teaching with writing
Mission
of the Writing Requirement at the University
Learning to write
is a life-long task, one that begins in childhood, is enhanced by formal
education, and is further refined through an individual's personal,
social, and professional experiences. At the University, writing
is the principal means by which all scholars—from faculty
researchers to undergraduate students—conduct inquiries and
communicate their learning. Writing and learning are inseparable;
learning to write effectively can be one of the most intellectually
empowering components of a university education. The University
regards the teaching of writing as a responsibility shared
by all departments. Thus, the University has established a “writing across the curriculum” program,
which is based on several complementary objectives:
- Good writers
write a great deal; they practice on a continuing basis, so one of the
goals of writing-intensive courses is to offer ongoing writing practice.
- Good writers
are able to write for a variety of audiences; they understand that effective
writing depends on context—who is writing what to whom, in what settings,
and for what purposes. For this reason, students should write in many
different kinds of courses, to audiences ranging from their peers to
senior scholars and scientists.
- Good writers
are also able to produce a range of different kinds of writing—from
helpful personal notes and journals of their own work to public documents,
memoranda, and correspondence. So the nature of the writing done in “writing-intensive” courses
should vary considerably.
- Because no
one course can meet all these goals, the collective goal of all these
writing-intensive courses is to prepare students to communicate effectively
in a variety of situations at the University, in their future employment,
and in their roles as citizens.
The requirement
for writing across the curriculum is structured to meet these objectives. It
starts with course in first-year composition, offered in the department of
Writing Studies. In addition, undergraduate
students are required to take four writing-intensive (W-I) courses. These courses
can be found in every department and are marked as meeting the W-I requirement
in course bulletins. |
