planning the semester

Design specific assignments. Writing Fellows should read drafts of two formal, graded papers. Please do not ask Fellows to comment on ungraded or informal papers, which usually are not revised and thus are ill-suited for the drafting process that constitutes the core of the Writing Fellows Program. Try to craft writing assignments with clear goals and well-defined parameters; Fellows (as well as students!) often find it difficult to interpret open-ended expectations. Make clear on your syllabus that you expect these assignments to be revised after consultation with the Fellows. (Sample assignments can be found here.)

Allow two weeks between drafts and final versions. Drafts must be submitted to Fellows at least two weeks before the final due date to allow Fellows a week to comment and students a week to meet with Fellows and revise the drafts; please adjust your syllabus accordingly. Try to space papers involving Fellows as evenly as possible throughout the semester. If at all possible, have a draft due by the sixth week of the semester, so that students will understand Fellows as an integral part of the course and Fellows can begin to learn about your students' individual needs as writers.

Mention the Fellows on your syllabus. Explain briefly who the Fellows are and the role they will play in the class; this explanation encourages students to value Fellows and take them seriously. It also offers you an early opportunity to explain the importance of revision to academic writing. On your list of paper deadlines, include the dates that full drafts are due to the Fellows as well as the dates that final versions are due to you. (For examples of how faculty have explained Fellows, go here.)