This is a corpus-based study of a key aspect of academic writing in one discipline (biology) by final-year undergraduates and first-, second-, and third-year graduate students. The papers come from the Michigan Corpus of Upper-level Student Papers, a freely available electronic database. The principal aim of the study is to examine the extent of…

In the interest of developing a combination of teaching techniques designed to maximize efficiency "and" quality of instruction, we have experimentally tested three separate and relatively common teaching techniques in three large introductory political science classes at a large urban public university. Our results indicate that the…

Many states offer police and corrections officer certification through state approved police basic training, either after hire (in-service) or before hire (preservice). Only large agencies conduct their own basic training academies after being hired. The trend is to save money through preservice training offered by colleges. This especially…

This article examines the extent to which different groups of university students have shared vocabulary needs. Previous research in this area is limited in that it: (i) has focused on items from Coxhead's Academic Word List (2000), which is skewed towards certain disciplines, and focuses only on reading needs; (ii) has not investigated…

This program profile describes the efforts needed to develop a new writing program at a small college. The author explores how she cultivated relations with disciplinary faculty to collaboratively redefine a "problem" into an opportunity by adopting Krista Ratcliffe's technique of rhetorical listening. She then outlines the…

This program profile examines efforts by WPAs at York College, a senior college in the CUNY system, to adapt to externally imposed changes and develop a locally meaningful writing program. 1999 marked the end of remediation at four-year (senior) colleges in The City University of New York. The elimination of developmental writing at CUNY's…

Students must be taught to write and then be expected to write for a variety of purposes to a variety of audiences, including in mathematics, science, and social studies. As part of building the writing prowess of students, they must write routinely, both short and long pieces. As part of a comprehensive writing curriculum, students' writing…

Through an examination of four current trends in composition instruction, this article presents a new lens for envisioning composition instruction that integrates the best aspects of the writing across the curriculum, genre-based curriculum approach, ecocomposition, and writing across communities theories of writing instruction. The "literacy…

Innovations in faculty development, particularly those that make the most of available technologies, are essential. "Learning is a social activity and we are social beings; and everything is connected" (Trammel & Bruce, 2008). Finding methods for creating these faculty connections is a challenge--one that can be met by technology.…

This study investigates syllabi for evidence of the principles of writing across the curriculum (WAC) in courses offered by the Faculty of Business (FOB) at a university operating in a non–English-speaking country. The research analyzed all syllabi of FOB courses offered in the spring 2010 semester for evidence of WAC looking for indications of…

This article challenges faculty members and administrators to rethink current definitions of remediation. First year college students are increasingly placed into basic writing courses due to a perceived inability to use English grammar correctly, but it must be acknowledged that all students will encounter the need for remediation as they attempt…

In this article, the author explains how a writing center can be a potential host for housing writing instruction across the disciplines. She recommends writing centers act as hosts for various faculty development opportunities throughout the semester, and states that these centers can also hold faculty development resources and collaborative…

Writing is a complex, recursive and difficult process that requires strategic decision-making across multiple domains (Graham, 2006; Pritchard & Honeycutt, 2006). Students are expected to use this process to communicate with a variety of audiences for a variety of purposes. Modelling and providing effective instruction is critical, especially…

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) explicitly call for a wide variety of writing assignments in all subjects, with special emphasis on informational writing and argumentation (National Governors Association). In a footnote to the 6-12 writing standards, the CCSS point out that "these broad types of writing include many subgenres"…

This article explores using the RAFT strategy (Role, Audience, Format, Topic) for writing in science classes. The framework of the RAFT strategy will be explained, and connections with Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for ELA/Literacy will be discussed. Finally, there will be a discussion of a professional learning experience for teachers in…