Writing in the disciplines : a study of an upper division writing assessment policy at SFSU

Faculty at some of the best colleges and universities across the country have expressed concerns about the quality of student writing. Such is the case at San Francisco State University (SFSU), which recently revised its writing assessment policy by phasing out a high stakes writing exam, the Junior English Proficiency Essay Test (JEPET), and replacing it with a writing intensive course housed in each discipline that all students must pass before they graduate (Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement [GWAR]). This study sought to investigate both writing performance and development among upper division students through a campus wide analysis of student grades in GWAR courses combined with an investigation of student writing development among health education (HED) majors through indepth interviews. The study addressed institutional concerns and questions about GWAR as well as larger questions in the field about how college students write at the upper division level, i.e., writing in the disciplines. The findings among the SFSU sample compared to the HED sample differed. Transfer students, students who passed the JEPET, and White students earned higher GWAR grades than their peers who were native to SFSU as freshman, failed the JEPET, and were students of color. In contrast, the HED sample showed no statistical differences in GWAR grade among the same groups of students. The findings did, however, demonstrate that students were passing the GWAR course at substantially higher rates than the JEPET exam, which was a major concern among faculty and administrators. HED interview participants interviewed believed that lower division and upper division writing instruction is, in fact, different and\ud reported that the GWAR course improved their writing process, confidence in themselves as writers, developing professional identity, and engagement in the classroom. The quantitative results both corroborated what administrators suspected about GWAR and illuminated new avenues for further study, while qualitative interviews with HED students showed that GWAR appears to provide students with a level of writing support and preparation that uniquely and broadly benefits their academic experience in college