Writing is enabling. The ability to write and express thoughts with clarity is an essential skill that students must master to excel in college as well as in the workplace. We all must write and respond to essays, memos, reports, emails, websites, and PowerPoints (to name a few) in our everyday lives. Writing with eloquence and accuracy on a subject often demonstrates that a writer has mastered an understanding of that topic. Moreover, writing is a powerful method of critical thinking and analysis because it involves making choices about how to best organize information, which words are most persuasive, who the audience is, and what that audience needs. Writing encourages creativity, original and critical thinking, new methods of learning, and intellectual growth.
Why Ask Students to Write?
Students benefit from writing in all of their courses across the college curriculum because writing encourages students to actively engage with course materials and learning objectives. By asking students to write, instructors help them to:
- Develop critical analytical skills;
- Enhance knowledge of specific academic disciplinary conventions;
- Facilitate their own assessment and evaluation of their knowledge and skills;
- Recognize that learning to write is a life-long process.
