Expiration Date: 1/1/12

• Proposal
• Syllabus

REPORT ON RECERTIFICATION OF W COURSE: AGRO 429

We recommend that AGRO 429, Turfgrass Management Systems, be certified as a writing-intensive (W) course for the next four academic years (1/08 to 1/12).  We have reviewed the syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality (50%)
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words (4000+)
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:16
The instructor evaluates all draft documents and provides editorial comments as well as an evaluation of grammar, sentence structure, style, format, organization, technical accuracy, and spelling. The students are provided the opportunity to make changes to their assignment based on the evaluation prior to submission of a final document. Students may revise major assignments twice before the final grade is assigned. Students are provided an evaluation of each revision.

No significant changes have been made since original certification was granted.

Expiration Date: 1/1/12

• Proposal
• Syllabus

Katheryn Dietrich
5-9223
kdietrich@tamu.edu

We recommend that SOCI 430, Contemporary Sociological Theory, be certified as a writing-intensive (W) course for the next four academic years (9/08 to 9/12).  We have reviewed the syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality: 33%
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words: 4000+
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:25

The papers are returned online to the student with written feedback on two dimensions of their writing: (1) substantive theoretical analysis—i.e., their use of the theories to explain the contemporary social phenomena described in an assigned article, and (2) technical elements of writing, such as organization of the paper and grammar. The students are asked to correct their errors and resubmit the paper to the instructor for a final grading.
One class period in the semester is devoted to technical writing instruction. The students are encouraged to visit the instructor or the Writing Center to get one-on-one help to correct their papers. The instructor also periodically devotes class time to go over common writing errors students continue to make.

No significant changes have been made since original certification was granted.

College of Geosciences/Geography

Expiration Date: 9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus

Expiration Date: 9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus
• Lab Sample

We recommend that AERO 302 Aerospace Engineering Laboratory I be certified as a writing (W) course for the next four academic years (9/09 to 9/13). We have reviewed a representative syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality: 85%
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words: 4250
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:20

Aerospace Engineering Laboratory I is a 2-credit course in which students write five lab reports and one lab report evaluation. Three of these reports are written individually and two are written collaboratively (in four-member groups).  Five of the reports follow the same structure and are spaced throughout the semester to give students a chance to improve. In addition, the first individual report and the first collaboratively-written report are submitted as drafts for feedback from the instructor and from peers. (Students also get practice writing an evaluation of a lab report from this exercise; their feedback is graded.) Groups of students are required to meet with the instructor in conference. Instruction includes lecture, a peer response session, and review and discussion of good and poor quality reports.

Expiration Date: 9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus

We recommend that PHIL 332 Social and Political Philosophy be certified as a writing (W) course for the next four academic years (9/09 to 9/13). We have reviewed a representative syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality: 70%
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words: 3000+
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:25

Students in PHIL 332 write a synopsis, a short paper, a term paper proposal, draft, and paper. Students receive oral comments from both the professor and other students about their synopsis when it is presented to the class. They receive written comments from the professor after the presentation and are able to rewrite the synopsis before submitting it for a grade. Students also receive written comments on the term paper proposal and the draft of the term paper. Students participate in a peer review workshop where they work with a fellow student to improve their drafts. Students are provided with a sample synopsis, and they participate in a discussion about writing a synopsis. In addition, the professor lectures about particular forms of writing and research skills. In-class discussions of the readings frequently focus on the ways in which the philosophical arguments are constructed and what rhetorical moves the authors make in order to convince their readers.

Expiration Date: 1/1/12

• Proposal
• Syllabus

We recommend that ENGL/WMST 474, Studies in Women Writers, be certified as a writing-intensive (W) course for the next four academic years (1/08 to 1/12). We have reviewed a representative syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality: 50%
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words: 4000+
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:27

Students receive detailed response to the proposal and bibliography, and (for any formal submission) they may submit via email their introduction and another paragraph for teacher input prior to the due date. A day for peer critiques of the major paper is scheduled. The professor takes up journals twice during the semester and provides detailed response to the students’ analyses. An essential component of this class is the journal. Students are given prompts twice a week and asked to respond. The prompts attend to the global or thematic issues occurring in the readings, or they may ask students to attend to the rhetoric of the reading. Writing workshops and peer critiques are scheduled on the syllabus; more informal discussion of writing occurs almost daily in connection with the readings.

Expiration Date: 9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus

We recommend that PHIL 334 Philosophy of Law be certified as a writing (W) course for the next four academic years (9/09 to 9/13). We have reviewed a representative syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality: 80%
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words: 4250
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:25

In PHIL 334, students write three papers, with the final one being worth the largest percentage of the grade (30%) and the other two equally divided (25% each). Students are required to turn in a draft of each paper 9 days before the assignment is due. Extensive comments are provided on the drafts through a process of in-class peer review. Students then have one week to incorporate comments in their final draft. In addition, the instructor encourages students to schedule conferences with the instructor individually.

The primary format for the class is discussion of assigned readings. With the instructor’s guidance, students reconstruct the argument from the reading for that class period and then raise objections. Frequently, after discussing the argument as a whole group, students break up into small groups to think about objections. The class as a whole then discusses the various objections and considers how the author might respond. The format is designed to help students think through the process of argument they will use in their papers. In these papers, they are asked to reconstruct an argument, raise an objection, and respond to the objection. In addition to helping students learn how to structure their papers through class discussions, one class period at the beginning of the semester is used to specifically discuss writing philosophy papers.

Expiration Date:  9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus

REPORT ON PROPOSED W COURSE: SOCI/WMST 315

We recommend that SOCI/WMST 315 The Marriage Institution be certified as a writing (W) course for the next four academic years (1/09 to 1/13). We have reviewed a representative syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality: 45%
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words: 7000
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:25

Students write frequently in SOCI/WMST 315; assignments include two papers and online written student responses to class topics (which provides a dialogue with peers in writing as well). The two final exams, although not counted above in the total, also require writing. Readings related to writing (by Stephen King and Lee Cuba) are assigned, and the instructor lectures on and discusses with students the process of writing and the variety of styles of social science writing reflected in their assigned texts.  The instructor provides written feedback. In addition, she offers an online space for students to upload their work for peer review and revision in order to provide them with practice on the actual collaborative and peer review process used in academic/research writing.

Expiration Date: 9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus

We recommend that AGEC 429, Agricultural and Food Policy, be certified as a writing (W) course for the next four academic years (1/10 to 1/14).  We have reviewed the syllabus and have determined that the course meets or exceeds the following criteria:

1. Percentage of final grade based on writing quality (47%)
2. Course content appropriate to the major
3. Total number of words (3000+)
4. Instructor to student ratio for one section: 1:24

Students write twelve one-page agricultural policy papers addressed to an audience of legislators and legislative aides. A minimum of two papers are returned with feedback from the instructor on how students can further improve their writing skills. Students use these comments to improve the final drafts and other writing assignments throughout the semester. Revisions for these two papers are due the following week, providing a chance for students to improve their grades and writing skills. Each student participates in at least one peer review throughout the semester. Students receive rubrics with each assignment, and these rubrics are used for grading and feedback. Three graduate students grade all papers with some assistance from two undergraduates not taking the course. Writing instruction is provided through lecture, models, and in-class practice.

No other significant changes have been made since original certification was granted.

Expiration Date: 9/1/13

• Proposal
• Syllabus