Are We Facing the End of Writing Instruction? Exploring Your Goals for Teaching With Writing

About this event

with Dr. Elizabeth Wardle, Emma Boddy, and Emma Bapst

Friday November 13th 12:00-1:15 pm

King 133

Lunch Served

RSVP here

The rapid rise of GenAI has sparked a wave of headlines suggesting that the end of writing instruction is near. An Atlantic article argued that “The College Essay Is Dead” and an Inside Higher Ed columnist suggested we should “Eliminate the Required First-Year Writing Course.” Recently, Harvard dissolved its writing center, implying that human writing support is no longer a priority. Given the conversation happening in the media, we should ask: what does it mean to use writing for learning right now? Research suggests that writing matters more than ever, but we may need to rethink how we assign and frame writing in our courses.

In this workshop, you'll explore scenarios of writing challenges, learn about the different purposes writing can serve for your students, reflect on your learning goals, and brainstorm new ways writing can help students reach those goals. You'll leave with fresh ideas to bring into the end of this semester or your planning for the next.