WPA Outcome Statement for 1st Year Comp.

Rhetorical Knowledge

By the end of first year composition, students should

Focus on a purpose
Respond to the needs of different audiences
Respond appropriately to different kinds of rhetorical situations
Use conventions of format and structure appropriate to the rhetorical situation
Adopt appropriate voice, tone, and level of formality
Understand how genres shape reading and writing
Write in several genres

Faculty in all programs and departments can build on this preparation by helping students learn
The main features of writing in their fields
The main uses of writing in their fields
The expectations of readers in their fields

Critical Thinking, Reading, and Writing

By the end of first year composition, students should

Use writing and reading for inquiry, learning, thinking, and communicating
Understand a writing assignment as a series of tasks, including finding, evaluating, analyzing, and synthesizing appropriate primary and secondary sources
Integrate their own ideas with those of others
Understand the relationships among language, knowledge, and power

Faculty in all programs and departments can build on this preparation by helping students learn
The uses of writing as a critical thinking method
The interactions among critical thinking, critical reading, and writing
The relationships among language, knowledge, and power in their fields

Processes

By the end of first year composition, students should

Be aware that it usually takes multiple drafts to create and complete a successful text
Develop flexible strategies for generating, revising, editing, and proof-reading
Understand writing as an open process that permits writers to use later invention and re-thinking to revise their work
Understand the collaborative and social aspects of writing processes
Learn to critique their own and others' works
Learn to balance the advantages of relying on others with the responsibility of doing their part
Use a variety of technologies to address a range of audiences

Faculty in all programs and departments can build on this preparation by helping students learn
To build final results in stages
To review work-in-progress in collaborative peer groups for purposes other than editing
To save extensive editing for later parts of the writing process
To apply the technologies commonly used to research and communicate within their fields

Knowledge of Conventions

By the end of first year composition, students should

Learn common formats for different kinds of texts
Develop knowledge of genre conventions ranging from structure and paragraphing to tone and mechanics
Practice appropriate means of documenting their work
Control such surface features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

Faculty in all programs and departments can build on this preparation by helping students learn
The conventions of usage, specialized vocabulary, format, and documentation in their fields
Strategies through which better control of conventions can be achieved