WRITERS ’ WEEK: A VEHICLE FOR COLLABORATIVE WRITING AMONG EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPERS

The original idea for producing this series of papers came about (as many ideas do) as the result of a conversation. The conversation focused on the difficulties, obstacles, problems and challenges associated with academic writing, as well as the importance of many of the interconnected themes in the area of educational development. All of us in the Irish educational developers group had witnessed the struggles associated with the role that academic writing plays within the walls of higher education institutions. In addition, we all had ideas to share about the practice of edu-cational development, and were eager to find ways of disseminating these insights in ways that could be accessed in a coherent way by more than just the relatively small group of professionals we encountered at our inter–university meetings. It was the combined motivation to explore and participate in the writing process more fully, and that associated with our collective sense of having something important to say, that fuelled the impetus for this project. The proposal was supported through funding by Ireland’s Higher Education Authority, whose commitment to this kind of dialogue and output continues to be cru-cial as a supporter of change, development and collaboration in Higher Educational Institutions. The educational developers ’ writers ’ wee