Online Writing Project Teaching Resources Center

"Go to the Grid." This particular refrain will likely be echoed in General Education courses throughout campus this fall, as instructors utilize a recently completed project that provides a central, easy-to-access collection of Web resources on writing.

Made possible by a grant from the Teaching Resource Center (TRC), the Online Writing Project features a grid that covers a wide variety of writing topics, each linking to handouts created and maintained by writing centers at colleges and universities across the country, and then followed up by writing advice found in composition textbooks or the thoughts of famous writers.

Developed by Dr. Andy Jones, a lecturer and Academic Coordinator in the English Department and Coordinator of the Computer-Assisted Instruction Program, the TRC Writing Project is intended to help both students and instructors, particularly in classes where writing is not the primary focus.

"One of the goals of the project is to provide writing help in those areas where students most need it," shares Dr. Jones. "This includes the processes of beginning, writing, and revising essays; the definitions and uses of concepts and terms commonly addressed in writing classes; and the particular challenges of students who approach English as a second language."

The TRC Writing Project is already being embraced by instructors as a way to provide their students with helpful writing information. "Instructors are so busy teaching and grading papers that they have little time to search for useful Web sites on writing," says Dr. Ellen Lange, instructor in the Linguistics Department. "Because I am an ESL (English as a Second Language) instructor, the ESL sites in the Online Writing Project have proven the most useful to me; however, I have also found that some of the other sites are useful to me brush up on when I am teaching certain writing techniques."

While the TRC Writing Project looks to be a valuable tool for students and instructors, Dr. Jones is careful to note that the Project is only a supplement for the effective teaching of writing. "The resources in the Writing Project will never be fruitfully substituted for time spent practicing reading and writing with expert writers," says Jones, "whether they be leaders of large classes who take time to cover the basics of writing clear and thoughtful prose, specialists at the Learning Skills Center who have years of experience talking students through their responses to challenging writing assignments, or, most appropriately, the faculty and teaching assistants who teach Composition classes offered by the Department of English.

Dr. Jones gave a presentation on the TRC Writing Project at the 2002 Summer Institute for Technology in Teaching (SITT), receiving an enthusiastic response from attending instructors and much feedback on future improvements. "I am excited by the quality and quantity of feedback I received at SITT. I look forward to making these improvements. Instructors in all disciplines are welcome to utilize the TRC Writing Project in their classes this year, and are encouraged to contact me with any suggestions or ideas."

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