University of HoustonClear Lake Writing Center Established in

University of Houston-Clear Lake Writing Center Established in 1993

Creating Effective Writing Assignments Questions to consider: § What do you want your students to learn? § Will the writing be formal? § What audience will your students address? § How will you use class time to support the writing assignment? § How will you teach the skills required for successful completion of the assignment? § How will you respond to your students’ writing? § What information do your students need?

What do you want your students to learn? § How to research and present data? § How to articulate an argument? § How to write with authority? § How to format according to a specific style? § How to publish in an academic discipline? § To explore the ideas you have presented in a lecture? § To reflect on educational experiences provided in or outside of class? § To use writing to learn about assigned texts?

Will the writing be formal? § § Research Report Accounting Report Researched Argument Historical Analysis § Literary Analysis § Business Proposal § Lab Report Or Informal? § § Personal Letter Teaching Observation Reader’s notebook Class response § Journal Entry § Web. CT Post § Blog Post

What audience will your students address? § Will this writing be addressed solely to you, as instructor? § Will you ask your students to identify and address a professional audience? § Will students write to/for themselves? § Will students write to/for classmates? Regardless of audience, writers must always think about what audiences think, know, and feel about a topic. Help your students explore and understand their formal audiences.

How will you use class time to support the writing assignment? § Initial classroom discussion? § Planning/brainstorming groups? § In-class modeling? § Support material? § Peer response groups for drafts? § Whole class workshops on selected drafts? § Other classroom activities?

How will you teach the required skills? § Put it in writing! Make sure you distribute a well-written assignment that specifies what you require from your students. § Provide model essays. § Write up specialized formatting instructions. § Require the purchase and use of formatting guides like APA and MLA. § Recommend that your students use the Writing Center. § Participate in the Writing Center’s Writing Advisors program.

How will you respond to your students’ writing? § Collect proposals to be sure students are on the right track. § Ask for annotated bibliographies so students begin research early in the semester. § Respond to an early draft. § Plan for in-class workshops or peer response groups. § Encourage students to visit the Writing Center by providing incentives for coming. § Participate in the Writing Center’s Writing Advisors program.

What information do your students need? § Due dates § Purpose and/or background § Audience § Specific instructions § Reading/research requirements § Constraints § Evaluation criteria

Writing Center Staff Director -Dr. Chloé Diepenbrock Associate Professor of Writing Ph. D. in Rhetoric, Linguistics, and Literature University of Southern California Business Assistant -Ms. Katie Hart B. A. in Graphic Design University of Houston-Clear Lake And. . . The Tutors and Receptionists Ann, Amy, Celia, Charley, Corey, Daniel, James, Jo Lynn, Katherine, Krasi, Matt B. , Matt R. , Alicia, Petra, & Rohan

For further assistance, go to our faculty page online! www. uhcl. edu/writingcenter