The Writing Initiative: Granted, Technology Makes Better Writers

Granted, Technology Makes Better

WritersKen Ronkowitz and Greg Fallon

Passaic County Community College

Historical Backdrop

Recommendation from Middle States (April 2004)Response: The College Writing Committee

Information gatheringfocus groupsSurveysVisitsresearch)

Historical Backdrop

Faculty Survey (FA 04, 80+% response rate from faculty)

Development of ideas (63% dissatisfied) Support of ideas (64% dissatisfied) Preparation in research (65% dissatisfied) Editing, proofreading (82% dissatisfied) Preparation in grammar (79% dissatisfied) Ability to evaluate info (66% dissatisfied) Ability to synthesize info from various sources

(71% dissatisfied) Develop thinking best through writing (81%

agree)

College Writing Committee Recommendations to the Academic

Council (Fall 2006)1. Student grad requirement of two W-I courses;2. Faculty training in writing and critical thinking integration

for W-I instructors;3. Establishment of college-level writing center;4. Ongoing assessment of student writing and critical thinking

skills development;5. Online resources (eTutoring, ePortfolios, and others) to aid

students in improving writing and critical thinking skills;6. Writing partnerships formed w/ 4-yr schools and other

institutions;7. Writing activities developed in coordination with College’s

own developmental and ESL programs along w/ local high schools; and

8. Advisory board, made up of PCCC faculty and staff members, formed to help guide the College Writing Initiative.

Approval Of Title V Grant Application

Title V grant proposal for $2.5 M over 5 yrs. (Summer 2007)

• Develop 20 distinct, W-I gen ed courses (w/ multiple sections);

• Provide comprehensive training (w/ stipends) for faculty;

• Create and staff college-level writing center for student and faculty support; and

• Develop and provide extensive online resources and writing support.

Writing improves through writing Technology can improve the teaching of writing and the resulting student writing.

Change Agents

Low/No TechWriting Intensive redesign of Gen Ed coursesProfessional developmentWriting CenterStandardized rubrics for writing, critical thinking, info literacy

Tech-DrivenePortfolioLibGuideseTutoringBlackboardPortal COL 102Media – FMG, wpunj.edu/njvidBlogsPodcastingand…

PCCC’s Graduate Writing Exam

Unique in NJ Higher Education (?)Students are not awarded their degrees without passing an essay examination near the end of their degree program.

Eligible to take the exam upon successful completion of Composition II and upon having attained at least half of the credits needed for graduation. Offered throughout the yearGiven two topics from which to choose: one pertaining to their major and a general topicStudents who fail on their first attempt are strongly encouraged to arrange to work with a tutor from the testing center before taking the exam again.

Accountability & the GWE

Pass/Fail 1-12 holistic scale 7+ is passing65% pass (mostly 7’s) on first attemptThe Initiative hopes to improve

The average to 8Passing to 85%An increased number of essays at 9-12

The GWE is not THE measure of our success, but…

WHY?

Changing Accountability Reacting to U.S. D of Ed and

Congressional criticisms of Middle States & other accrediting agencies…Are they truly holding colleges accountable?Are they too collegial?

Changing Accountability Suggestions made include more objective

measures be used in the accrediting process, such as standardized exams for students.

The proposals in some ways are similar to the “No Child Left Behind” programs for K-12.

While the exact impact on colleges is not currently known, we can expect a far more rigorous review in the future with particular emphasis on Institutional Effectiveness and Student Learning Outcomes.

Using Technology Tools

ConsortiumsCollaboration

Web 2.0Online Apps

eTutoring.org

Northeast eTutoring Consortium (30+ schools) Shared resources among the participating

members; we provide writing tutor

eTutoring Platform Synchronous & Asynchronous Synchronous (using Macromedia Breeze™) for chat

with whiteboard, application & file sharing, audio & video

Asynchronous tools online Question Queue where students can submit

questions Online Resource Center - links, tips, &

techniques for improved writing skills. Online Writing Lab

eTutoring - Online Writing Lab

Students request help with written assignments by submitting their documents (see online form)

All correspondence is archived—a complete document revision history exists (students may submit 3 drafts of all assignments)

Interested in being an eTutor?

The Freshman Year Experience

• A required 1-credit course (w/ plans to expand to a 2-credit hybrid) that can also serve as an introduction to the aims and resources of the W-I courses:– information literacy; online library

databases; LibGuides; eTutoring; ePortfolio; online journaling…

“Library 2.0” – easy read/write and collaboration for librarians and faculty for resources and shared links

Community - 130+ libraries world wide, 2,500+ librarians who share ideas, content, and collaborate on creating guides.

http://www.springshare.com/libguides/

pccc.libguides.com Hosted service Shared edit access to pages Easily embed videos, RSS feeds and podcasts Import Del.icio.us tag clouds Enables tagging of content and organizing guides by subject categories. LibGuides browser button to quickly add

weblinks to your Guides.

pccc.libguides.com

Insert dynamic scripts for web forms, catalog search boxes, or online databases search boxes inside your guides.

Widgets to embed library content into any blog, website, social network, or courseware system. (Flash components that can be placed inside any page with a simple <object> tag)

Track usage statistics for your Guides Share Guides on del.icio.us, and

LibGuides In Facebook

first library app available to Facebook’s 50 million users

users select LibGuides from apps list app will recognize the user's school affiliation and

present them with their "home" system.

distribute library content across the web meet students where they are improve visibility of resources & services

ePortfoliosConnecticut Distance Learning Consortium

(CTDLC)

• student-centered platform• augmented by a Project Builder and an

Assessment module• Students create and customize portfolios for

academic, career, or personal uses• maintain their plan of study• share their work, goals, and achievements

with advisors, career counselors, and employers

• ePortfolio.org is a hosted application (no additional IT hardware or staffing)

• enterprise level Data Center 24/365

ePortfoliosConnecticut Distance Learning Consortium

(CTDLC)

• Faculty, departments, and institutions can create portfolio assignments linked to scoring rubrics.

• Assessment committees can randomly select portfolios, score them with rubrics, and generate assessment reports.

ePortfolio is integrated with Blackboard or Vista allowing for Single Sign-On & students may select previously uploaded files in Blackboard’s Content Management system to be included in their electronic portfolio.

Entry Wizard Page

NJ Collaborations?

WritingWriting assessment & accountabilityUsing technology to improve writing

ePortfolios2.0 tools

Consortiums Northeast NJ?