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Creating and Sequencing Writing Assignments
Writing assignments are often thought of as evaluation tools upon which a percentage of a course grade is based. But writing assignments can be a very effective teaching tool, rather than just a means of evaluating your students. That is, writing can be used to help the students learn , by helping them organize their thoughts and produce new thoughts.
A major finding of WAC research is that assigning more writing does not improve student writing. What appears to improve the quality of student writing is how professors present, sequence, and evaluate assignments. |
Clear Assignments and Feedback
As faculty who attend WAC workshops often realize, poor writing sometimes stems from poorly designed assignments. Often, professors haven't spent enough time deciding what they really want students to write.
A consistent finding of longitudinal studies of college students suggests that novice writers benefit enormously when they receive clear, detailed assignments from their professors (Sternglass 1997; Carroll 2002). Further, students write better papers when they understand how they will be evaluated -- and when they receive quick, frequent feedback.
At City College, the WAC/WID program has identified
Three Principles for Creating Effective Writing Assignments.
Principle #1: Presentation and class discussion.
Principle #2: Explain expected disciplinary conventions.
Principle #3: Explain your evaluation criteria.
Also see the WAC Resources page for a list of websites and books that can provide inspiration for creation of assignments.
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