The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do (Crawley, 1994).  Thomas Jefferson

In February of this year, I published for your review responses to the inquiry among OFTF of what are the five skills most essential to the task of OFTF service.    To follow, I have inquired of the following:

• What are the five primary things you are looking for in student writing in the discussion forum?
• What are the five primary things you are looking for in student writing in written assignments?

The following responses appear exactly as they were shared: 

①

Connection from question to their response, quality, clarity, understanding of concept, and application of acquired knowledge. 

②

1. Logical reasoning
2. Unity of thought
3. Correct word usage
4. Correct format (Following GCU style guidelines)
5. Adequate support (mostly for the assignments) that is correctly documented

NOTE: Effective use of grammar & punctuation is assumed within the top five since all five suffer if poor grammar & punctuation exist. 

③ 

I want discussion questions responses to be free of spelling/grammar issues, be relevant to the topic and be at least 3-4 complete sentences.  Understand that I teach UNV 103 and 104, so my requirements are less than what they would be for other courses.

In writing assignments I expect students to meet the word count, use proper spelling and grammar, and cite their sources, even if it is a rudimentary manner, so I can provide feedback.  What frustrates me is when I receive essays that simply are upgradable.  Of course, this is due to having students that lack the basic fundamental abilities to write a coherent essay. 

④ 

What are the five primary things you are looking for in student writing in the discussion forum? 

• Complete sentences and that all questions are answered per the DQ.
• No spelling errors.
• An understanding of the material though examples.  
• Critical thinking skills used by asking questions for thought about the topic.
• Organized flow of thoughts. 

What are the five primary things you are looking for in student writing in written assignments? 

• Cohesive and complete thesis statement.
• Topic sentences that relate to the thesis statement.
• Correct in-text citations.
• Correct Reference page.
• Organized flow of thoughts and ideas that are related to the topic.
• Correct use of sources to support or defend the topic idea. 

⑤ 

Five Primary Writing Requirements for Discussion Forum Posts:

1. The response fully answers the initial question.
2. The response is thought provoking and creates new dialogue on the topic.
3. The response is written in a manner that is grammatically correct, so it is comprehensible.
4. The response stays focused on the question and does not wander off topic.
5. The response is not a repeat of previous' students' responses with a few different words added or rearranged, it needs to be original. 

Five Primary Writing Requirements for Writing Assignments:]

1. The writing needs to cover the requirements of the assignment completely.
2. The writing needs to follow grammatical structure that makes it legible to the reader.
3. The writing needs to include a reference page and in-text citations (graduate level and UNV 104 written assignments), even if the required research material in the assignment is a required part of the syllabus.
4. The writing needs to follow the GCU style guide or the APA guide according to the level of the class.
5. The use of personal opinions in the writing need to be voiced in an objective manner, not in the first person form. 

⑥ 

-Comprehension of the writing process (Do they build upon each step)

-Structure (Do they include an intro/thesis, supporting paragraphs, and a strong closing)

-Word choice (Are they using appropriate/ academic language)

-Grammar/Sentence Structure

⑦ 

What I look for in writing in DQ Forum?  What I look for in writing assignments?  I just stick to the rubric.

1. Correct answers for the DQs 2.  Creative thought   3. Creative questions 4. Applicable posts 5.Content

⑧ 

There is a lot of variation across the book in FTF expectations, especially in the discussion forum.  I strongly feel that the discussion forum is the place to 'practice' writing for essays and assignments. I feel that if a student can articulate in written format, a couple of explanatory paragraphs, that their chances of success at writing are increased. That being said, I do not implement a total 'cookie cutter approach' in my classes.  I set expectations in week 1---indicating what I consider a substantial post (however some of the DQs and participation questions listed for use do not really ask for or allow for expansion of thoughts). I consider a substantial post to be:                

1.  One to two paragraphs in length. (I consider a substantial paragraph to be at least 4-5 sentences long and free of significant grammar, spelling, and punctuation flaws).          

2. Individual differences are assessed each week. For example, if I have a student that is an excellent writer and he or she can pound out a 300 word answer easily, I want to challenge them to stretch themselves. I might request that each week they use reference support with in-text citations for at least 2 of their posts. If I have a student that can barely string together a sentence, I will encourage that student to strive for two sentences the next week, three sentences the week after that, etc. 

3. Model what I expect---I have some long posts (storytelling, mini lectures from the text) as my own posts. I have subbed some classes and every post from the faculty is a one sentence question back to the student. 

4. Offer students some variety (but not too much). I like to put two 'optional' participation posts per week in each discussion forum. I will specifically base their optional participation posts off the required reading for the week and/or the assignment due for the week. This helps the student get going on their work for the week early in the week and sort of 'kills two birds with one stone". I also have an optional end of week summary for the purpose of self-reflection, helping the student see what went well each week and what they need to do in the up and coming week to make improvements. They can also list significant challenges of personal, academic and professional nature in this post. This helps me to further evaluate what specific outside variables each student has in their life and helps me to work one on one to help them problem solve around those variables to help ensure their long term success as a student. 

5. I use my grading points and comments to send a message. I have had students with 20 points for the week spread over 5 days and only earn 60% in participation due to quality and quantity (word count) of posts. On the other hand, I have had a student do 12 participation posts over 3 days that are very, very high quality and I will award them 95% points for the week. In addition, if I have students with significant challenges (such as an over the road truck driver) in my class, I will work out a 'deal' with them. If they participate on 3 days out of the week with 3 substantial participation posts on each of those 3 days, I will consider this full participation and they will be awarded the full points. I do not just go down the list and if the student has the frequency of posts, award them full credit. I think we get really busy and overwhelmed trying to hit all our metrics and this can be an unintended consequence of us trying to meet our metrics. This does mean however, that I do have to do grading at home to meet the set timeframes that grading is due in. 

⑨ 

What are the five primary things you are looking for in student writing in the discussion forum? 

1. Thorough answer to each part of the question

2. Evidence of critical thinking

3. Correct writing mechanics

4. Original ideas that don't just repeat other students' thoughts 

What are the five primary things you are looking for in student writing in written assignments? 

1.  A clear, concise thesis statement

2. Topic sentences of each body paragraph match the thesis statement

3. Each detail of body paragraph supports the topic sentence of the paragraph

4. Conclusion does not contain any new information

5. Conclusion restates main points and thesis statement

As the first of first to do what we are doing as OFTF, what we are doing is important.  Microscopes are on us as individuals and a group because we model what many others will soon reproduce in their own venues.  Building on our successes is indicative of the prepared students who succeed in all our classes for which writing is a primary activity.  Our continued collaboration will make us the best of the best.  If we are to lead while we serve, nothing short of that will be acceptable in the market community we serve.  What we sow together, we grow together.  

I think you must treat other people as you want to be treated.  If you do that, you will get along better. Earn their respect, and lessen the aggravations in your relationships.  Emphasizing the positive aspects of a person and that persons work will get you better results than harping on the negative (Reece and Brandt, 1987).  Jan Hartman 

References: 

Crawley , T. (1994). Quotes about writing. Retrieved from http://koti.mbnet.fi/pasenka/quotes/q-writ.htm

Reece and Brandt. (1987). Effective human relations in organizations. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.