Writing as Advocacy

Teaching Writing Across the Disciplines from a Mental Health Perspective

Abstract

This paper responds to calls for greater advocacy and accessibility in technical and professional communication pedagogy and practice by outlining a unique approach to conceptualizing Writing Across the Disciplines curriculum, one that encourages students to engage in mental health (self-)advocacy, reconceptualize mental health (dis)ability, and view writing studies as capable of engendering access to rhetoric useful for engaging in productive mental health discourse. In this article, I outline key components of my curriculum, including assignments and learning objectives, and ultimately judge the success of this model in practice based on end-of-semester surveys. Student responses emphasized the value of situating writing studies in social justice contexts, indicating that adopting mental health studies as a framework for teaching Writing Across the Disciplines may provide a practical means of responding to calls for improving advocacy and accessibility in TPC pedagogy.