North Seattle College2013 Institution Survey
Sites of Writing--General Description
What is the institutional home of the writing program or department? (n=97)
English Department
Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=219)
Yes
If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for the writing center? (n=171)
English Department
If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for the basic writing program? (n=136)
English Department
Sites of Writing--Writing Requirement
What does the writing requirement at your institution consist of? (n=106)
First-year composition predominately taught by English and/or Writing department (FYC)
Are there curricular requirements that are not part of the writing requirement but that have writing as an explicit goal? (n=211)
No
Sites of Writing--College Writing Goals
How are the college-wide student writing goals assessed? (n=113)
Professors certify for writing proficiency when students take writing-intensive courses.
Sites of Writing--Community College Survey of Student Engagement
Does your institution administer the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE)? (n=219)
Yes
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=219)
Yes
Were there changes to the assessment of writing at your institution over the past 10 years? (n=194)
No
Were there any changes to the administrative structures of the writing program or the sites of writing over the past 10 years? (n=195)
No
Was the writing program changed in the past 10 years to expand or eliminate areas? (n=191)
No
Were there changes to the staffing of the writing program or center over the past 10 years? (n=194)
Yes
Which changes to the staffing of the writing program or center have taken place over the past 10 years? (n=114)
Part-time teaching positions were added.
Were there any additional changes to the writing program or the sites of writing at your institution not already mentioned? (n=193)
Yes
If there were any additional changes to the writing program or the sites of writing at your institution not already mentioned, please explain.
New location
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=217)
Yes
What type of changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution do you foresee in the next five years? (n=151)
Changes to the curricular structures or writing requirement
First-Year Writing/ English Composition--General Description
Does your institution have a first-year writing requirement, whether explicit or embedded? (n=217)
No
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=220)
Yes
What types of supports are available to these students? (n=161)
Required basic writing course
Peer tutoring
Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--Basic Writing
What is the structure of the basic writing program? (n=125)
Stretch model
Mainstreaming model
What is the curriculum of the basic writing courses? (n=126)
Grammar
Sentence writing
Paragraph writing
Reading and writing
Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--Support for English Language Learners (ELLs)
What type of supports are available for ELLs? (n=124)
Required section of basic writing course
Peer tutoring
How are students identified and/or placed into ELL writing courses? (n=76)
Placement test
What is the institutional home of the ELL writing courses? (n=80)
Intensive English program
Writing across the curriculum (WAC) and writing beyond the first year--General Description
Does your institution have a WAC/WID program and/or a writing requirement beyond the first year? (n=203)
No
Writing centers--General description
Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=219)
Yes
Is the writing center free-standing or part of another institutional unit? (n=157)
Part of another institutional unit
If the writing center is not free-standing, what larger institutional unit is it a part of? (n=105)
Learning center
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=157)
Academic building
How are the goals assessed? (n=104)
Student feedback forms
Faculty feedback
Center usage statistics
What services does the writing center offer? (n=155)
Face-to-face consultations
Online tutoring via Skype or instant messaging (synchronous)
Tutoring in other subject areas
Writing centers--Consultations
How many face-to-face consultations were conducted in the Fall of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=83)
3,000
How many face-to-face consultations were conducted in the Spring of 2013? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=85)
3,000
How many face-to-face consultations were conducted in the Summer of 2013? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=84)
600
How many online consultations were offered in the Fall of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=60)
0
How many online consultations were offered in the Spring of 2013? See Notes 2b & 4.(n=63)
0
How many online consultations were offered in the Summer of 2013? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=64)
0
How many online consultations were conducted in the Fall of 2012? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=82)
0
How many online consultations were conducted in the Spring of 2013? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=83)
0
How many online consultations were conducted in the Summer of 2013? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=82)
0
What is the average length of a consultation or tutorial session offered? (n=143)
30 minutes
Writing centers--Consultants
Are your writing center consultants faculty who teach in the writing program? (n=127)
No
Are your writing center consultants faculty who teach in other academic departments? (n=127)
No
During the fall of 2012, approximately how many writing center consultants were professional tutors? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=68)
35
During the fall of 2012, what percentage of the writing center consultants were professional tutors? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=68)
100
During the spring of 2013, approximately how many writing center consultants were professional tutors? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=65)
35
During the spring of 2013, what percentage of the writing center consultants were professional tutors? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=65)
100
How are consultants working in the writing center initally trained?
| Undergraduate students (n=90) | Faculty who teach in the writing program (n=77) | Faculty who teach in other academic departments (n=21) | Professional tutors (n=71) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full-credit course | ||||
| Half-credit course | ||||
| Weekly meetings | ||||
| Monthly meetings | Yes | |||
| Workshops before the semester | Yes | |||
| No training required | ||||
| Other |
What on-going professional development opportunities are offered for consultants working in the writing center?
| Undergraduate students (n=78) | Faculty who teach in the writing program (n=70) | Faculty who teach in other academic departments (n=19) | Professional tutors (n=66) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attendance at national conferences | ||||
| Attendance at regional conferences | Yes | |||
| Presenting at national conferences | ||||
| Presenting at regional conferences | ||||
| Reading professional journals | Yes | |||
| Outside speakers | ||||
| Weekly meetings | ||||
| Semester inservice or workshop | Yes | |||
| Written reflections on daily and/or semester work | ||||
| Meet with director | Yes | |||
| No opportunities available | ||||
| Other |
How are consultants working in the writing center compensated?
| Undergraduate students (n=96) | Faculty who teach in the writing program (n=85) | Faculty who teach in other academic departments (n=31) | Professional tutors (n=80) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly wage | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Stipend | ||||
| Tuition waver | ||||
| Course credit | ||||
| Faculty salary | ||||
| Release time | ||||
| Other |
Writing centers--Course-based Peer Tutoring
Does your institution have a writing fellows program (course-based peer tutoring)? (n=143)
Yes
Do the writing fellows work both as fellows and in the writing center? (n=21)
Writing fellows and writing center tutors are two separate groups
Do the writing fellows regularly attend the class they are assigned to work with? (n=22)
No
On average, how many students does each writing fellow work with for a course? (n=18)
4
Administrative Structures
Who has primary responsibility for administering the writing/learning center? (n=139)
Separate writing center director or coordinator (WCD)
What are the job responsibilities for writing administrators?
| FYWD (n=14) | WAC director (n=8) | WCD (n=85) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teach courses in the first-year writing program | Yes | ||
| Teach courses in the writing program/department (not FYW) | |||
| Teach courses outside the writing program/department | |||
| Assess all or some aspects of the writing program | |||
| Assess the development of student writing on campus | |||
| Conduct faculty development with faculty across the disciplines | |||
| Consult with individual faculty across the disciplines | Yes | ||
| Consult with departments across the disciplines | Yes | ||
| Supervise professional staff (writing center director, asst.director, admin asst.) | |||
| Supervise tutors (professional and/or peer) | Yes | ||
| Hire professional staff | Yes | ||
| Hire tutors | Yes | ||
| Schedule writing courses | |||
| Schedule writing center | |||
| Place students into writing courses | |||
| Facilitate placement exam | |||
| Oversee curriculum development | |||
| Train professional staff | Yes | ||
| Train peer tutors | Yes | ||
| Advertise program | Yes | ||
| Oversee program budget | Yes | ||
| Tutor students | Yes | ||
| Plan events | Yes | ||
| Serve on university committees | Yes | ||
| Maintain program website | Yes | ||
| Serve as an academic advisor | |||
| Offer student workshops | Yes | ||
| Oversee exemption and/or transfer credit | |||
| Other |