Across global Rhetoric and Composition Studies teaching and professional communities and their allied fields, the impact of digitalization and multimodal literacy is undeniable (Bhutoria, 2022; Nazari, 2021; Sevnarayan & Potter, 2024). This influence has significantly shaped writing program pedagogies and theories (Fyfe, 2023; Graham, 2023; Mohammed, 2023); the writing center is no exception (Buck & Botvin, 2024; Essid, 2023). Scholars have highlighted how digital transformation, including AI and online teaching, has sparked reflective discussions among directors and writing center tutors. This literacy amalgamation has led tutors and administrators to adapt their philosophies and tutoring strategies, empowering writers and fostering community…
Author: Sarah Fischer
Sarah Fischer is a PhD candidate in the Rhetoric program at Indiana University Bloomington. She studies embodied writing, multimodal composition, and composition pedagogy. Her dissertation examines how video composition is an act of embodied writing that fosters rhetorical awareness.
I hardly remember a time before social media. I made my first email account to instantmessage my friends after school when I was in elementary school (AIM “away messages” were iconic). I made a MySpace account when I was 12 years old, only for it to be quickly replaced by Facebook; then a few years later, supplemented with Tumblr, Instagram, and most recently— YouTube. Documenting our everyday lives and connecting with others online has been foundational for me and for my generation. I was drawn to the field of digital rhetoric because of the unique power held by social media…