How Writing Contributes to Learning: New Findings from a National Study and Their Local Application

Abstract

Writing ability is among the most valued outcomes of a college education. Always included in conceptions of a liberal education, writing is also one of the most highly desired skills across business and industry (see Hart 2015; Burning Glass Technologies 2015). Since the 1970s, writing specialists have intensified their theorizing, research, and advocacy of institution-level initiatives aimed at improving students’ writing abilities. These efforts have produced, among other things, writing-intensive (WI) courses and writing-across the-curriculum (WAC) and writing-in-the-disciplines (WID) programs. In 2008, the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) underscored the importance of effective writing pedagogy by including writing-intensive courses in its list of high-impact educational practices (Kuh).