College/University Writing Policy Development
with the support of
the National Council of Teachers of English

The Need for a Campus-Wide College University Writing Policy

Writing is the key element in a liberal education.  It is how we communicate knowledge in each of our disciplines.  It is also how we discover know-ledge in our disciplines. It is the “habit of mind” of inquiry that leads us through our work.

This habit of mind of writing is the way we approach a question, or reflect on an argument, or any of the many things we do without thinking about it as we think about the issue at hand.  We write to discover, write to explore, write in different mediums to see our work through different lenses, and we write to construct new knowledge.  In that process we freewrite, brainstorm, inkshed, list, cluster, map, group ideas, take notes, form tentative drafts, make outlines, and refine rough ideas into clear expressions.  The continuous practice of good writing habits of mind creates good scholarship.

Most colleges and universities have statements about the commitment to writing and writing instruction, and many have active Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) programs.  These form the foundation for excellent instruction in writing.  A next step is to explore the institution’s commitment to writing as a visible scholarly activity in all our work.  A policy about the use and value of writing for academic growth in all disciplines creates a framework for developing active student engagement with disciplinary knowledge that leads to wisdom as students connect learning in one area of campus with learning in another.

Effective Institutional Writing Policies

A good institutional writing policy recognizes that writing is integral to the creation of knowledge in all courses and should thus be embedded throughout the curriculum as well as taught in writing courses.  Developing good writing habits of mind will help expand our learning in all endeavors.  A good writing policy:

• Supports writing activities through all learning experiences in all courses
• Makes scholarly habits of mind in all disciplines transparent to students.
• Recognizes that writing-to-learn activities help students develop their own critical voice for reading, discussion, and writing to disseminate.
• Creates more awareness of the protocols of good public writing as students become scholars and citizens, writing to disseminate their ideas in business, the community, and the academy.
• Addresses the critical and appropriate use of new technologies as we develop writing habits of mind.

Getting Started

• Review current institutional policies that support and promote general education and degree requirements.
• Establish a cross-campus team to assess current policy and practice.
• Contact the National Council of Teachers of English for resources.

Resources

The National Council of Teachers of English provides multiple resources for developing an institutional writing policy.  NCTE and its constituent organizations, the Conference on College Composition and Communication, the College Section, the Conference on English Education, and the Two-Year College English Association, are the leading authorities on writing and writing instruction. With over 65,000 members in NCTE, pre-kindergarten through graduate school, and 15,000 members in higher education, NCTE has been the professional home of dedicated teachers of English for nearly a century.

In February of 2003, NCTE embarked on a national campaign to advance the practice and teaching of writing at all levels of education.  We offer services ranging from lists of resources to consulting work.  Specifically, we can provide:

• Consultants to help your institution shape a writing policy.
• Packages of journal articles, book chapters, and policy statements on the teaching of writing.
• A network of institutions that share information about writing policies and writing-support resources.

NCTE
National Council of Teachers of English
1111 West Kenyon Road
Urbana, IL 61801-1096
Phone: 800-369-6283 or
217-328-3870
http://www.ncte.org

Click here to view PDF of brochure form.