This course is provided by Iowa State University
Course Overview
This course is for international educators of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). As a participant in this course, you will learn what academic writing is and how to develop courses that suit the writing needs of your students. During the 8 weeks of the course, you will develop an understanding of different approaches, types, and key components of academic writing courses. You will also learn important strategies for teaching academic writing skills in a student-centered classroom. Specifically, you will learn to teach students how to go through the writing process, how to search for and evaluate sources, how to develop arguments, how to follow the characteristics of different text types, how to consider the context/audience/culture, and even how to prepare an application essay for possible study abroad in the United States. You will also learn how to assess global and local aspects of writing and to give feedback. Different tools for designing course materials and tasks will be available to you as models to support your learning, and different experiential learning opportunities will allow you to apply your new knowledge and share it with other educators. Throughout the course, the topics and tasks will lead you to complete an Academic Writing Course (AWC) Development Project for your own context and students.
Learning Objectives and Learner Outcomes
By the end of this course you will be able to:
- Identify the core components of an academic writing course
- Gain an understanding of and competency with teaching process writing strategies and tools to help students become proficient academic writers
- Understand and be able to teach the components and principles of college application essay writing
- Gain an understanding of and competency with teaching reading and research strategies and tools to help students become proficient academic writers
- Understand and be able to teach the principles of academic summary writing; properly cite sources and teach students to do so
- Understand and be able to teach the principles of argumentative writing
- Show ability to provide feedback and assess student writing
- Create a syllabus for an academic writing course.