Writing Across the Curriculum

Writing well is a powerful life skill, and Carthage is committed to teaching its students to write well in all disciplines. Writing Across the Curriculum, or WAC, distributes the teaching of writing throughout the curriculum. Under WAC, writing is taught at all levels and by all departments. WAC affirms that writing well is an essential skill, one that needs to be cultivated continually.

What is required?
All Carthage students must successfully complete four Writing Intensive courses:

CORE 110 Western Heritage I (4 credits)
CORE 111 Western Heritage II (4 credits)
A Writing Intensive course in the student's academic major (4 credits)
Any other WI course in the curriculum (4 credits)

Writing Intensive courses are designated "WI" in the course catalog.

What makes a course Writing Intensive?
Writing Intensive courses vary according to the discipline in which they are taught, but they all share the following criteria:

Content
In a WI course, formal and informal writing are used to help students learn the content of the course.

Improvement
In a WI course, students and professors work together to improve student writing. Professors may review and provide advice on theses, writing plans and drafts as students write them. Professors may assign several short papers and suggest methods for revision in between. Professors may confer with students between papers. Professors may model writing and monitor students' subsequent experiments with similar writing.

Significance
In a WI course, a student's writing contributes significantly to his or her course grade.

Amount
In a WI course, students are required to do a substantial amount of writing. This may include formal or informal writing. Depending on the course content, students may write analytic essays, critical reviews, journals, literature reviews, lab reports, research reports, reaction papers, or other similar assignments.

Writing Across the Curriculum

• WAC Overview
• WAC Director
• Writing Intensive Courses
• For Faculty: Course Proposal Form

The Brainard Writing Center

The Brainard Writing Center is a free resource available to all members of the Carthage community. Students receive help choosing writing topics, formulating a thesis statement, organizing their thoughts, and polishing drafts. Tutoring is available for students of all majors, at all levels of ability, and in any stage of the writing process.

The Writing Center is located on the upper level of Hedberg Library. Appointments are strongly recommended. Call the Writing Center at (262) 552-5536, or send an e-mail to writingcenter@carthage.edu.

The Writing Center also provides an online tutoring service. Students submit drafts and questions via the Internet and receive a detailed response within three business days. Those wishing to register for the service should contact the Writing Center for details.