Make a Road Map for an Exploring Writing

in the Major Course

May 20, 2024 - Chalet Seidel

Agenda

• Where does the WIM fit?
• What is a WIM?
• Guiding questions when selecting/designing a WIM
• Could ENGL 0204 be our WIM?
• Could ENGL 0392 be our WIM?
• What does a department-designed WIM look like?

Where does

the WIM go?

What is a WIM?

Exploring Writing in the Major (credits and learning outcomes determined by major)

DESCRIPTION OF COURSES IN THIS AREA:Students will be introduced to the discourse of the discipline/field either in English 204 or a course offered by the major department. This course will build on the skills students learn in Rhetoric and Composition and in Writing Infused courses. Students learn strategies to locate, analyze, synthesize and generate research in rhetorically effective, genre- or discipline-specific ways.

​

PRACTICE STANDARD:

Writing Focused: This course will build on the skills students learn in Rhetoric and Composition. Students will explore the most common genres of the major/field; how research is conducted in the discipline; expectations for writing in the discipline; and engage in critical analysis of disciplinary discourse by considering the perspectives and types of knowledge and communication that are included and excluded. This course spreads writing assignments throughout the semester, providing students opportunities to practice writing regularly. Students will produce both formal and low-stakes products. Students will be expected to incorporate regular in-process feedback on their writing from faculty and peers and to revise their work by implementing substantial and holistic changes, proofreading, and editing.

​

OTHER NOTES ABOUT this area:

*This can be part of an existing course in the major that provides writing instruction or a course such as the current ENGL 204: Composition II

As a university curriculum requirement this will appear on students’ degree audit.

​

Handouts: Breakdown of WIM Practice Standard, Examples of critical analysis of the discourse

​

​

​

Practice Standard

Standard Broken Down

This course will build on the skills students learn in Rhetoric and Composition.

​

Parts of the practice standard related to content:

Students will explore:

• the most common genres of the major/field;
• how research is conducted in the discipline;
• expectations for writing in the discipline.

And students will engage in critical analysis of disciplinary discourse by considering the perspectives and types of knowledge and communication that are included and excluded.

​

Parts of the practice standard related to writing process:

• This course spreads writing assignments throughout the semester, providing students opportunities to practice writing regularly.
• Students will produce both formal and low-stakes products.
• Students will be expected to incorporate regular in-process feedback on their writing from faculty and peers.
• Students will be expected to revise their work by implementing substantial and holistic changes, proofreading, and editing.

Guiding Questions for Designing a WIM

1. What does “good” writing look like in our discipline/major?

​

​

Becoming

a Disciplinary

Insider

Guiding Questions for Designing a WIM

• What does “good” writing look like in our discipline/major?
• What disciplinary conventions do we want our students to master?
• Where are we teaching these writing skills/practices in our major?

​

What do students learn in 204?

Outcomes/Goals for Comp II/English 204

In producing at least four projects, including an annotated bibliography, a project proposal, a project and a reflective or metacognitive text, students will:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of and engage in the writing process by:

· Offering suggestions for other writers to apply rhetorical tools, techniques, and approaches appropriate for a given genre, purpose and audience

· Using metacognitive practices as a part of writing processes (this should be done throughout the course in small increments), culminating in a final reflective project that references their own work throughout the semester

· Demonstrating their ability to use feedback from peers and instructor and engage in deep revision based on their understandings of purpose, audience and/or genre

​

​

What do students learn in 204?

2. Demonstrate an ability to produce projects using outside texts and engaging with rhetorical situations in some discipline-specific ways by:

· Understanding the needs of varying audiences and making informed rhetorical decisions about genre and style and employing appropriate rhetorical techniques and persuasive tools that help to reach those audiences

· Reading and evaluating a range of types of texts (summarizing them, identifying key terms and concepts) related to both writing and to their chosen discipline

· Producing an annotated bibliography of at least 7 sources of varying modalities (written, visual, aural) for an academic audience

· Producing a project proposal and project related to their discipline for a chosen public target audience

· Assessing genres, choosing and producing a project in a public genre appropriate for their proposed project and target audience and specific to their discipline

​

​

What Do Students Learn in ENGL 0392?

The goals this course are for you to:

• Practice writing a variety of business genres,
• Be better able to assess readers’ needs and to craft your documents accordingly,
• Learn and practice strategies for writing clear, concise sentences,
• Learn and practice strategies for crafting paragraphs,
• Develop well supported arguments using a variety of forms of evidence,
• Practice giving effective written feedback,
• Strengthen your research skills and gain confidence that you are using—and documenting—sources appropriately,
• Gain more awareness of your own writing process so that you can identify the strategies that help you plan, write, and revise documents most effectively,
• Learn basic principles of document design so that you can present what you write in an attractive, reader-friendly format,
• Learn to avoid the most common errors in grammar and mechanics.

Handout

​

​

Examples of Department-Designed WIMs

Examples posted at:

westfield.ma.edu/wac under the “general education” tab

​

​

Exploring Writing in Music: Intro to Music Scholarship (2 credits) Professor Sonya Lawson, Ph.D.

Exploring Writing in Biology: Biology Seminar (2 credits) Professor Robin White, Ph.D.

​

​

​

Wrap-up/Questions