About
Kit O'Toole
Popular Culture and Technology Freelance Writer
Greater Chicago Area
- Current
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- Writer at Blogcritics.org
- Contributing Editor at Beatlefan Magazine
- Past
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- E-structor at SMARTHINKING, Inc.
- Writing Consultant, Writing Center at Northern Illinois University
- Writing Consultant, Writing Across the Curriculum program at Northern Illinois University
- Teaching Assistant, Freshman English program at Northern Illinois University
- Education
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- Northern Illinois University
- DePaul University
- Benedictine University
- Connections
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75
connections
- Industry
- Entertainment
- Websites
Experience
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Writer
Blogcritics.org
(Online Media industry)
February 2008 — Present (2 years 8 months)
Write music reviews and maintains a weekly column, "The Cutout Bin," spotlighting more obscure artists and albums. I also write technology reviews and "how to" articles.
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Contributing Editor
Beatlefan Magazine
(Music industry)
1995 — Present (15 years )
Maintains "Hard Day's Net," a column spotlighting the best Beatles-related websites on the Internet
Writes frequent editorials and features on Beatles-related topics -
E-structor
SMARTHINKING, Inc.
(Privately Held; 11-50 employees; E-Learning industry)
2002 — 2003 (1 year )
• Tutored students in asynchronous and synchronous environments
• Tutored students from junior colleges, four-year colleges, and the e-Army program
• Tutored ESL students in writing concerns -
Writing Consultant, Writing Center
Northern Illinois University
(Educational Institution; 1001-5000 employees; Higher Education industry)
2001 — 2002 (1 year )
• Tutored students in grammar and other writing concerns
• Tutored non-native speakers of English
• Presented to classes on writing topics such as writing the research paper -
Writing Consultant, Writing Across the Curriculum program
Northern Illinois University
(Educational Institution; 1001-5000 employees; Higher Education industry)
1997 — 2000 (3 years )
• Served as a consultant for students and faculty in the depar tments of Economics, History, Political
Science, and Sociology
• Tutored individual students in a variety of writing concerns
• Presented to undergraduate and graduate classes on writing
• Developed handouts on grammar and writing techniques
• Wrote marketing materials promoting the Writing Across the Curriculum program such as
newsletters and brochures
• Presented a faculty workshop on assignment design and assessment -
Teaching Assistant, Freshman English program
Northern Illinois University
(Educational Institution; 1001-5000 employees; Higher Education industry)
1996 — 1997 (1 year )
• Taught two sections of freshman composition 103 (introduction to writing) and three sections of 104 (writing the research paper), one section in Summer 1999
• Developed weekly lesson plans and devised writing assignments
• Participated in Northern Illinois University’s teaching intern program, which trains new teachers, from August 1996 – May 1997
Education
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Northern Illinois University
Ed.D. , Instructional Technology , 1996 — 2006
Dissertation title: "Toward A Tri-Level Model and Comprehensive Theory for Online Writing Laboratory (OWL) Research and Design"
Summary: This study proposes a comprehensive theory and tri-level model for Online Writing Laboratories (OWLs), drawing primarily from learning-to-learn and e-learning theories. In order to fully deconstruct OWLs and allow for various perspectives, poststructuralism and Thomas Kuhn’s paradigm shift theory serve as the conceptual frameworks for the study.
- Activities and Societies:
- • Student representative, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Graduate Council, August 2000 – May 2001
• Student representative, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Graduate Council Curriculum Committee, August 2000 – May 2001
• Student representative, Graduate Student Advisory Committee, August 2000 – May 2001
• President, English Graduate Student Association, August 1997 –May 1998
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DePaul University
M.A. , Writing , 1994 — 1996
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Benedictine University
B.A. , Literature and Communications , 1991 — 1994
Graduated summa cum laude
Additional Information
Websites:
Groups:
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Northern Illinois University Alumni -
Benedictine University Alumni -
DePaul University Alumni Association -
Music and Entertainment Professionals -
Music Industry Forum -
Music Reviewers -
DePaul Chicago Alumni
Honors:
• Robert M. Smith Memorial Scholarship: Excellence in the Study of Learning to Learn, Northern Illinois University, 2006
• Teaching Assistantship, Northern Illinois University, 1996 – 2001
• Academic Partial Tuition Waiver, DePaul University, 1994 – 1996
• St. Benedict Recognition Award Scholarship, Benedictine University, 1991 – 1994
• First Place Scholarship, Dominican University Writing Festival, 1990-1991
Wordpress is good, although you have to get used to using CSS. Another option is LiveJournal, although you don’t have as much control over the layout as on WordPress. Good luck!