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Melissa Wolfe
Nancy Roche
Writing 1010-013
November 24, 2014
Literacy Practices: City and Metropolitan Planning
Intro: Literacy Practice
The word practice as we have studied it in our writing 1010 class has been redefined in
regards to literacy. It has more meaning than its operational definition because it incorporates
cultures and the ways that literacy is used by them as well as lifestyles and relationships between
people. Barton and Hamilton said that, Practices are shaped by social rules which regulate the
use and distribution of texts, prescribing who may produce and have access to them (8). Here I
study the literacy practices involved in the City and Metropolitan Planning department at the
University of Utah. By researching the broader social goals and cultural practices of the
community, overall structure of the department, major texts and practices used in the department,
and the events which are mediated by texts, I have found that literacy practices are specific to
and finely tuned by the social groups in which they are involved.
The Department
The City and Metropolitan Planning community in general seeks to enhance the
vitality and health of communities, regions, and cities in and around counties through placebased approaches to building in harmony with nature. The practices or cultural values of this
community remain the same and are unified through magazines, articles, and other texts
throughout the country but vary by location due to differing environmental and city factors. The

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department at the U happens to be ranked number five in the U.S. by average total citations per
faculty member.
The departments faculty is structured in a hierarchical manner with the head faculty at
the top followed by the auxiliary faculty and then the general staff. The head faculty consists of
the associate dean, chair professor, assistant professors/lecturers, associate professors, and
adjunct professors, all of whom have PhD's except one who has a MArch. The auxiliary faculty
consists of similarly structured professors and instructors who are not noted as having PhDs or
other big name degrees. The general staff is made up of advisors, office assistants, system
managers, public relation associates, budget managers, and other people who are involved in
keeping the department up and running. Although this general structure is the same throughout
many of the departments at the University of Utah there are many things that make it unique.
Artifacts
The major texts that are involved in the city and metropolitan planning department range
anywhere from textbooks and essays to magazines and websites. Many of the important texts can
be found in the departments database which mostly includes articles and informative essays
about current or old projects and the history of architecture and other related subjects written by
a large span of the communities members. Many of the major texts that I have studied in the
department are used to simply inform without using flashy words, use a range of semiotics and
acronyms, and often include section headers and bullet points.
Artifact 2: Department Brochure
The first aspect of the brochure that is worth noting is that it was strategically and
beautifully designed like most of the texts in the department. It is made clear while looking over
the brochure that someone, most likely a grad student, put a lot of time and thought into its

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physical appearance in order to attract and appeal to aspiring/future students. The main aspect
that I would like to point out, despite my previous claim, is that it is made up almost entirely of
flashy words aimed to impress said students. This is interesting because the majority of the
articles and essays that can be found in the universitys database do not include that aspect and
are written to be easily understood and translated. In this way, it is clear that this particular text
which was made by a certain social group of the department is incorporated into a part of the
departments practice that is aimed at future and aspiring students rather than the general
community.
The Events
There are major events, two of which are highlighted on the university of utahs website,
that are mediated by texts which discuss the over-all goals and plans for the city and
metropolitan planning department. The first major event that the department annually takes part
in and hosts is called the Mayors Symposium. The event is mediated by a schedule of the times
that the speakers and activities will lecture and take place and the material that the speakers bring
to share with the group of attendees. The second major event that the department highlights is
called the Center for the Living City where the Salt Lake Workshop and Westside studio bring
together a range of students that work with members of the community to promote increased
civic engagement among communities. The text which mediates this event is a website which is
again, beautifully designed and has a range of semiotics.

Conclusion

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The overall practice of the City and Metropolitan Planning department that I have studied
seems to be mediated by texts which are written to be easily understood and used by students and
other members of the community. Literacy practices vary based on social groups and use
different types of texts to inform members of said social group. The City and Metropolitan
Planning department at the University of Utah demonstrates that literacy practices are unique to
their community through the overall structure of the department, broader social goals and
cultural practices of the community, events which are mediated by texts, and the major texts and
practices used in the department.