Tanya K. Rodrigue and Kyle D. Stedman
Assignments & Activities Archive
Activity Description
Soundwriting assignments—those that ask students in writing and rhetoric classes to compose rhetorical digital audio projects—are becoming more commonplace in the college classroom (e.g. Alexander; Friend; Faris, Danforth, and Stedman). One of the ways students learn how to compose effective soundwriting is to listen to how others have crafted audio work. In doing so, students learn rhetorical strategies to impact and immerse their listeners in the sonic experience they design. Many instructors assume students already know how to listen by the time they get to college, yet in reality, most have never been taught to do so. Listening is not an innate skill, nor is it easy to do. Students need guidance on how to listen—both with their ears and their bodies—and what to listen for. This four-day in-class activity guide helps students learn listening practices that will help them become effective soundwriters through listening for immersion and listening for rhetorical choices. Listening for immersion calls for listeners to turn off their analytical lens and allow themselves to be transported into a soundwriting experience in the way the soundwriter designed. While listening to a piece of soundwriting in this way, students are asked to pay careful attention to immersive moments—those that call for them to visualize or feel an emotion. They then switch mental gears and practice listening for rhetorical choices, switching on their analytical lens to identify rhetorical moves soundwriters make, using tools such as music and sound effects, to impact their audience. Ideally, students who follow these assignments will learn how to listen across the listening spectrum, turning their analytical filters on and off, working to build a strong understanding of the rhetorical function of soundwriting strategies so they can create immersive, powerful soundwriting.