ASCRC Writing Subcommittee Minutes, 11/23/09
Members Present: G. Burns, B. Borrie, K. Kuipers, M. Medvetz M. Semanoff, K.
Zoellner
Members Excused/Absent: M. Carson, B. Chin, N. Hinman
Ex-Officio Present: E. Johnson, K. Ryan, K. Webster
The meeting was called to order at 2:15 p.m.
The minutes from 11/9/09 were approved.
Business Items:

The following upper-division writing courses were approved:
Communication
History
History
History
COMM 410
HSTR 401
HSTA 418
HSTR 436
Communication in Personal Relationships
The Great Historians
Women and Slavery
Latin American Workers and Labor History
Chair Medvets will send reminder messages to the remaining History courses. He
and Professors Semenoff and Zoellner will review the late Communication
Studies courses.
It was suggested that a white paper be drafted on informal writing so requestors
can be referred to the document. Another possibility would be for Writing
Committee members to fill out sample forms to be posted as reference. The
current samples are inconsistent. The form may also need to be revised.

The committee continued the UDWPA discussion. Director Webster revised the
flow chart (below). The essay exam is a first person, thesis driven response to a
reading and also assesses reading comprehension. Students should be able to
extract arguments from the reading; appropriately situate their opinions supported
by evidence from their experience, observations, and studies; and demonstrate
proper grammar, punctuation, and organization. The content of the UDWPA
reading predicts how well students perform. They perform better if familiar with
the subject.
Students taking upper-division courses should be able to synthesis information
from multiple sources (the expertise of others) in upper division courses. The use
of “I” in upper-division courses differs than how it is used in the UDWPA. For
example, in Sociology students should be aware of themselves as a researcher –“I
collected evidence and can conclude.”
According to the Registrar it will take 2-3 years to implement mechanisms that
would stop students from enrolling in upper-division courses without passing the
UDWPA.
Director Webster will send members packets that include the criteria for selecting
prompts and grading and sample texts/prompts.
The meeting was adjourned at 3:15 pm.
What are the purposes of the UDWPA?
Original Purposes:
 To bring attention to writing through community-based, local conversations
across disciplines
 To improve writing instruction and writing proficiency through cross-disciplinary
discussions (guiding)
 To provide continuous assessment and writing throughout a student’s academic
career
 To serve as a mid-career gating mechanism (to assess preparedness for ud
coursework)
Perceived Purposes:
 To serve as a senior-level exit exam
 To serve as formative assessment: helps students become better writers
What purpose does the UDWPA attempt to serve in our current context?
To serve as a mid-career gating mechanism (to assess preparedness for ud coursework)
The first three bullets under original purposes are still valued on campus but are served not
be the UDWPA alone. Rather, these purposes are served through the sequence of General
Education Writing Requirements and the work of the Writing Committee
How do we define preparedness for ud coursework? Do we have an agreed upon idea
of what we are assessing
Does this purpose govern the design of the assessment instrument? Does it assess what
we intent for it to assess (validity)?
YES



NO
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(In light of genre variance, do faculty from across disciplines value what this assessment
instrument tells us about student preparedness
Does the administration of the
assessment instrument allow for it
to fulfill its purpose?
Can the assessment instrument be
revised with this purpose in mind?
YES
No
What alternative avenues are available for fulfilling these purposes?