WI (writing intensive) courses use writing to promote the learning of course subject material.
WI courses provide interaction between instructor and student while the student plans and completes assigned writing. This interaction can occur in a variety of ways:
- Guided and free writing;
- Directed peer-writing groups;
- Class discussions concerning the rhetorical/mechanical requirements of writing assignments before, during, and after papers are submitted;
- Written comments of instructor and/or Learning Lab staff on student outlines and drafts;
- One-on-one student/instructor conferences before, during, and after papers are submitted;
- Tutorial support for both instructor and student from Learning Lab professional staff.
Writing plays a major role in determining the grade for WI courses. Students complete the equivalent of sixteen (16) typed pages of writing - a minimum of four thousand (4,000) words, of which roughly 40% (6-7 pages, or 1600 words) should be edited and finished prose. Depending on the course, this may include informal, as well as formal writing, short essays, critical reviews, lab reports, etc.
The College offers a series of writing intensive courses in which students engage in formal and informal writing assignments. Students strengthen writing skills as well as learn course content and understand how to apply what they learn through writing.
Students also satisfy degree requirements at the College (two required for the AA degree), and at UH Mānoa (a minimum of five writing-intensive classes required).
The WI classes are designated with WI prefacing the course title (e.g., HIST 284 WI-Hawaiian History).