Goals for W and C Courses
Communications courses (W or C) at Texas A&M University are dedicated to the following goals:
- Texas A&M students will write and speak in public with proficiency upon graduation.
Proficiency requires a solid knowledge of rhetorical precepts such as audience awareness and ability to suit the occasion or type of document being produced. A proficient communicator argues well, thinks critically, and solves problems. A proficient communication can analyze, evaluate, synthesize information from various sources, document and cite properly, and organize text logically. Skill with grammar, mechanics, format, and usage is required. In particular, pages 22-23 specify that graduates of Texas A&M Systems schools were considered deficient in written communication skills by all business/industry focus groups interviewed. Also see “Writing: A Ticket to Work . . . Or a Ticket Out: A Survey of Business Leaders” and “Writing: A Powerful Message from State Government.”
- Texas A&M students will master the forms of writing and speaking most commonly associated with and essential to their major field of study.
Proficient communications skills cannot be learned once, in the isolation of a single, First-Year English or speech course, but must be practiced over time, for many different audiences, in differnt situations, and in different genres. Because writing conventions and ways of communicating vary somewhat from discipline to discipline, novice communicators need the guidance of experienced writers in the disciplinary communities they aspire to join.
- Texas A&M students will understand that proficient writing and speaking require practice and an investment of time and energy.
Experienced writers produce multiple drafts, proofread and edit, and participate in reviews and critiques of their work. Good prose and fleunt speaking requires the investment of time and effort.
