Last fall I was asked to write a short piece for an alumni publication about the Writing Program here. They didn't use it (that I know of), but it occured to me today as I drove in that perhaps some Inkshedders might find value in writing a similar piece. As the co-editor of the Inkshed Newsletter, of course, I have an interest in publishing these kinds of texts, and we'd like to get the next edition of the Newsletter out before the conference in early May. So if you have something else you'd like to contribute, by all means send that along.
And if you have a spare hour (I wrote this in about an hour), perhaps you could send a short statement like the one below along to be included in the Newsletter. I guess I'd been thinking about the annual hand-wringing about university student's writing abilities, particularly in light of the fact that my son had just written the same proficiency exam that I had written in 1976 ("explain how to put on a coat"). I wanted to write something to alumni that would give them a more complex understanding of what we do in writing courses and how that is connected to life both within university and beyond. Here's what I wrote:
"the enviable power of elegant and forcible writing [is] within the grasp of ordinary minds, and may, in general be viewed as the certain reward of patient industry." Edgerton Ryerson, 1842 Edgerton Ryerson’s words are as true today as they were a century and a half ago: most people can learn to write if they put the time and effort into it, providing that they also have some instruction. The Faculty of Arts and Humanities Writing Program is dedicated to providing the instruction students at Western need to become better writers. A recent Globe and Mail article highlighted the shortcomings of students’ writing skills (“Universities trying to cope with students lacking basics” Sept. 22, 2005 A1), a seemingly perennial observation. Are these results any different from the results of the 1970s or 1980s? As a former student who had to write one of these proficiency tests and the parent of a first-year student who wrote one of these tests this fall, I’m not so sure. Instead, these results speak to me about how difficult it is to learn to write well. Learning to write well is a labor-intensive, time-consuming activity, and so is teaching writing. Working through drafts of students’ essays takes time, attention to detail, and tact, characteristics that mark faculty in the Writing Program. Why expend so much effort on this? In the Writing Program, we believe that for students to develop as writers they need to write often and challenge themselves to learn to write a variety of different documents. The need to develop as a writer doesn’t stop when they graduate from high school, nor does it end with graduation from university. Professors and professionals both continue to face new rhetorical challenges as they move through their careers and take on additional responsibilities. As alumni, you are undoubtedly aware of how the writing demands on you change and evolve as you move through life. In my own life, I’ve faced an increasingly diversified and challenging face of rhetorical situations. I’ve been asked to serve as the master of ceremonies at my sister-in-laws’ wedding, and I’ve also delivered a eulogy at my own sister’s funeral. At times like those, my rhetorical training allowed me to serve my family at an important time. As the author, co-author, or editor of several books and many articles, my writing skills have served to advance my career. My commitment to writing and the Writing Program comes out of this deeply felt experience. At the Writing Program, we’re committed to helping all UWO students improve their writing skills because we’re convinced this study will help them live richer lives and function as leaders in their families and communities.
Roger Graves
Dr. Roger Graves
Director of Writing and Technical & Professional Communication
University of Western Ontario
London, ON N6A 3K7
519.661.2111x85785
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