Mapping Textual Conversations: An Application of Network Analysis for Writing Assessment and Curriculum Planning

• In Event: 34.094 - Fairmont Royal York Roundtable Session Six
  In Roundtable Session: 34.094-6 - Analytical Approaches in Multimethod and Mixed-Methods Research

Abstract

Using textual evidence to advance an argument is widely recognized as the defining feature of most academic communities—what Bartholomae (1995) called the “network of affiliations that constitute writing in the academy.” Yet the research on text-based argumentation has not necessarily drawn on methods that support this networked view of academic reading and writing. This paper describes a novel application of network analysis to a study of text referencing in a pre-college program. We demonstrate that network approaches are consonant with the theoretical underpinnings of disciplinary literacy and intertextual research and that they offer powerful tools for writing research, assessment, and planning. We also discuss the limitations of network mapping, including its intensely visual quality and its potential for misinterpretation.

Author

• Kristin Black, New York University