Designing a Corequisite First Year Writing Course with Student Retention in Mind - ENG 100 and Program Context

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by kopisore

Course ENG 100 at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse is a three-credit, graded corequisite designed for students enrolled in ENG 110, the first-year writing course. It develops academic literacy through workshops, small-group work, and peer review, targeting recursive writing processes and information literacy. The design is described alongside institutional context, placement changes, and the transition from the non-credit ENG 050 remedial course to ENG 100 to support long-term student retention while addressing stigma.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

Course Description

Learning outcomes and structure

Institutional and Programmatic Context

FYWP courses and instructor framework

Creation of ENG 100

Transition from ENG 050 to corequisite support

Core Design Features

Grading, portfolio model, and embedded peer tutors

Designing a Corequisite First Year Writing Course with Student Retention in Mind Sara A. Heaser and Darci L. Thoune Course Description ENG 100, a three-credit, graded course is designed for students who are enrolled in ENG 110, our three-credit, single semester first year writing (FYW) course. Students in ENG 100 and 110 take six credits of FYW instruction during their first semester at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (UWL) . ENG 100 focuses on developing academic literacy skills such as describing, discussing, and reflecting on student reading, writing, and research habits and practices. Students participate in workshops, small group work, and peer review to practice writing as a collaborative activity and a recursive practice. The learning outcomes ofENG 100 are for students to: • Describe, discuss, and reflect on their reading, writing, and research habits and practices; • Identify specific skills and techniques for developing recursive and flexible writing processes; • Evaluate and incorporate feedback from peers and instructors; • Practice writing as a collaborative activity; • Develop strategies for the various stages of the writing process, including invention, drafting, and revision; • Develop proficiency in using information literacy resources. This course has an enrollment cap of 15 students per section and is taught by instructors with a background in basic writing. It also features embedded writing interns who help to co-facilitate the course with additional workshops, office hours, and one-on-one peer writing consultations. This is a credit bearing course (three credit hours) and contributes to the 120 credit hour minimum required for graduation. Institutional and Programmatic Context UWL is a four-year comprehensive institution that serves approximately 10,500 students (9,000+ undergrad); it is also a predominantly white institution (PWI). The average ACT score for incoming students is 24.7, and 25% of these students graduated in the top 10% of their high school class. Because of its high admission standards, UWL occupies a somewhat privileged position in the UW System. In 2018, UWL was ranked the number one comprehensive campus in the UW System and is ranked among the top four among Composition Studies 48.2 (2020): 105–115 regional universities in the Midwest. Second only to the flagship campus at Madison, UWL is consistently ranked highly by US News and World Report’s America’s Best Colleges list. The First Year Writing Program (FYWP) at UWL enrolls roughly 2,000 students per year. With few exceptions, all students at UWL must take a FYW course. FYW at UWL has student learning outcomes (SLOs) that are aligned with the most recent WPA Outcomes for First Year Composition (Council of Writing Program Administrators) . Although all FYW instructors work with these same outcomes, they have a fair amount of autonomy over course design and assignments. All instructors (tenure-track; non-tenure track with 1-2 year contracts, and non-tenure track with semester-to-semester contracts) in the English Department teach FYW, although non-tenure track (NTT) instructors teach the majority of the sections. There are currently three FYW courses at UWL: ENG 100 (3 cr.): College Writing Workshop, the corequisite course; ENG 110 (3 cr.): College Writing, the standard gateway FYW course; and ENG 112 (3 cr.): College Writing AP, a course designed for students who earned a score of 3 or 4 on their AP Literature and Composition or AP Language and Composition exams. Students who earn a 5 on either of these exams are exempt from the FYW requirement. Creation of ENG 100 The fall of 2018 was a turning point in the FYWP and marked a substantial revision to our basic writing courses. Prior to the creation of ENG 100, our program offered ENG 050, a non-credit bearing, pass/fail remedial course that students placed into based solely on their Wisconsin English Placement Test (WEPT) scores. This course was hi

FAQs

Why did the program eliminate ENG 050 and create ENG 100?

The program moved away from the non-credit, pass/fail remedial structure because it stigmatized students, while still retaining effective elements by expanding support in a credit-bearing corequisite format aimed at long-term retention.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by kopisore