College Composition and Communication (CCC) Journal

The College Composition and Communication (CCC) journal is put out by the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC).  According to their website, the journal “supports and promotes the teaching and study of college composition and communication” through a variety of ways, including the following:

1. Sponsoring meetings and publishing scholarly materials for the exchange of knowledge about composition, composition pedagogy, and rhetoric
2. Supporting a wide range of research in composition, communication, and rhetoric
3. Working to enhance the conditions for learning and teaching college composition and to promote professional development
4. Acting as an advocate for language and literacy education nationally and internationally

I remember that CCC was one of the premier academic journals in the English composition field from when I was in my Master’s of English program at Virginia Tech, and I read many articles from this journal as part of my courses and research while in that program.  In addition to my memory, I also inquired with my former mentor and advisor at Virginia Tech to be sure that there wasn’t another teaching-related journal in the field that might be a better choice.  She reaffirmed that CCC is the best journal for teaching in the composition field, and as a well-known and respected composition scholar, I also trust her judgment very much.

A few of the titles of recent articles from the February issue that I found online also confirm that a significant percent of the articles relate directly to teaching in the field, including “Being There: (Re)Making the Assessment Scene” by Chris W. Gallagher, “Toward Graduate-Level Writing Instruction” by Micciche and Carr, and “Review Essay: Beyond Typical Ideas of Writing: Developing a Diverse Understanding of Writers, Writing, and Writing Instruction” by Susan K. Miller-Cochran.

I also know that the annual Conference on College Composition and Communication, known as “Four Cs”, which is affiliated with the CCC journal, is the biggest conference in the field, so the affiliated journal must also include some of the most well-respected figures in the field, most of whom have been teaching for many years and continue to write about their teaching.

I choose this journal for my teaching journal research, and I look forward to reading articles from it that will hopefully help contribute to my growing expertise in teaching composition.  Bain includes very helpful teaching advice, but this journal includes articles that directly relate to my field and should be a good supplemental teaching text.