WAC Partnerships Between Secondary and Postsecondary Institutions
The text provides comprehensive descriptions of a variety of Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) partnerships between secondary and postsecondary schools. Readers can explore specific examples and logistics of collaborative efforts throughout the United States and abroad (Argentina, Germany) that span a range of academic disciplines, levels, and courses. Neither an index nor a glossary is provided but terms are defined within ten chapters outlined clearly in the table of contents.
The text describes in detail--and without any noticeable content errors--different models for WAC partnerships intended to address and improve gaps between high school and college writing. Chapters include conceptual or theoretical frameworks but also practical logistics, methods, and processes that secondary schools, postsecondary schools, and writing centers can use to implement similar partnerships. The advantages and disadvantages of partnerships are discussed in the first and last chapters, and specific successes and obstacles discussed in each chapter are useful and unbiased.
Chapters describe partnerships and collaborative models that are relevant to both secondary and postsecondary institutions that want to implement programs for writing across the curriculum. Methods describing ways to utilize high school and college writing centers are particularly relevant, as are the chapters that offer insights into embedding writing in the physical and life sciences to improve student learning. Implications for Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are discussed. The text was published in 2016 but the modular nature of each chapter lends itself to the addition of examples involving popular technologies--like online video conferencing and shared documents for real-time collaboration and feedback--in future updates.
The text is clear and the discipline-specific terminology used is adequately explained to promote an understanding of how theory can be applied in various educational settings. Chapters describe recommendations based on successes, lessons learned, limitations, and obstacles (i.e., pacing). Understanding how to implement effective or improved partnerships is enhanced through the inclusion of questionnaires, data that offer evidence of impact, and appendices that provide rubrics, assignments, and practical guides.
Each chapter provides examples of meaningful WAC partnerships utilizing a consistent approach that includes relevant background information, an overview of each partnership described, and details of each collaborative partnership in the context of an appropriate conceptual or theoretical framework. Subheadings help with consistency yet are aligned to each chapter's distinct examples in order to provide readers with meaningful insight for inspiration or their own partnership implementation.
Chapters provide practical and appropriate sections with logical subheadings to convey the variety of partnerships and program implementation, advantages, and disadvantages. The modular nature of each chapter can be read and analyzed in any order and independently of each other to meet the needs of a course, its instructor, or its students. A robust list of references on a wide range of relevant topics aligned to frameworks is included at the end of each chapter for further reading.
The chapters describe a range of partnerships across disciplines using a logical, clear organizational structure enhanced by clear subheadings and meaningful implementation details. The partnerships that are described offer the reader inspirational case studies to analyze or consider in the context of their own implementation plans.
The text is offered in ePub and PDF formats that are easy to read and free of interface issues.
No grammatical errors were observed.
The text is culturally sensitive: Various examples from partnerships throughout the United States plus Argentina and Germany are discussed. They offer different perspectives and make clear the impact of Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) initiatives on various populations. Readers can make comparisons and identify one or more models from comparable institutions or settings that are feasible for their needs. A deeper discussion about or integration of culturally relevant pedagogy could enhance the text.
This text offers many practical WAC models rooted in theory that I plan to share with my institution's writing center. As an instructor of pre-service STEM educators, I appreciated the high-engagement writing strategies in the sciences described and plan to share them with my undergraduate students.