Helping Students Write
Within Their
Disciplines
Lori Kanitz
Faculty Retreat
Fall 2007
Definitions

Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC)

Overarching program designed to
encourage sound writing pedagogy
across the entire university curriculum;
to provide faculty development and
support for writing; to encourage the
use of varied writing assignments in
all disciplines to improve student
learning and writing
Definitions

Writing in the Discipline (WID)

Programs designed to support and
foster the unique role of individual
areas, departments, and courses
within majors in helping students
become confident and skilled writers
in the genres and styles of their
disciplines
WID and Program Review

Five Questions





What do we consider essential writing skills
for students graduating from this program, in
this disciplinary area?
Are we teaching these writing skills in our
major courses?
If so, where? Which courses cover which
skills?
Is the sequence of courses and/or writing
skills effective?
Are there any gaps? Where?
Good Writing is Good
Writing, Isn’t it . . . ?

Generic standards for academic
writing



Content reflects informed, scholarly
study
Tone reflects reason not emotion or
sensory perception
Style and content crafted for a
skeptical and rational audience
Generic Terminology
Informed Content




“clear”
“wellresearched”
“informed”
“reflects careful
thinking”
Emotional distance





“logical”
“balanced and
fair”
“objective”
“avoids
impressionism or
mere feelings”
“avoids the first
person, ‘I’”
Skeptical audience





“defends
position”
“adequate
evidence”
“logical
argument”
“cites relevant
research”
“convincing
argument”
Good Writing is Good
Writing, Isn’t it . . . ?

Common terminology hides significant
differences among and within
disciplines in
exigency
 epistemology
 style
 form/genres
 formatting

Same Terms, Different
Expectations

political science professor


“‘I’m not trying to make
undergraduates into political
scientists. I want them to be clear and
logical writers.’”
anthropology professor

“‘If undergraduates can write clearly,
logically and reasonably, I’m happy.’”
“Clear and Logical” Means?


Political science: concise, action-oriented
prose
Anthropology: prose modeled after classic
literary and anthropology texts

“‘I hate that scientific paradigm that prose is
supposed to be transparent. [ . . . ] You’d
look at [the student’s] writing and it was all
bullet style writing, close small sentences,
active verbs. I couldn’t help saying ‘This is
not how you write. Don’t bring that to this
class’ [ . . . ]” (Thaiss and Zawacki 71).
Developmental Stages in
Student Learning

Three stages

First stage
• student sees generic academic conventions as
fairly consistent rules

Second stage
• student perceives differences as teacher
idiosyncrasy

Third stage
• student sees differences as “components of an
articulated, nuanced idea of the discipline” (Thaiss
and Zawacki 110)
How Students Learn WID

Student-centered methods

Methods
• Before, or in absence of, feedback and guidelines
• “Reading” the teacher
• Prior experience and stereotypes
• Feedback on the first paper
• Models
• Reading widely and deeply the subject matter

Problem? Require a great deal of
motivation, savvy, trial and error on part
of student
How Students Learn WID

Instructor-centered methods
Frequent writing assignments for a
variety of teachers and courses
 Reflecting on their writing
 Instruction about rhetorical contexts

What Constitutes the
“Rhetorical Context”?

Five Contexts
The academic (generic, academic
principles)
 The disciplinary
 The subdisciplinary
 The local or institutional
 The idiosyncratic or personal

Sample Nursing Writing
Assignment

“Respond in a 5-7 page paper to an ethical dilemma in
pediatric nursing from a biblical perspective. Your paper
must reflect a thorough knowledge of current research on the
issue as well as the current laws relevant to it. You will be
required to cite at least 5 scholarly sources and information
from the last four class lectures. Be sure to present a clear
thesis, well-supported with sound reasoning. The paper
should use APA format.”
The “Rhetorical Context”?
Generic Academic
Clear thesis, original thinking,
supporting evidence, sound reasoning
Disciplinary
Uses APA format, current scholarly
research, lecture notes
Subdisciplinary
Uses specialized terminology for
pediatric nursing, pediatric research
Local/Institutional
Reflects Christian worldview and/or
biblical principles
Personal
References at least 5 sources and
information from last 4 lectures
The “Rhetorical Context”?

“Respond in a 5-7 page paper to an ethical dilemma in
pediatric nursing from a biblical perspective. Your
paper must reflect a thorough knowledge of current
research on the issue as well as the current laws
relevant to it. You will be required to cite at least 5
scholarly sources and information from the last four
class lectures. Be sure to present a clear thesis, wellsupported with sound reasoning. The paper should
use APA format.”
Practices for Teachers*
1. Define expectations early and place
them in the context of the discipline.
2. Teach students the differences
between generic academic writing
and writing in their disciplines.
3. Provide students feedback on their
writing, especially early in a course.
Practices for Teachers*
4. Design assignments that give
students practice with the variety of
rhetorical environments they will
encounter in the discipline and the
workplace.
5. Design assignments that can
validate students as “experts’’—as
potential contributors to the field
through writing.
Practices for Teachers*
6. Create opportunities for student
feedback and reflection on their
growth as writers in the discipline.
7. Talk to students about your own
developing career as a scholar and
writer.
* Adapted from Thais and Zawacki 142-56
Retreat Discussion
Questions

Brainstorm ways to talk about writing in your discipline with
majors in your area.

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



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Do you talk in classes about your own writing?
Do you share examples of your writing with students?
How do you talk about your field with majors? As a system of rules
or as a community of scholars?
How does writing play a part in your thinking about your discipline?
What are the specific characteristics of good writing in your
disciplinary area? How did you learn to write for your
discipline?
Brainstorm types of assignments that are, or can be, used
to teach students how to write for their discipline.
How can technology be used to help students in your areas
become proficient writers in their disciplines? (e.g. blogs,
electronic forums, ePortfolio, web pages)
Further Reading
Summary of study results and
recommendations online at
http://mason.gmu.edu/~cthaiss/#Rese
arch
 Online writing guides for students at
George Mason University at
http://wac.gmu.edu

ORU WAC Web Page and
Contact Information
Link to WAC faculty resources web
page can be found on ORU Intranet
“Faculty Resources” page at
http://faculty.oru.edu
 Lori Kanitz

Phone ext. 6064
 E-mail lkanitz@oru.edu

Work Cited

Thaiss, Chris and Terry Myers
Zawacki. Engaged Writers and
Academic Disciplines: Research on
the Academic Writing Life.
Portsmouth: Boynton/Cook
Heinemann, 2006.