User:MarmeeB/sandbox

Article Evaluation:

I have chosen the article Basic writing for my article evaluation.

From my personal experience, I know that Basic Writing (in addition to remedial reading and math) is a highly discussed topic among educators. Nevertheless, the article on Basic Writing was rather short for such a highly debated issue in higher education.

There are gaps in the coverage of the topic. For one thing, the article states, "Early versions of basic writing instruction in the United States started at Harvard between 1890 and 1910, when college enrollments nearly doubled.[6] Modern basic writing originated in the 1970s when the City University of New York (CUNY) instituted an open admission policy for all New York City residents." However, it does not explain the difference in the two. As a reader, I question what distinguishes the remedial education that was offered in the 19th century from that offered today.

Additionally, the article mentions, "The term "basic writing" was coined by Mina Shaughnessy, a pioneer in the field of basic writing, to distinguish it from previous terms like "bonehead" or "remedial." I was curious to know more about why, when, and where the term "bonehead" was used in reference to writing courses designed to help under-prepared college students. However, there is no citation for that reference. I was also confused the above quote states mentions "remedial" writing as a "previous term," yet the same term appears as a currently used term in the first sentence of the paragraph.

While the article supports the inclusion of information on Mina Shaughnessy, it does not do the same for the information on David Bartholomae and Mike Rose. What warrants the inclusion of their bios and opinions on Basic Writing? I'm not sure these are neutral inclusions.

The article mentions that "Similar efforts to reduce or eliminate BW courses were revived in the 1990s and have continued to the present day.[12]" However, that source was published in 2010. It would be beneficial to include information on where those efforts are now.

Additionally, the article mentions that "institutions typically enroll students in BW courses based on standardized or placement test scores, with standards varying by institution." It might benefit the reader to be given information on what standardized and placement tests are used and examples of some of the variations.

It might also be beneficial to have some idea how many students are placed into Basic Writing courses. The article doesn't indicated if this is a small or large number.

When examining the citations, there were links that did not work. One appeared to be a Wikipedia hyperlink, yet it lead to a page that stated, "The article you are looking for doesn't exist." I was also able to find a couple of the articles that could be linked to online, but the writer has not done so. Additionally, four of the articles are not available online.

Both the article page and the talk page indicated recognized problems with the article. One Wikipedia user noted that the article appeared to be copied and pasted from another source. This might explain the number of citations that are not available online.

A cursory query into a library database revealed several articles that could possibly be beneficial for expansion of this page:

Boatman, Angela, and Bridget Terry Long. “Does Remediation Work for All Students? How the Effects of Postsecondary Remedial and Developmental Courses Vary by Level of Academic Preparation.” Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, vol. 40, no. 1, Mar. 2018, pp. 29–58, doi:10.3102/0162373717715708.

The article offers information on some of the standardized placement tests and scores that determine which students are placed into Basic Writing courses.

Boylan, H.R., (1988) "The Historical Roots of Developmental Education," Center for Developmental Education, Appalachian State University, Boone, N.C.

This publication offers an expanded look at the implementation of remedial level writing courses in higher education.

Jimenez, L., Sargrad, S., Morales, J., & Thompson, M. (2016). Remedial Education: The Cost of Catching Up. Washington, D.C: Center for American Progress.

This publication also looks at placement methods for students identified as needing Basic Writing. In addition, it addresses reforms to developmental education, an area that the current article needs to expand.

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2011). The Condition of Education 2011 (NCES 2011-033). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

This article looks at the number of students who were testing into developmental writing courses at the time the report was issued.