Across the Disciplines Jan 2007 Open Access

An Emic View of Student Writing and the Writing Process

Michael Hass Chapman University ; Jan Osborn Chapman University

Abstract

This study uses student reflections of previous success in academic writing to guide instructors as they design writing assignments. Seventy-one students in five classes responded to a questionnaire designed to help them identify particularly successful writing experiences and reflect on the circumstances, strategies, and methods they believed impacted their success. Student responses to these questions were analyzed to identify broad categories or themes. This process produced an "emic" or insider's view of what constitutes successful writing assignments and writing process. The findings suggest that students self report their writing as successful when the writing assignment engenders engagement, commitment, collaboration, a systematic approach, and opportunities for external confirmation. Instructors can include these considerations as they plan the writing assignments for their courses. Discovering what student writers believe constitutes good writing and what strategies most effectively help them produce high quality writing provides an opportunity to design writing assignments that empower students to join the conversation in their discourse community. If faculty are aware of student perceptions of writing assignments and use those perceptions in assignment design, the products may be more satisfying for both student writers and faculty readers.

Journal
Across the Disciplines
Published
2007-01-01
DOI
10.37514/atd-j.2007.4.1.05
CompPile
Open Access
OA PDF Gold
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Citation context

Cited by in this index (3)

  1. Rice-Bailey et al. (2017)
    Introducing a Writing Coach into an MBA Course: Perspectives of Students and Coaches
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Hegbloom et al. (2017)
    Student Voices on Writing
    Across the Disciplines
  3. Hass et al. (2007)
    An Emic View of Student Writing and the Writing Process
    Across the Disciplines

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