Nov 01, 2022
The Writing Center's Writing Fellow Program
Writing Fellow Programm
"Writing" is not simply what students have to get through in order to pass exams. It is much more a key competence that can be learned in the course of studies and serves as a tool for students to acquire knowledge and to reflect and re-link existing knowledge. However, it is often assumed that students will be able to write scientifically when they begin their studies. In order to close the gap between faculty expectations and students' writing skills, the Writing Fellow program aims to focus more on writing in professional teaching.
Through the semester-long Writing Fellow program, the Writing Center helps instructors integrate writing into their subject teaching, providing students with opportunities to learn about and practice academic writing in a real-world context.
In conversation with the Writing Fellows, students receive sound text feedback and can thus expand their writing skills. The Writing Fellows also support students with their knowledge of methods and make it as easy as possible for them to approach academic writing and work. See the >Writing Advice for Students page for more information.
In order to plan the schedule for the semester, an information meeting is held during the semester break. The sooner the meeting takes place before the start of the new semester, the more time there is to prepare the exact implementation.
During the meeting, the Writing Fellow program coordinator will explain what the goals are and what the options are for implementation. It is discussed in detail with the teacher what the ideas and requirements are, and finally together they discuss what the exact implementation will look like.
A great advantage of the program is its flexibility to adapt to the requirements of the teacher. Thus, the writing assignment can take different forms, e.g. as a short exposé in preparation for the term paper, or a short review on literature read.
Depending on which tools are used to organize the course, a folder with information about the Writing Fellow program is created there for the students. In addition, the tool is also used to register for feedback meetings. This folder is maintained by the Writing Fellow Program team.
It can also be used to discuss which aspects should be asked about in the final anonymous evaluation. The questionnaire is filled out by the students after the feedback meeting and evaluated by the Writing Fellow Program team.
In the first meeting of the course, the Writing Fellow Program team introduces itself and explains to the participating students what the program is and what the schedule is for the semester.
During the specified period in the semester or even during the lecture-free period, feedback meetings are coordinated by the Writing Fellow Program; students sign up for appointments on their own.
An anonymous evaluation of the program by the students takes place at the end of the semester. In a final meeting, the evaluation is discussed and the teachers can also give feedback on the program and the collaboration.
Benefits
Participation in the Writing Fellow program benefits not only students, but also faculty.
Students have the advantage that ...
- ... they can try out scientific writing with a concrete writing task and thus improve their writing skills.
- ... they can deepen learning content by using writing as a learning and thinking tool.
- ... they can find an easier access to the examination performance (e.g. homework or essay) through the writing task.
- ... they get feedback on their text at eye level and can exchange ideas about the writing process.
- ... they have a permanent contact person if they have questions about writing scientific papers.
Teachers have the advantage that …
- … they are supported by the Writing Fellows and the Writing Center in the conception of the writing assignment
- .... students can submit better structured assignments.
- ... they are supported by the Writing Fellows in supervising students in the context of academic writing.
- ... they can talk about their writing assignments and receive feedback from the Writing Fellows and ultimately from the students (via an anonymous evaluation at the end of the semester).
Tasks of the Writing Fellows
Writing Fellows are writing peer tutors who have been trained at the Writing Center and have worked as writing consultants for several semesters. Through their intensive training and their work at the Writing Center, they are not only skilled in reading and listening, but also experts in the writing process as well as in feedback techniques and workshop instruction.
Under the motto "Helping Students Help Themselves" Writing Fellows provide students with text feedback on the writing assignment in the course. To do this, they meet to discuss various aspects on an eye-to-eye basis. These include structure, argumentation, the thread of the writing assignment, and readability. Editing or proofreading is not offered, but conspicuities can also be discussed.
Content of the course or even the accuracy of the text are not the topic of the conversation, and it is not the Writing Fellows' job to teach content or check arguments for accuracy. That remains the responsibility of the instructors and students.
Our Writing Peer Tutors are students from a variety of disciplines, which means that the Writing Fellows in your course may also be from outside your discipline.This has the advantage that all participants have to discuss exactly what the requirements are. The Writing Fellows thus encounter the students more as exchange partners about the writing process, and less as assistants to the instructors, since the responsibility for the content always remains with the students.
Paulina Hösl, Writing Fellow