RSU Instructors Publish New Textbook

With the release of their new textbook, two RSU faculty members take issue with the old adage that “those who can, do; and those who can’t, teach.”

Scott Robert Reed, developmental instructor at Rogers State University, and Dr. Brenda Tuberville, assistant professor and coordinator of developmental studies at RSU, would maintain that those who can, do both and write a textbook.

Reed and Tuberville are the authors of “Writing in a New Language: An Introduction to Academic Writing,” just published by Fountainhead Press, and will be using this textbook in all sections of basic writing taught at RSU.

The textbook introduces students to the new experiences they face in academic writing. It took a year to write but it was years in the making.

“I have seen my share of really bad basic writing textbooks over the past 16 years,” Tuberville said, “and the thought of writing one that truly meets our student’s needs had been in the back of my mind for some time.”

The impetus for moving that idea from the back of her mind to the front was the addition of Scott Reed as a full-time developmental instructor.

“We wanted to write a text that addresses the challenges we see writing students facing every day with a more practical approach,” Reed stated. “Our goal is to help them build a foundation of writing skills that will make them successful in general education writing courses and beyond.”

Proceeds from the sale of this textbook to RSU students will go into an RSU Foundation account that has been set up to improve the teaching of basic writing at the university.