaining insight about teaching practices and student learning. Much of what Bean offers as advice for "active learning" is probably already being used by teachers who have been in the profession for a while and have been involved in reflective meditation on aims and practices. Still, he provides interesting suggestions and ideas across the curriculum. One favorite part for me was when he offers up five different variations for assignment design--some being very straight forward and others with more real-world application and higher levels of critical thinking. In that same section, Bean asks, "What do I want them to remember most about my course?" Other ideas that were fruitful from the book include: asking students to put their names on the backs of exam booklets, so we don't read essay exams with the person forefront in our minds, trying to ask fewer subquestions related to a main question on essays exam since that might be harder for students to evaluate where to spend their time, considering whether exams can be replaced by other types of writing assignments that allow for revision, looking into different types of rubrics and how they can work together with what he calls "holistic brain-and-gut" feelings about a paper.
Other worthwhile components were Joseph Bizup's schema for different functions of sources (B.E.A.M.-background, exhibits/evidence, argument, method sources) and reminders of how much professors talk during discussions with classes (86% of the time!) and in conferences and ways to change that dynamic. Overall, kind of refreshing to read a book about teaching and see what all can be learned.

[ChelseaRenee Lovell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like I’d be okay with this book if I was a teacher...however, it was given to me as a book to ‘learn how to teach writing’ as a TA in grad school, and it sucks. I absolutely hated it, and found myself almost hating this semester of grad school because of this book. I can see how it can be helpful for teachers who have a current classroom and who need to reinvigorate it, but as someone who’s never taught before, I am definitely not a part of Bean’s audience. I found myself taking little to nothing away from this book except for frustrations and bland, traditional ideas that current college freshman don’t relate to or respond to at all based on observations from professors that do teach from this book.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that had me thinking "where have you been all my life?" I have never really like Bean's textbook for college writers as it seems theory heavy to me so I was surprised that his guide for professors was down to earth and practical while including reference to the theoretical underpinnings of his suggested methods. Admittedly, ean's philosophy and approach is a lot like the one I have developed from years of hands on teaching and so it may be his approach happens to suit my teaching style more than it would some other people's but this book will have a prominent place in my bookshelf from now on. Another book that should be helpful in developing faculty workshops and reading groups.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book monthly! As a teacher, this book is a literal bible. Every year as I get seasoned as a lecturer, I read this book a little different every time. Sometimes you can get in a funk when you teach the same curriculum every year. This book sparks your joy again in the name teaching love. I have lines and lines of cliff notes on every white space in that book. I'm so lucky to have been introduced to this irreplaceable resource through our Writing Across the Curriculum/Writing in the Disciplines group at our college. I continue to read this over and over again with a new mindset every-time. This book does NOT get old. It is truly timeless.

[Vincent Fong · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was discouraged by the essay works during my university studies - being thrown into a system that I had no prior knowledge to and given no education afterwards.
University courses - like kindergarten syllabus - should be scaffolded, even more sophisticated because the content is much more difficult and, more importantly, requires students that are informed and interested and motivated.
The book contained clear instructions on formal & informal writing - I hope I can teach them to my students so they can utilize writing techniques as tools of thinking

[Brandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a new dual credit teacher this book offered not only a through explanation of how to integrate writing and critical thinking into the classroom, but also offered various examples, rubrics and concrete activities to bring to my classroom. Some professional development books leave your with either a head of research to decipher or ideas to implement. Rarely does a professional development book leave you refreshed and ready to take on the task presented!

[Kim Donehower · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book over 20 years ago, and every time I open it, I find new ways to improve my (and others') college teaching. This is a great book for high school teachers as well. Everyone I have ever recommended it to has found something excellent in it to advance their teaching and their students' learning.

[Adrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid text for anyone looking to have a grasp on how to teach. It is filled with examples, strategies, and questions to improve your teaching. Overall, I enjoyed that the text never loses the focus as to “why” we teach and how to beat do it in a changing educational landscape.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read for classroom strategies on teaching writing and incorporating writing in the classroom, regardless of the subject area. It's an approachable book filled with ideas and justification for why they work.

[Amanda Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Has some great ideas for teaching that I will implement into my classroom.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly insightful and helpful book for any professor who wants to design smart writing assignments across many disciplines.

[Julie R Somers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent suggestions

This book has challenged how I will be delivering my future course assignments. Excellent and clear examples. Very helpful! Thanks

[Ruth Barone · Rating 5 out of 5]

An immensely helpful resource for writing instructors.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Used in grad school