Implementing and Sustaining Writing Across the Curriculum: Strategies for Success

"While there is no formula for implementing and sustaining a WAC program in every conceivable context," write Farrell-Childers, Gere, and Young (1994) in their introduction to Programs and Practices: Writing Across the Secondary School Curriculum, "there are patterns that emerge from a review of successful programs..." (p. 5). Although, again, what "success" means varies from school to school, profiles of individual programs such as the ones provided in Programs and Practices and in the Northwest Sampler section of this booklet do provide some insight into launching strong programs and keeping them on their feet.

1. Begin with a needs assessment. What are the particular needs and abilities of students in your school? Of teachers? What beliefs do teachers hold about writing and learning? How much writing do content-area teachers assign on a regular basis? How much time do students spend writing in and outside school? Solicit input from teachers who already use a great deal of writing in their classrooms as well as those who don't.
2. Involve students' families. Find out how students and their families use writing outside school. Talk with parents and other significant adults in students' lives about how they currently support students' writing at home, and what kinds of writing they anticipate students will do once they graduate. What needs do they perceive? Strengths? What goals would they set for a WAC program? As you plan, identify ways in which your program will build on, and support, the diversity of literacy practices in your community.
3. Generate teacher support. Most successful programs emerge from the ground up rather than the top down (Sorenson, 1991; van Allen, 1992). Thaiss (1988) and others highly recommend that "some faculty development, primarily voluntary, should precede legislated or decreed changes in curriculum" (p. 94).
4. Support quality professional development. Professional development should be reflective, collaborative, and ongoing. Lilyanne van Allen (1992) suggests that "generous staff development [be] provided before beginning the program and continued through the first and second years of the program" (p. 114)—a recommendation that is echoed throughout the WAC literature (Barr & Healy, 1988; Sorenson, 1991). Follow-ing a five-year inservice program for secondary science teachers, Yore, Hand, & Prain (1999) identified teachers' views of writing as a significant hurdle to implementing a writing-to-learn approach: "Teachers view writing in science primarily as an assessment technique since they have not experienced non-traditional types of writing. Therefore, teachers limit the use of writing to recalling knowledge... rather than as a means of constructing knowledge" (p. 17). A few workshops are unlikely to lead to significant change among teachers unaccustomed to using writing in a variety of ways.
5. Encourage teacher leadership. Lilyanne van Allen's (1992) study of WAC efforts in five Texas school districts found that a key component of lasting and successful programs was "dedicated teachers assuming the leadership of the program" (p. 114). For this to happen, however, teachers must be given ample time to plan, attend trainings, and collaborate. Potential conflicts with teachers' contracts should be identified and worked out well in advance.
6. Establish a shared system for assessing writing. Reinforce common goals for student writing, and develop a shared framework for evaluation. "Teachers and school administrators can build common performance expectations by convening regular workshops on what constitutes good writing, particularly at the middle and high school levels where each student has several teachers" (NCW, 2003, p. 34).
7. Leave enough time to plan. Less experienced faculty in particular need time to network, experiment with cross-curricular themes, attend workshops, and visit programs at other schools (NWP & Nagin, 2003). "Administrators can also encourage teachers in diverse subject areas to discuss how to use writing as a tool for inquiry, critical thinking, and active learning" (NWP & Nagin, 2003, p. 97).
8. Make time for teaching and assessing writing. As the NCW (2003) asserts, "writing will not be improved on the cheap or by hectoring teachers. At all levels, writers face problems, and teachers are needed to support their growth" (p. 35). Although using writing to learn and writing in the disciplines need not displace content, it may mean doing less in more depth, or substituting portfolio assessment for other performance measures.
9. Evaluate program outcomes. Develop a system for assessing how well the program is meeting its goals. Although the majority of current publications on WAC program assessment are based on college programs, much useful information can be gleaned from them. Duke and Sanchez's (2001) Assessing Writing Across the Curriculum is one good resource focused on secondary programs.

For additional information on planning, sustaining, and assessing writing across the curriculum programs, see the school profiles in the Northwest Sampler as well as the Resources section at the end of this booklet.