Announcing the University Writing Program

The English Department is thrilled to announce some changes! During 2019, General Studies Writing (GSW) is undergoing changes to its name and curriculum. GSW is being renamed the University Writing Program (UWP), and course prefixes, titles, and descriptions will be updated to reflect best practices in writing instruction. The name change is already underway on the English department website; while GSW courses will continue for Spring 2019, we are updating all sites and links to the new UWP language.

The University Writing Program sees writing as both a way of thinking and a form of action that has real-world consequences. Our workshop-style classes invite students into the complex processes involved in the production of meaningful writing and encourage students to use their skills in new situations as they shape the many worlds they inhabit—academic, professional, public, and personal.

UWP Courses will include:

• WRIT 1110 Seminar in Academic Writing (to replace GSW 1110 Introduction to Academic Writing)
• WRIT 1120 Seminar in Research Writing (to replace GSW 1120 Research Writing)
• WRIT 1010 Academic Writing Workshop (co-requisite to be paired with WRIT 1110, replacing GSW 1100 Intensive Introduction to Academic Writing)

UWP courses are taught in workshop settings, which give students hands-on experience and frequent interactions with peers and faculty.

UWP courses provide frequent opportunities for deep revision—for re-visioning—ideas and the real effects they have in the world.

UWP courses provide frequent opportunities for deep reflection on one’s learning and how that learning can be advanced beyond the writing classroom.

UWP courses cultivate habits of mind characteristic of effective writers—including curiosity, engagement, openness, creativity, persistence, responsibility, flexibility, and metacognition.

UWP faculty bring a wealth of expertise and ingenuity to the writing classroom—developing new and innovative assignments, partnering with faculty and community organizations to provide interdisciplinary and experiential learning opportunities, creating spaces for students and faculty to explore new theories of learning and emerging technologies in relation to writing pedagogy.

University Writing Program courses contribute to students’ academic, professional, and public lives by:

• encouraging systematic inquiry of the world through reading and writing
• fostering students’ authentic, independent voices
• connecting students with real-world audiences and resources, such as new digital communication tools and a wide range of genres
• attending directly to the ways writing skills transfer to new situations
• preparing students for writing in the disciplines, for graduate school, and for professions
• supporting civil discourse and civic engagement
• creating conditions for meaningful writing experiences

For information about program changes rolling out Fall 2019, as well as other exciting writing-related news and events, please visit the program website or contact the program office in person (215 East Hall), or by phone (419-372-7885) or email.