Based upon the survey results, along with samples of bad student writing submitted by a number of departments, the Group identified two distinct problems with writing at the College.
They estimated that about 40 students in each class lack basic writing skills.
The second issue is a general feeling that the writing instruction at the College requires some improvement. Professor of English Chick Chickering, a member of the Working Group, warned that there could be severe consequences if these problems are not corrected.
The Group outlined a two-part proposal designed to assist both the group of students who need to acquire more basic writing and the larger population who have basic skills but could excel with more writing instruction.
The part of the proposal aimed at the entire student body would require students to take at least one writing intensive course by the end of their sophomore year. The Group anticipates that these classes, dubbed "Wr," will have limited student enrollment and approximately 15 to 20 pages of writing per semester. Additionally, the professor will provide extensive feedback about students' writing.
Chickering hopes that the small class size and individual attention will help a broad range of students improve their writing. "Students say that they improve most in their writing when they receive personal attention from the instructor on the subject on which they are writing," he said.
The second issue the Group identified is the estimated 40 students in each class who lack basic writing skills. To address this, the Group proposed offering basic writing (BW) courses to equip students who need help with College-level writing ability. Faculty interested in teaching BW classes will receive training on how to do so.
In order to test the proposal, the College will run a pilot-program during the spring 2005 semester. The BW courses will be similar to regular courses in that they will be content based, as opposed to serving as an exclusively writing instruction course. The difference is that they will spend a significant portion of class time on writing instruction and skill acquisition.
Chickering, Gentzler, Barale and Lieber all plan to teach BW courses this Spring in the pilot-program. They are hopeful that a small test of the proposal will help to determine the viability of such a program at the College.
The pilot-program is the start of an ongoing project. "It will likely be some time before substantial changes are implemented, because support still needs to be collected that shows whether one writing program is more effective than another," said Ian Shin '06, a co-facilitator at Thursday's meeting.
If the proposal were implemented, first-year seminar professors would help to identify students whose writing would benefit most from a basic writing course. The Dean of New Students would encourage those students to take advantage of the BW classes.
"Students who wish to take a BW class could petition the instructor by submitting samples of their weakest and strongest writing during the previous semester," said Professor of Philosophy Jyl Gentzler, a member of the Group.
The Group is hopeful that the "Wr" requirement will motivate students who need help with their basic writing skills to take advantage of the BW classes so that they can be more successful in their "Wr" classes. "With a writing requirement, students who need to get into basic writing courses will have an incentive because they can't avoid taking a class that challenges their writing," said Gentzler.
While everyone at the meeting seemed to agree that the College should provide help to students who need special writing instruction, there were some responses to the Group's proposal.
Professor of English Kim Townsend expressed his desire to see the class be content driven. "The idea of a remedial English class with no focus other that writing does not make much sense," he said.
Chickering responded that the BW classes would focus on more than writing. "We would not teach the classes in the abstract," he said. "We would use different pedagogical techniques with different expectations of the students."
Gentzler added that the material on which the BW classes concentrate would be applicable to other disciplines. "Students are often lacking skills that are not specific to a discipline so that they can be transferred to other subjects," she said.
The semantics of the proposed new courses troubled members of the faculty. "I don't like the term 'basic writing'," said Professor of English and Women and Gender Studies Michele Barale. "I think that we are talking about a matter of degree, not kind."
However, Dean of Students Ben Lieber believes students will understand the purpose of the classes, regardless of wording. "Terminology is a red herring," he said. "Students are smart enough to recognize euphemisms."
Barale also asserted that there were hurtful consequences that could result from phraseology. "I think [terminology] creates classism and categories," she said.
Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science Austin Sarat expressed his concern that one class is not sufficient to help the 10 percent of each class who lack basic college writing skills. He suggested that a longer-term solution might be necessary for the students with extreme writing deficiencies. "I'm worried that the BW idea isn't going to do it for these students," he said. "The institution needs to respond over four years."
Tia Subramanian '05, who co-facilitated with Shin, appreciated faculty feedback and interest. "People were voicing really legitimate concerns that gave us a lot to consider and reconsider. Some suggestions were made that provided possible answers to some of our own concerns," she said. "What I found most heartening about the discussion was that there was a real concern about the so-called culture of teaching writing. It seemed that the faculty feels a responsibility to improve it, which is really appreciated."
Shin agreed. "It is evident that there is a lot of expertise on writing instruction already on the Amherst faculty, and exchanges such as the meeting that the Working Group facilitated will continue to draw out points that will benefit the student body."