Does Student Writing Improve?

Here are the quantitative results from the latest analysis of post-intervention student writing (i.e. after the use of some of the new materials). Every category had statistically significant improvement.

SOME EXAMPLES OF WRITING IMPROVEMENT IN FIRST-YEAR COURSES

Genre Improvement: Field Observation Memo Opening Sentences

Pre-intervention - no context, no background, no purpose

A)  Our hosts at the site were Lisa Wang, Doug Jones, Luis Fernandez, Sally Johnson, Tracy Carroll, Jeff MacIntyre, and Samuel. Lisa is a Civil Engineer for the Bureau of Environmental Services (B.E.S.) with a Professional Engineer (P.E.) license. Doug is also a P.E. and works for the Portland Water Bureau. ...

B)  Within the field of civil engineering, there are many different types that go into the field, each different and unique in its own way. Some of these include structural, transportation, environmental and water resources. This Wednesday, October 23rd, I visited Anderson Engineering...

Post-intervention - a clear statement of the context and purpose

C)  Team Delta from the CEE101 Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engineering class visited Mercy Hospital at 4298 NW Franklin Park Rd on Thursday November 10th, 2014. The purpose of the visit was for students to learn about what Mercy Hospital has done to create and save their own energy and get an inside look on what makes a building sustainable. Tran Nguyen , the Chief Engineer for Mercy Hospital, gave our group a tour of the facility from roof to basement. Observations and discussion of the visit are presented below.

Word Choice Improvement: Field Observation Memo Conclusion

Pre-intervention (vague words on bold)

The field trip was an overall success I think because it had amazing weather, great tour guides, and a lot of knowledge about engineering. This field trips [sic] are a lot better than sitting in the classroom and you learn a lot more actually going out and seeing how things are done.

Post-intervention (more specific words in bold) 

This trip to the Tilikum Crossing was informative about the construction and planning portion of civil engineering. Also, it offered me a look at the engineering work being done in the city.