Boise State University2013 Institution Survey

Sites of writing--General Description

Does your institution have an official writing program or department? (n=671)

Yes

What is the institutional home of the writing program or department? (n=248)

English Department

Does your institution have first-year writing? (n=673)

Yes

Is first-year writing part of the writing program or department? (n=646)

Yes

Does your institution have writing across the curriculum (WAC)? (n=671)

Yes

Is WAC part of the writing program or department? (n=306)

No

If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for WAC? (n=227)

Other

Does your institution have writing in the disciplines (WID)? (n=674)

Yes

Is writing in the disciplines part of the writing program or department? (n=265)

No

If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for writing in the disciplines? (n=184)

Other

Does your institution have an undergraduate writing major? (n=673)

No

Is the undergraduate writing major part of the writing program or department? (n=263)

No

If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for the undergraduate writing major? (n=196)

English department

Does your institution have an undergraduate writing minor? (n=676)

No

Does your institution have a graduate program in writing/rhetoric? (n=677)

Yes

Is the graduate program part of the writing program or department? (n=157)

No

If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for the graduate writing program? (n=114)

English department

Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=679)

Yes

Is the writing center part of the writing program or department? (n=654)

No

If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for the writing center? (n=487)

English department

Does your institution have a basic writing program? (n=675)

Yes

Is the basic writing program part of the writing program or department? (n=357)

Yes

Sites of writing--Writing Requirement

Does your institution have a writing requirement? (n=668)

Yes

What does the writing requirement at your institution consist of? (n=638)

First-year composition predominately taught by English and/or Writing department (FYC)

Writing in the major

Senior thesis or capstone experience

Other

What other writing requirements does your institution have?

100: first-year writing 200: writing "University Learning Outcome" in university-wide course; 3: Communication in the Discipline course in each major; 4: capstone in each major.

Are there curricular requirements that are not part of the writing requirement but that have writing as an explicit goal? (n=657)

Yes

What curricular requirements have writing as an explicit goal? (n=342)

A senior capstone/thesis for some or all students has writing as an explicit goal.

Sites of writing--College Writing Goals

Are there college-wide student writing goals? (n=660)

Yes

Have the goals been influenced by the WPA Outcomes Statement? (n=377)

Yes

How are the college-wide student writing goals assessed? (n=379)

other

Sites of writing--National Survey of Student Engagement

Does your institution administer the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)? (n=667)

Yes

How does your writing program use the NSSE data? (n=425)

Data used to argue for additional resources.

Data used for other purposes.

Is your school part of the WPA/NSSE Consortium for the Study of Writing in College? (n=494)

No

Sites of writing--Changes to Writing Program

Have there been changes to the writing program or sites of writing at your institution in the past 10 years? (n=666)

Yes

Were there changes to the writing requirement in the past 10 years? (n=585)

Yes

Which changes have taken place in regards to the writing requirement? (n=382)

Other

Were there changes to the assessment of writing at your institution over the past 10 years? (n=589)

Yes

Which changes have taken place in regards to assessment? (n=437)

Other

Were there any changes to the administrative structures of the writing program or the sites of writing over the past 10 years? (n=597)

No

Was the writing program changed in the past 10 years to expand or eliminate areas? (n=609)

Yes

How did the writing program change? (n=346)

An undergraduate writing major was added. (not including creative writing)

A graduate degree in writing/rhetoric was added.

Were there changes to the staffing of the writing program or center over the past 10 years? (n=595)

No

Were there any additional changes to the writing program or the sites of writing at your institution not already mentioned? (n=588)

Yes

If there were any additional changes to the writing program or the sites of writing at your institution not already mentioned, please explain.

Curricular change: new support model for English 101 (ALP-like model; 4-credit experience); no basic writing anymore; new and innovative placement as of 2013

Do you foresee changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution over the next five years? (n=661)

No

First-year writing/English composition--General Description

Does your institution have a first-year writing requirement whether explicit or embedded? (n=672)

Yes

How many semesters/courses of first-year writing are required? (n=575)

2

By when must the second semester course be completed? (n=316)

As a prerequisite

How would you describe your first-year writing requirement? (n=577)

FYC

First-year writing/English composition--Placement and Transfer

Does your institution allow students to place out of FYC? (n=443)

Yes

What is your program's placement mechanism?

FYWS (n=18)FYC (n=373)
SAT/ACTYes
AP/IBYes
CLEP
In-house exam
Directed self-placement
Portfolio
Dual enrollment/ transfer
Other

Does your institution accept transfer credit for FYC? (n=454)

Yes

Who approves transfer credit for FYW courses? (n=539)

WPA

Registrar

Department chair

First-year writing/English composition--Goals and Assessment

Are there explicit goals for FYC? (n=463)

Yes

Are FYC goals informed by the WPA Outcomes Statement? (n=416)

Yes

How are the goals for FYW courses assessed?

FYWS (n=66)FYC (n=381)
Paper portfolio
E-portfolioYes
Random sample
Exam
Professor evaluation
None
Course evaluation
Student survey
Other

Who participates in the assessment of the goals for FYW courses?

FYWS (n=53)FYC (n=326)
WPAYes
Writing facultyYes
Institutional faculty
Outside evaluators
English faculty
Department chair
Other

First-year writing/English composition--Curriculum

What is the content of the FYC requirement? See Note 5. (n=456)

Writing About Writing (WAW)

Themes

Is there a common syllabus for FYC courses? (n=457)

No

First-year writing/English composition--Enrollment Caps

What is the enrollment cap for honors sections of FYC? (n=261)

20

What is the enrollment cap for regular sections of FYC? (n=451)

Varies by semester

What is the enrollment cap for basic writing sections of FYC? (n=286)

Varies by semester

First-year writing/English composition--Staffing

In the 2011-12 academic year, what percentage of FYC courses were taught by: See Note 2a. (n=422)

Full-Time, Tenure Track English FacultyFull-Time, Tenure Track Writing FacultyFull-Time, Tenure Track Other FacultyFull-Time, Non-Tenure Track English FacultyFull-Time, Non-Tenure Track Writing FacultyFull-Time, Non-Tenure Track Other FacultyPart-time English FacultyPart-time Writing FacultyEnglish Graduate TAsWriting Graduate TAsOther Graduate TAsWPAOther
0%YesYesYesYesYesYesYesYes
1-5%YesYes
6-15%Yes
16-25%
26-35%Yes
36-50%
51-60%Yes
61-75%
76-85%
86-99%
100%

Is there faculty or professional development available for those teaching FYC? (n=457)

Yes

What form does the faculty development take for FYW faculty?

FYWS (n=70)FYC (n=373)
Requried pedagogy course taught by the WPAYes
Required faculty development workshops
Optional graduate pedagogy course
Optional faculty development workshopsYes
Individual meetings with the WPA/WCDYes
OtherYes

Do those attending faculty development for FYC receive additional compensation? (n=411)

Sometimes

Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--General Description

Does your institution identify students who may need additional writing support, including students whose primary language is not English? (n=626)

Yes

How does the institution identify these students? (n=483)

Placement test

Admissions office/ student affairs referral

Advisor referral

Faculty referral

Student self-referral

Other

What types of supports are available to those students? (n=489)

Special sections of FYW

Peer tutoring

Other

Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--Basic Writing

Does your institution have a formal basic writing program? (n=493)

Yes

What percentage of the student body is placed into basic writing? See Note 4. (n=164)

20

How are students placed into basic writing? (n=207)

SAT/ACT scores

Placement test

How do students exit basic writing? (n=207)

Passing grade in BW course

Is there a director of basic writing? (n=209)

No

What is the structure of the basic writing program? See Glossary for terms used. (n=205)

Prerequisite model

Stretch model

How many levels of basic writing do you have? (n=197)

1

What is the curriculum of the basic writing courses? (n=203)

Reading and writing

Other

Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--Support for English Language Learners

Is there support for English Language Learners (ELLs)? (n=484)

Yes

Is support for ELLs separate from basic writing? (n=417)

Yes

What type of supports are available for ELLs? (n=412)

Peer tutoring

Professional tutoring, not the WPA or WCD

Other

Does your institution offer ELL writing classes? (n=408)

Yes

What percentage of the student body is placed into ELL writing courses? See Note 4. (n=160)

2

How are students identified and/or placed into ELL writing courses? (n=239)

SAT/ACT/TOFEL

Placement test

Admissions office/ atudent affairs referral

Directed self-placement

Faculty referral

Advisor referral

What is the institutional home of the ELL writing courses? (n=241)

English department

Writing across the curriculum (WAC) and writing beyond the first year--General Description

Does your institution have a WAC program and/or writing requirement beyond the first year? (n=642)

Yes

Does your institution require all students to take lower-division writing courses taught by the English or Writing department for students in other departments? Does not include the first-year writing requirement. (n=302)

No

Does your institution require all students to take upper-division writing courses taught by the English or Writing department for students in other departments? (n=303)

No

Does your institution require all students to take a mid-level writing course(s)? (n=304)

Yes

How would you describe the mid-level course? (n=124)

The course is classified as writing in the major.

Does your institution require ALL students to complete a senior thesis or other writing-intensive capstone experience? (n=306)

Yes

Is the senior thesis an explicit part of the college writing requirement? (n=92)

Yes

Writing across the curriculum (WAC) and writing beyond the first year--Writing-Intensive Courses

Does your institution require all students to take writing-intensive (WI or W) courses taught by departments other than English or Writing? (n=303)

No

Is there professional development available for those teaching in the WAC Program? (n=298)

Yes

What form does that faculty development take? (n=216)

Optional faculty workshops

Individual meetings with faculty members

Collaborative research projects

If faculty attend a seminar or workshop, how are they compensated? (n=129)

They receive food at the event.

They receive a stipend.

The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Undergraduate Major

Does your institution have a writing major? See Note 3. (n=656)

Yes

What areas of writing can students specialize in as part of the major? (n=230)

Technical writing

Rhetoric/ composition

Creative writing

In which department is the major housed? (n=245)

English

The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Undergraduate Minor

Does your institution have a writing minor? (n=656)

No

The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Graduate Programs

Does your institution offer a masters degree (M.A.) in writing, other than creative writing? (n=656)

Yes

In which department is the masters program housed? (n=100)

English

Does your institution have a Ph.D. program in writing, other than creative writing? (n=654)

No

Writing centers--General description

Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=676)

Yes

Is the writing center free-standing or part of another institutional unit? (n=612)

Free-standing

Where is the writing center located? Note: From this point on writing center refers to both free-standing and those located within another unit. (n=612)

Academic building

Is there a mission statement for the writing center? (n=610)

Yes

Are there explicit goals for the writing center? (n=610)

Yes

How are the goals assessed? (n=423)

Student feedback forms

Faculty feedback

Center usage statistics

What services does the writing center offer? (n=610)

Face-to-face consultations

Online feedback via e-mail (asynchronous)

Assistance with oral presentations

Assistance with Powerpoint or other presentation software

Assistance with new media

Administrative structures

Who has primary responsibility for administering first-year writing requirement? (n=565)

FYWD

How is the FYWD position classified? (n=274)

TT

Where does the FYWD's tenure line reside? (n=228)

English

To whom does the FYWD report? (n=272)

Chair of the department

Was the FYWD director hired for this position? (n=261)

Yes

Are there others who help to administer the FYW program? (n=586)

Yes

If others help to administer the FYW program, how many? (n=347)

1

Who has primary responsibility for administering the WAC program? (n=263)

WCD

Are there others who help to administer the WAC program? (n=209)

No

What is the teaching load for writing administrators?

Average faculty member (n=501)FYWD (n=265)
0-0
0-1
1-1Yes
1-2 or 2-1
2-2
2-1-2
2-2-2
2-3 or 3-2Yes
3-3
3-1-2
3-1-3
3-4 or 4-3
4-4
Other
Varies

What are the job responsibilities for writing administrators?

FYWD (n=267)
Teach courses in the first-year writing programYes
Teach courses in the writing program/department (Not FYW)Yes
Teach courses outside the writing program/department
Assess all or some aspects of the writing programYes
Assess the development of student writing on campusYes
Conduct faculty development with faculty across the disciplines
Conduct TA trainingYes
Consult with individual faculty across the disciplines
Consult with departments across the disciplines
Supervise professional staff (writing center director, asst.director, admin asst.)Yes
Supervise tutors (professional and/or peer)
Hire professional staffYes
Hire tutors
Schedule writing courses
Schedule writing center
Place students into writing coursesYes
Facilitate placement examYes
Oversee curriculum developmentYes
Train professional staff
Train peer tutors
Advertise programYes
Oversee program budgetYes
Tutor students
Plan eventsYes
Serve on university committeesYes
Maintain program website
Serve as an academic advisorYes
Offer student workshops
Oversee exemption and/or transfer creditYes
Other