Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Assessment Update

ISSN

1536-0725

Volume

28

Issue

6

DOI

10.1002/au.30039

First Page

5

Last Page

14

Publication Date

11-1-2015

Abstract

Many writing program administrators experience a familiar conundrum: heed the cries for fast assessment results or engage in the lengthy and complicated process that meaningful review of student learning seems to entail? Such was my plight in the 2013–2014 academic year when my university deployed a new strategy for supporting incoming developmental writers. Beginning that fall, students whose writing-SAT (SAT-W) scores were between 450 and 500 were enrolled in a course known as Seminar Plus Studio (SPS), an interdisciplinary class that included a weekly supplemental 100-minute studio aimed at delivering targeted writing instruction, practice, and feedback. Instructors for these sections were handpicked based on their extensive experience and reputations for excellence as writing teachers. As director of writing programs, my challenge was to determine if this curricular change effectively helped developmental writers transition into college-level writing. Add to that task the fact that I needed results quickly—if we were not successful, we had to come up with an alternate plan, and the registrar needed enough lead time to get information in the catalog by spring.

Fully aware that direct evidence of writing improvement is hard to procure after a single semester, I chose to conduct two concurrent assessment projects utilizing multiple but fairly simple techniques. The first examined skill development, and the second explored student growth in writing self-efficacy. What follows is a recounting of my intentions and my findings.

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View the publisher's PDF version of the article by clicking here https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/au.30039

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