As WIP looks to advance sustainable writing-across-the-curriculum / writing-in-the-disciplines programming at the University of Georgia, the program has begun a transition to a writing-enriched curriculum (WEC) model.1 The WEC model involves the development of department Writing Plans to articulate how writing contributes to the major, the role and value of writing in the discipline, as well as the skills, conventions, processes, and genres that define writing in the field. During the 2023-2024 academic year, the first year of this transition, four departments partnered with WIP to develop Writing Plans: Anthropology, Mathematics, History, and Philosophy. Once the department’s faculty vote to support their plan, it will go into effect for three years and be posted on WIP’s website. See below.
Ultimately, this new approach will contribute substantively to the sustainability of writing instruction and support across the disciplines. The WEC model helps ensure that writing-intensive courses and learning experiences are afforded to students as a programmatic objective and faculty share the responsibility for writing instruction. In addition, the iterative development and regular assessment of Writing Plans ensures that programs maintain and advance their writing-enriched curricula over time according to a manageable, collaborative process.
Preliminary Materials
Department Writing Plans
Anthropology
Anthropology is very excited to implement our new writing plan. In addition to producing polished written work, students in Anthropology use writing for discovery, to enhance depth of knowledge, and to communicate with diverse audiences. Having a formal writing plan gives us a vehicle for being more intentional and transparent about how we implement writing in our courses.
Jen Birch, Associate Professor
Department Liaison:2 Christina Lee
Lead Faculty Contributors: Jen Birch and Ted Gragson
Mathematics
The Mathematics Department is looking forward to using its writing plan to provide better structure for our majors to adapt to the norms of mathematical writing. The departmental discussions about the plan that we’ve had so far have generated great ideas about offering writing assignments that help students both communicate mathematical ideas to others and sharpen their own understanding of mathematical arguments.
Michael Usher, Professor and Associate Head
Department Liaison: Michael Usher
History
The History Department is really excited about using the Writing Plan to craft more effective writing assignments, taking advantage of new pedagogies and collaborative discussions with faculty members to help our students grow as writers. Shared discussions about the various points of strength and weakness that we see in our students’ writing, from intro-level courses all the way through the senior thesis project, is really helping us see what we are doing well as a department and where we could stand to improve at each level of the undergraduate education process. We really think that the process can help us transform writing assignments from something students dread into opportunities to demonstrate their skills, growth, and confidence.
Kevin Jones, Associate Professor and Undergraduate Coordinator
Department Liaison: Kevin Jones
Philosophy
The Department of Philosophy highly values its involvement in the WIP program. Not only does it support the development of writing skills in our undergraduate students, it provides valuable and highly marketable skills to the graduate teaching assistants who work in the program. The process of developing a writing plan has encouraged philosophy faculty to think productively about the teaching and learning of writing across our curriculum. Appointing a graduate student liaison was a superb idea and helped the department make progress on forming a plan.
Aaron Meskin, Department Head and Professor
Department Liaison: Danielle Kotrla
Lead Faculty Contributor: Aaron Meskin