What Is College-Level Writing? Volume 2: Assignments, Readings, and Student Writing Samples

Edited by Patrick Sullivan, Howard Tinberg, and Sheridan Blau, this sequel to What Is “College-Level” Writing? highlights the practical aspects of teaching writing. By design, the essays in this collection focus on things all English and writing teachers concern themselves with on a daily basis―assignments, readings, and real student writing.

This sequel to What Is “College-Level” Writing? highlights the practical and the pragmatic aspects of teaching writing. By design, the essays in this collection focus on things all English and writing teachers concern themselves with on a daily basis―assignments, readings, and real student writing. Although the title question remains unanswered, the collection seeks to extend the conversation begun in the first volume while providing in-depth analysis and discussion of assignments and student writing. Contributors include students, high school teachers, and college instructors in conversation with one another. The conversation centers on three key concepts: 1) Teaching writing in high school, 2) Teaching writing in college, and 3) What we learn when we talk together about teaching in these two rather different spaces. Through this pragmatic lens, the volume addresses other important issues related to college-level writing, including assignment design, the use of the 5-paragraph essay, and the AP test, as well as issues related to L2/ESL and Generation 1.5 students.