Everyone these days complains about students’ poor quality of writing. We need more classes, they say, to force students to master the craft.
But maybe the problem isn’t a lack of training. Maybe the problem is that writing instructors don’t always know how to write themselves.
Consider the description of a writing program at a top-tier university, in the left column. It’s full of jargon and academic nonsense. Then check out our rewrite in the right column.
Gobbledygook Version
The program in Writing and Critical Inquiry (WCI) is intended to introduce new students to intellectual inquiry at the university with a focus on academic writing. The seminar U UNI 110, required for students matriculating Fall 2013 and thereafter, is devoted to rigorous practice in writing as a discipline itself and as an essential form of inquiry in postsecondary education. It reflects the importance of writing as a vehicle for learning and a means of expression. It also emphasizes the essential role of writing in students’ lives as citizens, workers, and productive members of their communities.
Based on established principles of rhetorical theory, Writing and Critical Inquiry provides students opportunities for sustained practice in writing so that students gain a deeper understanding of writing as a mode of inquiry and develop their ability to negotiate varied writing and reading tasks in different academic and non-academic contexts. Through rigorous assignments that emphasize analysis and argument, students learn to engage in writing as an integral part of critical inquiry in college-level study, become familiar with the conventions of academic discourse, and sharpen their skills as researchers, while improving their command of the mechanics of prose composition. Writing and Critical Inquiry also helps students develop competence in the uses of digital technologies as an essential 21st century skill for inquiry and communication.
Writing and Critical Inquiry seminars are limited to 25 students, which enables students and their instructors to work together closely as they explore the nature, uses, and practice of writing. The small size of the seminars also provides opportunities for students to explore the rich diversity of thought and the varied perspectives that are an integral part of the university experience. Through shared experiences as writers, students will learn to think critically and carefully about the complex questions that are the focus of inquiry across the many different academic disciplines that make up the university curriculum.
Writing and Critical Inquiry provides a foundation for students to continue to develop their abilities to think critically about the world around them, to communicate effectively in written and oral discourse in a variety of settings, and to engage in sophisticated inquiry as a way to address the questions they will confront in their classes and in their lives outside the university.
Simple Version
Writing and Critical Inquiry (WCI) introduces students to the challenges of academic writing. The seminar teaches writing as a discipline and as a means of exploring a range of academic subjects. In our classes, we explore how writing sparks learning. We also see the power of writing in professional and creative life.
In the program, students write constantly. That way, they can understand writing as a process of inquiry in all fields. As they master analysis and argument, students make writing central to their learning. They sharpen their skills as researchers, master the mechanics of writing, and learn the conventions of academic discourse. Classes also teach skills in digital technologies, which are essential for writing in the 21st century.
Classes are limited to 25 students. In these seminars, students and teachers work closely together on a wide range of topics. Students learn to think critically about complex questions in academic disciplines.
Writing and Critical Inquiry guides students to think critically about the world around them–to explore complex topics and to communicate clearly in many fields.
Maybe we need a new approach to teaching writing. For decades, high school and college teachers have treated students as future academics rather than as future citizens and workers. Rather than focusing on thesis statements, academic terminology, literature reviews, and other elements of academic work, we need to make writing ]simple, clear sentences and paragraphs the top priority.
Of course, that requires finding teachers who write well themselves.
What do you think?
