Author: Ali Alalem

Welcome to Part II of Blog Carnival 24: Multimodality, Social Justice, and Human-Centered Praxis. As we continue to amplify the amazing justice-oriented work instructors and practitioners are doing across our field, this second group of posts broadens our scope. While authors continue to explore innovative approaches in First-Year Composition, Part II expands into Technical and Professional Communication (TPC), digital rhetoric, content creation, and diverse Writing Program Administration roles, including Writing Center and training faculty across the disciplines. The nine posts featured here demonstrate how multimodality acts as a powerful intervention not just in our assignments, but in the ways we…

In our call for Blog Carnival 24: Multimodality, Social Justice, and Human-Centered Praxis, we sought contributions that leverage multimodal frameworks to foster social justice and center human experiences across lines of difference. We were impressed by the number of scholars, teachers, writing center tutors, program administrators, and practitioners who engage in justice work through their teaching, tutoring, leadership, and scholarly practices across diverse areas and contexts. At a contentious time marked by challenges to the very values and commitments that have sustained our field, this turnout is both heartening and galvanizing; it reaffirms that our community remains steadfast in putting…

In our recent intergenerational interview with the founding, former, and current editors of Computers and Composition for the journal’s forthcoming 40th Anniversary Special Issue, Drs. Cindy Selfe, Kristine Blair, and Jason Tham emphasized that the current moment calls for renewed attention to two areas the field has yet to fully address: multimodality and social justice. There is an urgent need to center human experience and address issues of access, equity, inclusion, and diversity through our teaching practices, pedagogical innovations, and collective research efforts. Multimodality holds considerable potential to advance these goals, enacting a human-centered approach to composition while addressing social-justice-related…

Over time, I have come to realize how deeply our lived experiences shape who we are as scholars and teachers. I often ask myself what drives my passion for leveraging multimodal composition to foster access and social and civic engagement. For me, the answer lies in my own journey, in the unexpected ways I have seen technology-mediated literacy practices open paths, forge connections, and expand agency. Growing up in a challenging context, I found solace in technology as a teenager. Since home internet was not an option, I often sneaked to a nearby internet café after school to experiment with…