Writing well -- a talent that separates scholars from the hoi polloi. The first writing requirement -- a course that most first years have to take with an incorrect assumption that they will learn how to write well.
The goal of the first writing requirement has little to do with what the SAT II writing test measures and therefore the University should stop using it as a measure of exemption from their writing classes. In addition, the portfolio exemption policy -- allowing students to bypass the writing requirement by submitting essays to the writing program -- needs to be revamped to be made more accessible to students.
According to the Undergraduate Record, the accelerated academic writing course (ENWR 110) covers "framing and developing effective academic arguments." However, the way to gain exemption from the test is through the SAT II writing test or the AP English language exam. The AP English language exam is a valid test for writing placement, but considering the SAT II writing test is a requirement for admission, it is the test most commonly used for exemption. Unfortunately, the SAT II writing exam has very little to do with the curriculum of the ENWR 110 class because the SAT II tests mostly grammar and syntax, while the ENWR 110 class places heavy emphasis on structuring an academic argument. Many students are therefore placed into a class that does not work to improve their specific weaknesses. About 50 classes a semester are dedicated to teaching the introductory writing course and, with many students placed in courses that won't necessarily help them, the course is not an efficient use of the University's scarce resources.
The SAT II writing exam has about as much to do with ENWR 110 as the AP Biology exam has to do with ECON 201. The writing test, according to The College Board's Web site (www.collegeboard.com), tests a student's ability "to express ideas clearly in standard written English, to recognize faults in usage and structure, and to use language with sensitivity to meaning." Only the first goal coincides with the goals of the academic writing class. In addition, the multiple choice section, which accounts for two-thirds of the test score, tests only grammar and syntax. This means a student possessing an excellent writing style who knows perfectly well how to structure an academic argument can still be forced into the first writing requirement course because of poor grammar skills.
Hardly measuring a student's chance to succeed in college level writing courses, the actual writing portion of the SAT II exam also is invalid as a gauge for exemption. Allowing only 20 minutes for an essay gives minimal insight into whether a student can produce the kind of writing college professors require.Papers require time and editing -- the ENWR class itself focuses a lot on workshopping papers with the class -- but the essay on the SAT II writing test cuts out this important phase of the writing process.
The SAT II writing test is irrelevant to a student's ability to write a decent academic argument. A poor writing score should put a student in a grammar and syntax class, not a class on how to frame and develop an academic paper. There needs to be a distinction between those students who need to improve in structuring and writing academic papers and those who need to learn simple grammar and syntax rules. Subject-verb agreement and pronoun usage are important rules to know, but students are not likely to learn them in an ENWR 110 class.
The alternatives to standarized test placement is a portfolio review by the associate director of the Academic Writing Program. A fair way to bypass the writing exam, the portfolio gives those who feel the standarized tests do not measure their writing ability a chance to try to get out of the writing requirement.However, the last date to earn an exemption for this fall semester was Aug. 16. This provides few alternatives for students who get into the writing class and then wonder, "What am I doing here?" The deadline needs to be changed to a date after the first day of classes so students can evaluate their own placement by actually attending a class. With the current system, first years can be thrown into a class where they don't belong and can be trapped with no way of escaping.
Needing reform, the placement policies can easily be changed. The SAT II is not a good indicator for writing placement, while the AP English language exam is. Ideally, each student could submit his best high school essays to be judged or even have his admission essays read by the English department to direct placement.Alternatively, there could be two writing courses required: "Framing and Constructing Academic Arguments" and "Grammar and Syntax 101." The AP language exam would place students out of the former course, while the SAT II writing exam could place incoming students into the latter. But as long as the SAT II writing test is used for exemption, first years will not receive focused training to help them with their specific weaknesses.
(Patrick Harvey is a Cavalier Daily
viewpoint writer.)
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