PLEASE NOTE: THE INFORMATION BELOW MAY CHANGE FOR 2008-2009 AS THE UNIVERSITY PHASES IN ITS NEW SYSTEM OF "WRITING FLAGS." STAY TUNED. (PB 12-10-08)
In order to teach any sophomore literature course that you have not previously taught, you will need to complete the much-talked-about SWC Form.
Why do I have to fill out the SWC Form?
Every instructor and professor teaching an SWC course must fill out this form, implemented now for the first time by the newly-created Writing across the Curriculum program. WAC was created to develop writing skills and instruction across campus. You can see who’s on the SWC Form review committee at http://web.austin.utexas.edu/cola/wac/proposals/committee_list.cfm.
WAC uses the form to ensure that teachers and students understand that writing is a process, that teachers actually prepare/teach students to improve their writing skills through a range of assignments and quality feedback, and that SWC classes don’t simply designate a course with a 16-page paper assigned at the end of the semester. All of this should mean that you are well prepared to fill out this form.
The form is also intended to get teachers thinking about how they teach writing and to encourage a thorough and energetic writing curriculum. It is important to use the form as an opportunity to think about your pedagogical approach to writing in the literature classroom. What larger assignment should your course prepare students to complete? Will you ask students to write a research paper, an essay, or a review? And, How will you lead students up to this larger writing assignment? Will you use blogs or reading journals? Will you have rough drafts and peer reviews?
What is the committee looking for in my responses on the Form?
Your responses to this form should give the WAC a good idea of your teaching style and the way you think about teaching writing. The form will ask you to indicate what kinds of informal and formal writing assignments you will ask your students to complete. How many of each you will assign, how long the writing projects will be, whether there will be drafts turned in, how much each will count during the course, when the assignment occurs during the semester, and whether the student receives feedback from you and/or their peers.
The WAC website explains SWC course requirements:
• In College of Liberal Arts SWC courses, at least 50 percent of a student's total course grade must be derived from written work.
• Students must receive timely feedback about the quality of their writing and how they can improve it.
• University regulations require at least three writing activities in an SWC class, totaling about 16 pages. However, page totals are not especially meaningful in terms of student learning outcomes.
• We recommend that you provide multiple opportunities for students to write, in both informal and formal modes, and that you sequence assignments so that students build on acquired knowledge.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. I haven’t planned my syllabus yet. When I do, if I change my writing assignments, do I have to fill out a new SWC Form? No.
As you create your syllabus over the spring semester and the summer, you may decide you will assign different kinds of papers or make other changes to the writing component of your course. This is fine. You do not need to fill out another SWC Form or let WAC know that you’ve made these changes. Once they’ve approved your course, they agree that you are well prepared to develop an SWC syllabus for this course. They may ask for your syllabus in the fall to have on file, but not to check up on whether or not you’ve changed your assignments.
2. I don’t know exactly what I’ll want to assign or when, but I have a general idea. Can I indicate generally how long assignments will be or when they will occur? Yes.
Though you should try to be as specific as possible, you may fill out some of the form with tentative information. For example, you might state that you plan to assign a 1-page reading journal entry 4 or 5 times during the semester and across the entire span of the semester. Or, you might state that you plan to assign a 5- or 6-page research paper during the 13th week of the semester.
3. Will I lose my opportunity to teach a sophomore literature class if my form is not approved? No.
WAC issues three responses to SWC Forms: approval, approval with a request to use as a model (an upcoming feature of the WAC website), or return to the teacher with required revisions. When the committee does not approve a form, it offers suggestions to the teacher and asks her to revise and resubmit her information. The form is a teaching mechanism, so this is a useful dialogue with a committee of writing instructors.
Preparing to fill out the form.
In preparation for filling out the SWC Form, look at the preliminary worksheet (attached below or available by download from http://www.utexas.edu/cola/depts/wac/swc/). This worksheet includes space for all of the information requested by the form, and it also offers ideas about informal and formal writing assignments.
Ready to fill out the form?
Once you fill out your form, you can either save it and make changes later or submit it when it’s complete.
Go to the SWC Form Page on the Writing across the Curriculum website: http://www.utexas.edu/cola/depts/wac/swc/
Click on “Create New Proposal” if this is your first time to the site, or click on “Update or Search for Existing Proposal” if you’ve saved your form as a draft for later revision.
You must choose to “Send to SWC Committee” in order for your form to be finalized and submitted. You should receive an email confirming receipt of your form. Approvals will be sent out sometime in January.
