teaching with writing

syllabi statements: rationales for writing

general writing rationale

coming soon!

biological sciences

Biological science does not reside in its subject matter; there is no science in genetic codes, orchids, or hydrochloric acid. Rather, science is a way to investigate these subjects; it is a point of view, imagination's play with the possible. Writing about scientific subjects, both as they are being investigated and after the investigation has been completed, is an integral element of scientific discovery and analysis. Science and the practice of writing work together. As David Porush of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute suggests, we might "think of writing as an activity that negotiates the boundary between the logical and irrational, the known and the mysterious" (242). Writing assignments have, therefore, been integrated into the activities of writing-intensive courses in order to help you establish what you already know, describe new observations, pursue ideas thoroughly and critically, and then communicate your observations, ideas, and findings to readers--just as practicing scientists do.

business

Because successful business hinges on effective communication, business school graduates spend a large percentage of their working hours reading, drafting, and revising formal and informal communications. Business and management professionals write reports, proposals, memoranda, and multi-media presentations. They face special rhetorical challenges because what they write is often read by multiple readers, who range from intra-office colleagues and international clients to the intermediary professionals involved in fulfilling transactions. In professional environments, writers may have sole authorship of the documents they produce, but it is far more likely that they will write collaboratively, in both "real" and virtual environments. The assignments in writing-intensive courses will introduce you to some of the contexts and criteria for good writing in management and business.

engineering

Although an engineer's ultimate goal is the production of objects, most don't construct the objects themselves. Their attention, instead, is focused on communicating ideas and designs to those who will be involved in production. Detailed, accurate, and persuasive writing is, therefore, crucial in all engineering fields. In fact, Aaron Krawitz, who teaches mechanical and aerospace engineering courses at the University of Missouri, notes that "because of the technical nature of engineering, and the financial and legal consequences, [engineers] might arguably be asked to present more ideas in writing (and verbally) than most graduates of our campus." (Patton et al. 66). The writing required of engineers is not limited to formal design proposals or descriptive lab reports; they also compile and explore ideas, design sketches, and record observations in laboratory notebooks. Organizing ideas in these ways allows engineers to keep track of ideas as they occur. The record of these ideas may be important not only to research in engineering, but also to the patent process.

history

History is constructed through writing, and the materials used to construct history are themselves often written documents. Primary, historical sources include narrative accounts of events; interpretations and reinterpretations of these accounts; analyses of similarities, differences, causes, and effects; governmental and religious records, and so on. So, when we study history, we engage in the practice of history-making. That is, we write, often about others' written documents, as a way of making sense of the jumble of factual and interpretive data we find, and as a way of persuading others of the interpretations behind these data. Writing-intensive courses in history will provide you with opportunities to analyze and interpret historical materials through their writing assignments. 

journalism

In many journalism courses, producing media-ready copy is acknowledged as a primary objective; therefore, frequent attention to good writing is expected. Journalists may specialize in a range of writing-based activities, including print or broadcast journalism, public relations, advertising, or online media. Practicing journalists become experts in a range of skills such as researching information, interviewing, organizing, drafting and revising, writing for specific audiences, and judging the quality of current publications. Effective journalistic writing often has criteria different from other kinds of writing: it must be clear yet sophisticated, artful yet free of obvious embellishment. It must establish a voice of its own, yet be a window to credible facts. In addition, formatting skills require practice, and thus most programs offer students opportunities to try their hands at layout design, headlines, subheads, pull quotes, graphics, and photographs. In addition, debates over subjectivity and objectivity, the ethics of civic journalism, and the introduction of terms such as "stimulus-response," "association," and "information theory" provide background for the writing-related issues that are important in the field. Writing-intensive courses in journalism provide students with practice in producing the many kinds of journalistic prose.

mathematics

Math is often described as a non-verbal discipline, and the appropriateness of writing assignments in mathematics courses might seem questionable to some. The integration of prose into the field of mathematics is not new, however, and most mathematics instructors design and use word problems to help students apply mathematical concepts to their "real" experiences. Common also are assignments in which students are asked to provide verbal explanations of mathematical concepts and methods they used in finding solutions. In fact, according to mathematics scholar and professor Annalisa Crannell, "professional mathematicians spend most of their time writing: communicating with colleagues, applying for grants, publishing papers, writing memos and syllabi. Writing well is extremely important to mathematicians, since poor writers have a hard time getting published, getting attention from deans, and obtaining funding. It is ironic but true that most mathematicians spend more time writing than they spend doing mathematics."

music

Writing about music often requires the writer to translate ideas about what is heard (sound) into an entirely different medium (prose). This translation process integrates two different systems of notation (musical notes and written language) in order to communicate about ideas that exist in sound and time. Writers in the field of music also respond to musical works, analyze compositions and techniques, profile work of specific composers, write grants for support of their work, review others' compositions and productions, and promote musical events. The branch of this field called "musicology," not unlike the discipline of history, depends upon written reasoning to account for historical and cultural contexts for music. Many musicians, composers, and professors of music report that they spend as much time writing as they do composing or performing.

physical sciences

Good writing plays an essential role in physical science: in keeping a record of one's investigations for oneself and others, in communicating one's results to peers, in interpreting one's science to a broader public, and in clarifying one's own thinking. The importance of graceful and lucid writing, writing that is precise, well-constructed, and directed appropriately to the audience at hand, cannot be overemphasized.

social sciences

Disciplines in the social sciences (e.g., Anthropology, Economics, Education, Geography, Linguistics, Political Science, Psychology, Religious Studies, Sociology, Statistics, Women's Studies) share with other sciences the practice of basing disciplinary knowledge on scientific inquiry. Social scientists ask and answer questions about patterns of human activity and use writing both as an aid to their own research and thinking and as a means of communicating and thus legitimizing their findings. A primary objective of social science research is to interrogate the relationship between commonly held ideas about the world and actual observations of the world. Writing in the social sciences is often highly rhetorical, built around a thesis about a social phenomenon and concrete evidence to support it. When social scientists postulate, debate, and publish their findings, they contribute to the body of ideas that keeps these fields dynamic.

works cited

Crannell, Annalisa. A Guide to Writing in Mathematics Classes. Franklin & Marshall College. 1994. 31 Jan. 2003 <http://www.fandm.edu/Departments/
Mathematics/writing_in_math/guide.html>.

Patton, Martha D., Aaron Krawitz, Kay Libbus, Mark Ryan, and Martha A. Townsend. "Dealing with Resistance to WAC in the Natural and Applied Sciences." Language and Learning Across the Disciplines. 3:1. University of Missouri. http://wac.colostate.edu/llad/v3n1/patton.pdf.

Porush, David. A Short Guide to Writing about Science. New York: HarperCollins College Publishers, 1995.

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