Written Communication

The Passport Learning Outcomes, based on the LEAP Essential Learning Outcomes, describe the learning required to satisfy lower division general education requirements in written communication. Additional academic work in this or other content areas may be needed to fulfill upper division general education, academic minor and/or academic major requirements. No single student is expected to demonstrate ALL of these Proficiency Criteria nor is this intended to be a list of all possible Proficiency Criteria

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
Passport Learning Outcome Feature: Rhetorical Knowledge
Passport Learning Outcome (what the student has learned): Demonstrate rhetorical knowledge: address issues of audience, purpose, genre, syntax, structure, format and knowledge appropriate to the task.

Transfer Level Proficiency Criteria (evidence of proficiency of the learning outcome appropriate at the transfer level)
Student’s collection of writing may include one or more of the following:

• Writing in a variety of genres, including, for example, essays, reviews, lab reports, case studies, research papers.

• Reflective commentary with analysis of writer’s own levels of effectiveness in a variety of writing situations.

• Narrative of historical events and/or fictional events using chronological organization.

• Organization and presentation of factual information in the form of a report.

• Development of a unified, coherent essay focused on a thesis.

• Development of an analytical argument with attention to detailed supporting material appropriate to the context.

• Description and analysis of rhetorical features of a document, such as audience, purpose, and genre.

• Employment of a variety of types of evidence, such as definition, explanation, analogy, graphics, and/or visuals, as appropriate to the context.

• Use of a variety of tones, voices, and personae, such as writing in the first person, writing in the third person, adjusting syntax, diction, and structure according to the formality of the occasion and purpose.

• Awareness of the conventions and expectations of academic audiences.

• Use of technology appropriate to the context.

PLO Feature: Use of Sources
Passport Learning Outcome (what the student has learned): Evaluate, apply, and ethically synthesize sources in support of a claim, following an appropriate documentation system.

Transfer Level Proficiency Criteria (evidence of proficiency):

• Critical analysis of all source materials for bias, fairness, accuracy, relevance, and validity.

• Integration of source information and ideas with student’s original perspective on a topic, with evidence of clear distinctions between his/her own ideas and the ideas of others.

• Use of correct punctuation and mechanics to present quotations, citations, page numbers, footnotes, endnotes, and references (bibliography) in accordance with a recognized format and style manual.

• Demonstration of the role of full documentation as a strategy to ensure academic integrity, attributing ideas incorporated from books, articles, the Web, or any other material to the original source using in-text citations and ancillary materials (e.g., reference list).

• Presentation of ideas and words of other authors in context, used fairly without distortion.

• Papers written individually for each class and/or assignment unless explicit approval for collaboration or for rewriting a paper done for a previous assignment has been given.

• Understanding of the nature of both obvious (cutting and pasting from other sources, buying papers on the Internet) and subtle (paraphrasing and summarizing without citation) forms of plagiarism and a commitment to avoid it.

PLO Feature: Writing Process Knowledge
Passport Learning Outcome (what the student has learned): Develop flexible strategies for generating, revising, editing, and proofreading.

Transfer Level Proficiency Criteria (evidence of proficiency):

• Working documents from inception of idea to final draft (e.g., brainstorming, notes, rough drafts, instructor feedback, peer response, collaboration with a peer writing tutor, incorporation of feedback in revised text, and other relevant illustrations).

• Evidence of revision strategies that begin with global (higher order) concerns and shift to local (lower order) concerns as essays or other pieces of writing are developed over time (e.g., a shift from focusing on what to write toward how to write it, but recognizing that the writing process is recursive, not linear, and the writer may return to any stage of process at any time).

• Illustration of skillful use of strategies to create both coherence and cohesion (e.g., readers are provided signals to guide their construction of meaning from the text by means of transitional words, phrases, and sentences; looking forward or backward in the text; and other devices).

• Reflective commentary that shows metacognitive awareness of successful and unsuccessful use of processes in samples submitted.

PLO Feature: Conventions and Mechanics
Passport Learning Outcome (what the student has learned): Demonstrate proficiency with conventions, including spelling, grammar, mechanics, word choice, and format appropriate to the writing task.

Transfer Level Proficiency Criteria (evidence of proficiency):

• Demonstration of sentence variety in terms of type, length, word order, emphasis, etc.

• Evidence that proficiency with language extends to matters of format and paragraphing as well as syntax and style appropriate to the context.

• Efforts to eliminate common errors in grammar, punctuation, and mechanics; over time, student demonstrates improvement in ability to identify and correct patterns of errors.

PLO Feature: Self-Assessment and Reflection
Passport Learning Outcome (what the student has learned): Reflect on one’s inquiry and composing processes to critique and improve one’s own and other’s writing.

Transfer Level Proficiency Criteria (evidence of proficiency):

• Discussion of student’s writing process, including experiences and/or strategies with invention, drafting, peer feedback/peer review, revising, and editing.

• Description and analysis of student’s strengths and weaknesses in writing.
• Discussion of student’s writing processes and writing choices concerning particular assignments.

Written Communication Course List, Pilot States