Keywords

Writing Center Studies, Graduate Pedagogy, GTA Development, Embedded Apprenticeship Model, Institutional Design

Abstract

Graduate students are frequently positioned as instructors of record in foundational writing courses, yet preparation for these roles is often distributed across institutional sites, including writing centers, pedagogy courses, and mentorship opportunities. This thesis examines educator development across successive institutional roles, tracing how instructional responsibility is encountered and negotiated within writing center and composition studies. Through autoethnographic tracing, this research considers how progression is experienced in practice, with attention to the influence of institutional design on the movement between stages.

Paired with this narrative approach, a rhetorical analysis of institutional artifacts draws upon experiences at Stetson University and the University of Central Florida to examine how instructional roles are constructed and communicated. Through institutional artifacts, including course descriptions, syllabi, training materials, and related coursework, the analysis determines two differing models of preparation: one in which early apprenticeship opportunities are optionalized, and another in which preparation unfolds across a sequence of courses (ENC 4275/5276, ENC 5933, and ENC 5705).

While these models establish multiple points of entry into teaching, a pattern emerges in how responsibility is introduced and extended across the Lifecycle of the Educator. With moments of interruption and fragmentation navigating the transition between roles and implementing pedagogical skills into institutional spaces, this thesis proposes an Embedded Graduate Apprenticeship model that situates graduate students within the classroom prior to assuming full instructional responsibility. Conceptualizing educator development as a lifecycle offers a framework for understanding and developing sustained graduate preparation throughout the Lifecycle of the Educator.

Completion Date

2026

Semester

Spring

Committee Chair

Martha Brenckle

Degree

Master of Arts (M.A.)

College

College of Arts and Humanities

Department

Writing & Rhetoric

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Identifier

DP0053191

Download

Share

COinS
 

Accessibility Statement

This item was created or digitized prior to April 24, 2027, or is a reproduction of legacy media created before that date. It is preserved in its original, unmodified state specifically for research, reference, or historical recordkeeping. In accordance with the ADA Title II Final Rule, the University Libraries provides accessible versions of archival materials upon request. To request an accommodation for this item, please submit an accessibility request form.