Toscano, Aaron

Education

• Ph.D. Rhetoric and Composition, University of Louisville, 2006
• M.S. Professional Writing, Towson University, 2000
• B.A. Economics / English, Virginia Tech, 1998

Research Interests

• Technical & Professional Communication
• Science and Technology Studies
• Rhetoric/Composition
• Popular Culture Studies
• New Media Studies
• Women’s and Gender Studies
• Science Fiction

Selected Publications and Presentations
Book Chapter

• “Experimenting with Multimodality.” Multimodal Composition: Resources Book for Teachers. Ed. Cynthia L. Selfe. Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press, 2007: 83-98. (co-authored with John Branscum)

Recent Articles

• “Rethinking Online Space: Encouraging Student Immersion for Online and Hybrid Courses.” Studies in Media & Information Literacy Education. 9.2 (May 2009): 70-85.
• “Discussing Workplace Identities to Foster Writing Exploration: Lessons and Activities for Critical Engagement.” North Carolina English Teacher 64.2 (Summer 2008): 4-11.

Presentations

• “Professional Composition: Remixing Composition Theory and Practice for Twenty-First-Century Communication.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. Louisville, KY, March 2010.
• “Tony Soprano as Middle America’s Barometer: How the Sopranos (re)Present Contemporary Middle-Class Anxieties.” Popular Culture Association in the South/American Culture Association in the South Conference. Jacksonville, Florida, October 2009.
• “Professional Writing to (Un)Learn: Pre-Career Writing as a Chance for Critical Reflection.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Francisco, California, March 2009.
• “But aren’t You Mad? New(s) Media Reaction to the Virginia Tech Shooting.” Thomas R. Watson Conference on Rhetoric and Composition. Louisville, Kentucky, October 2008.
• “Bringing Workplace Identities into the Composition Classroom.” Student Success in First-Year Composition Conference. Statesboro, GA 2008.
• “Backlash! What Two of Nicole Kidman’s Early US Films Say about the Role of Women in Popular Culture.” Popular Culture Association in the South/American Culture Association in the South Conference. Jacksonville, Florida, September 2007.
• “Nine or Ten Reasons Asimov’s I, Robot May Revitalize Technical Communication Pedagogy.” Kentucky Philological Association Conference. Barbourville, Kentucky, March 2007.
• “Coalition of the Unwilling: Privileging False Communities in the Professional Writing Classroom.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. Chicago, Illinois, March 2006.
• “Video Games and Cultural Reinscriptions: What One Gamer Reveals about Catharsis, Literacy, and Ideology.” Popular Culture Association in the South/American Culture Association in the South Conference. Jacksonville, Florida, October 2005.
• “Systemic Inspiration: Futurist Literature and Marconi’s Wireless.” Kentucky Philological Association Conference. Highland Heights, Kentucky, April 2005.
• “Reading Postmodern and Modernist Architecture: A Video Essay.” Thomas R. Watson Conference on Rhetoric and Composition. Louisville, Kentucky, October 2004.
• “Anecdotes and Office Space: One Instructor’s Incorporation of Personal Workplace History into the Professional Writing Class.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Antonio, Texas, March 2004.

Courses Taught

• ENGL 2116: Introduction to Technical Communication
• ENGL / AMST / WMST 3050: New Media: Gender, Culture, Technology
• ENGL 4008: Rhetoric of Technology
• ENGL 4180 / 5180: Theories of Technical CommunicationENGL 4181 / 5181: Writing User Documents
• ENGL 4182 / 5182: Information Design and Digital Publishing
• ENGL 5400: English Composition Practicum
• ENGL 6008: New Media
• ENGL 6116: Technical/Professional Writing

Professional Appointments

Faculty appointments

• UNC Charlotte since 2006
• Adjunct Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies since 2007