The students responses showed that, if the total amount of writing remains constant, courses requiring several shorter papers demand more time. However, the differences are much less pronounced for the other two measures of engagement. Of even greater interest are the responses that came from a series of in-depth interviews with 60 graduating seniors, especially their replies to two questions about writing instruction. They may be surprising. As juniors and seniors, these students said they wanted writing instruction and proactively sought help as they faced more challenging writing assignments in their major fields.
Some schools provide specially trained writing consultants to work with particular classes.
At still other schools, faculty in various disciplines teach writing courses designed to introduce students to the professional discourse of that field. No matter what configuration a school s curriculum takes, it would do well to take into account the findings of this Harvard Assessment Seminar. Light s report records a number of other responses that will be of interest to anyone concerned about using writing in classes. A copy of the relevant chapters is available in the WAC office. You re welcome to borrow it.