The Academic Senate is considering a proposed change that would eliminate the Writing Proficiency Exam and replace it with another test along with a requirement for all students to complete a writing intensive capstone.
The Cal State University Chancellor’s Office created the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement through an executive order in 1998. The order stipulates that upper division undergraduate students must achieve a baccalaureate level of writing competence in order to receive a bachelor’s degree.
The Writing Proficiency Exam (WPE), a test that prompts students to write an essay about a given topic, is the first step in completing the GWAR, according to Susan Platt, CSULB’s director of testing, evaluation and assessment.
Associate Director for GWAR Advising Linda Sarbo said that if students do not pass, they are required to take additional courses, like English 301A.
“It’s not a punishment; it’s an effective pathway to success,” Sarbo said.
In the proposed policy, the GWAR committee proposed replacing the WPE with the GWAR Placement Examination (GPE).
The GPE, which can be taken on either a computer or with a pencil and paper, would consist of a writing prompt that includes texts, tables and graphs for students to formulate a more analytical response, as opposed to the narrative form of the WPE, according to Platt.
Members of the GWAR committee also proposed requiring students to complete a writing intensive capstone course.
“In the proposed GWAR policy, students must take an upper division, writing intensive capstone course and earn a grade of C or better,” Platt said. “Students already take upper division capstones, so it isn’t adding units to their degree programs.”
The new policy also would require students to start the GPE earlier in their academic careers in order to give more time for GWAR completion, Sarbo said.
According to Platt, the second reading will amend the proposals made, and the senators will then vote on the proposal. The second reading is expected to take place during the next meeting, Aracely Montes, the assistant chair of the Academic Senate, said.
After the second reading, if senators approve it, the test will then be piloted on a small section of campus to make sure that the test system will work for students, Platt said. The pilot will start next year if the proposal passes its second reading.
If this policy passes, CSULB students will have to take the GPE test when they have 30 to 50 undergraduate units, according to committee’s policy proposal. Incoming transfer students will take the test either before they enroll in classes or during their first semester.
According to the CSULB Testing, Evaluation, and Assessment website, more than 90 percent of native English speakers fulfill the GWAR by scoring an 11 or higher on their first attempt at taking the WPE. However, more than 50 percent of students with English as a second language score below an 11 and have to do other developmental programs to fulfill the GWAR.
“The purpose [of the modified GWAR] is to not have more or less students pass,” Sarbo said. “We want a more valid writing assessment to place students accurately [if they need additional writing courses].”