The University of Minnesota participated in the National Day on Writing on Tuesday with activities, short seminars and an interactive writing display to recognize the impact of writing on students. The display in Nicholson Hall focused on using writing with modern technology like blogs and webcasts. Declared by the U.S. Senate and sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), the day was celebrated by schools and colleges nationwide. âÄúWhen we found out about it, we thought it would be a good idea to celebrate writing with students,âÄù said Heather Mendygral, a first-year writing program assistant for the Department of Writing Studies. âÄúThis is a way to give students the venue to share their writing with the world and write for a bigger audience.âÄù The interactive writing display had writing stations such as the âÄúInk Spill,âÄù which asked students to write their thoughts on a large writing pad and then post it up on a wall. The âÄúWriting Pod,âÄù a computer connected to a webcam, allowed students to respond to questions like, âÄúWhat does writing mean to you?âÄù The answers they typed were broadcast online. âÄúSome people are baffled, others are reticent,âÄù said Tim Gustafson, associate director of the first-year writing program. âÄúThe Writing Pod is a way of having fun opportunities for people to write. Some might say serious things about writing, some may not.âÄù Tim Dougherty , a second-year writing studies graduate student, said some students were reluctant to participate. âÄúIt feels public to have your face and words displayed to the whole world,âÄù he said. But he said students passing by between classes seemed interested. The National Day on Writing is part of a larger initiative by the NCTE to recognize the diversity of writing and how itâÄôs changing, said Millie Davis , NCTE director of communications. The online National Gallery of Writing, created by the NCTE, displays more than 10,000 writings voluntarily posted by schools and individuals around the world. Davis said the documents include essays, videos, blog pieces and conversations from social networking sites. âÄúWe think people are writing more now because of the technological tools available, and theyâÄôre writing differently,âÄù she said. Researchers will analyze the documents to provide teachers with better resources to help students with their writing.