Welcome to the Kaplan University Writing Center Faculty blog.  The main purpose of this blog is to offer resources and support for faculty across Kaplan University in the areas of writing across the curriculum and writing in the disciplines.  Some peripheral goals of this blog are to offer commentary on writing technologies and professional development, such as book reviews and conference highlights relevant to writing across the curriculum and writing in the disciplines. 

While teaching writing fundamentals lies with composition instructors who are trained to teach writing, faculty in other disciplines must also be able to teach their students about writing within certain professions.  This blog is a place where we can all come together for discussion and support.

So what is the difference between writing across the curriculum, also called WAC (which I will use minimally on this site, only because the acronym is well…you know), and writing in the disciplines, also called WID (which, again, will be used minimally)?

Writing across the curriculum is the idea that writing should be practiced in more than just composition classes; it should be practiced in every class for the sake of helping students improve their overall writing skills.  As with any learned skill, the more you practice and receive constructive feedback, the better you will become at that particular skill. 

Writing in the disciplines is the idea that while every profession uses writing, each one has certain genres, forms, formats, language, approaches, audiences, etc. that are unique to that profession.  Students not only have to become good writers, they have to learn to write well within their particular career fields.  For instance, there is a big difference between the report writing for a psychologist and a police officer and an accountant.  Writing is not generic.  It is highly rhetorical and not just in language.  

This blog is maintained by Kaplan University Writing Center staff, but we also will solicit formal essays or articles from faculty across the university for the purpose of sharing experiences, resources, and ideas related to writing across the curriculum and writing in the disciplines.

We hope you will subscribe to this blog or bookmark this site and visit and comment often.

Sincerely,

Diane Martinez