This book challenges two key assumptions: that college writing ability can be effectively measured outside the rich context of classroom assessment pratices, and that writing ability alone best predicts success in the college writing classroom. The contributors to this volume describe how and why directed self-placement works--how it honors the high school experiences of entering college students, how it motivates students to do well, how it encourages faculty to maintain high expectations, how it challenges both faculty and administrators to define and articulate their curricula, and how it helps ensure that students who really want extra help get the help they needed. Representing a full range of institutions--from community colleges to research universities--these contributors explore the principles and practices of this exciting new approach to writing placement.
Contents: Foreword, Edward M. White. Introduction: FAQ, Daniel J. Royer and Roger Gilles. PRINCIPLES. Directed Self-Placement in Relation to Assessment: Shifting the Crunch from Entrace to Exit, Peter Elbow. Directed Self-Placement at the University, David Blakesley. The Pragmatist Foundations of Directed Self-Placement, Daniel J. Royer and Roger Gilles. The Role of Self-Efficacy in Writing and Directed Self-Placement, Erica J. Reynolds. PRACTICES. Directed Self-Placement at Belmont University: Sharing Power, Forming Relationships, Fostering Reflection, Robbie Pinter and Ellen Sims. Introducing Directed Self-Placement to Kutztown University, Janice Chernekoff. The Case of a Small Liberal Arts University: Directed Self-Placement at DePauw, Cythia E. Cornell and Robert D. Newton. Directed Self-Placement at a Large Research University: A Writing Center Perspective, Phyllis Frus. Directed Self-Placement in a Community College Context, Patrick Tompkins. Southern Illinois University Carbondale as an Institutional Model: The English 100/101 Stretch and Directed Self-Placement Program, David Blakesley, Erin J. Harvey and Erica J. Reynolds. Responding to Directed Self-Placement, Michael Neal and Brian Huot. Author Index. Subject Index. |
