{"id":2140,"date":"2018-06-07T20:05:42","date_gmt":"2018-06-07T20:05:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-wm-englishcomposition1\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=2140"},"modified":"2020-11-19T16:13:32","modified_gmt":"2020-11-19T16:13:32","slug":"why-write","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/chapter\/why-write\/","title":{"raw":"Why Write?","rendered":"Why Write?"},"content":{"raw":"<img class=\"alignright wp-image-3005 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3033\/2018\/06\/13180847\/why-1780726_1280-300x169.png\" alt=\"decorative image\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" \/>\r\n\r\nConsider this: a recent survey of employers conducted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that\u00a0<strong>89 percent <\/strong>of employers say that colleges and universities should place more emphasis on \u201cthe ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing.\u201d<a href=\"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-english1\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/#footnote-24-1\">[1]<\/a>\u00a0It was the single-most favored skill in this survey. In addition, several of the other valued skills are grounded in written communication:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>\u201cCritical thinking and analytical reasoning skills\u201d (81 percent)<\/li>\r\n \t<li>\u201cThe ability to analyze and solve complex problems\u201d (75 percent)<\/li>\r\n \t<li>\u201cThe ability to locate, organize, and evaluate information from multiple sources\u201d (68 percent).<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nThis emphasis on communication probably reflects the changing reality of work in the professions. Employers also reported that employees will have to \u201ctake on more responsibilities,\u201d \u201cuse a broader set of skills,\u201d \u201cwork harder to coordinate with other departments,\u201d face \u201cmore complex\u201d challenges, and mobilize \u201chigher levels of learning and knowledge.\u201d<sup><a id=\"footnote-008-backlink\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-008\">2<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0If you want to be a professional who interacts frequently with others<sup><a id=\"footnote-007-backlink\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-007\">3<\/a><\/sup>\u2014presumably you do; you\u2019re in college\u2014you have to be someone who can\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/leap\/documents\/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">anticipate and solve complex problems and coordinate your work with others<\/a>,<sup><a id=\"footnote-006-backlink\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-006\">4<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0all of which depend on effective communication.\r\n\r\n<img class=\"alignleft wp-image-3032 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3033\/2018\/06\/18143822\/computer-3365366_1920-300x281.jpg\" alt=\"decorative image\" width=\"300\" height=\"281\" \/>\r\n\r\nSo how does learning about writing in college help foster the skills employers need? Essentially, writing is thinking and expressing your thoughts to others. Employers want employees who can think and communicate logically, clearly, and appropriately to the audience and situation. Writing helps you become more conscious of these skills which, in turn, helps you hone them. Employers also want employees who can solve problems and who are resilient in attitude and action. As you move through writing processes, you will learn to develop an assertion in answer to a question or problem, and may move through multiple writing phases and drafts in order to\u00a0finalize a piece of writing.\r\n\r\nAlthough college writing itself can take many forms, such as digital text, proposals, reviews of articles, case studies, creative writing, and more, the information in this text focuses on essay writing. Essays are traditional college writing assignments, as they ask you to offer an insight or opinion on a topic and back it up with evidence. Analytical, logical thinking, organizational, and communication skills developed through essay writing are applicable to many work and life situations.\r\n\r\n<a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-009-backlink\">1<\/a>\u00a0Hart Research Associates,\u00a0<em>Raising the Bar: Employers\u2019 Views on College Learning in the Wake of the Economic Downturn<\/em>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/leap\/documents\/2009_EmployerSurvey.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/leap\/documents\/2009_EmployerSurvey.pdf<\/a>, 9.\r\n<p class=\"Footnotes\"><sup><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-008-backlink\">2<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Ibid., 5.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"Footnotes\"><sup><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-007-backlink\">3<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0If you don\u2019t want to be as interactive, but you want to make good money, you\u2019re better off seeking training in a skilled building trade like plumbing or electrical work. Frankly, a lot of plumbers make more money than a lot of your professors!<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"footnote-006\" class=\"_idFootnote\">\r\n<p class=\"Footnotes\"><sup><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-006-backlink\">4<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Hart Research Associates,\u00a0<em>It Takes More Than a Major: Employer Priorities for College Learning and Student Success.<\/em>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/sites\/default\/files\/files\/LEAP\/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/sites\/default\/files\/files\/LEAP\/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-3005 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3033\/2018\/06\/13180847\/why-1780726_1280-300x169.png\" alt=\"decorative image\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Consider this: a recent survey of employers conducted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that\u00a0<strong>89 percent <\/strong>of employers say that colleges and universities should place more emphasis on \u201cthe ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing.\u201d<a href=\"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-english1\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/#footnote-24-1\">[1]<\/a>\u00a0It was the single-most favored skill in this survey. In addition, several of the other valued skills are grounded in written communication:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cCritical thinking and analytical reasoning skills\u201d (81 percent)<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe ability to analyze and solve complex problems\u201d (75 percent)<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe ability to locate, organize, and evaluate information from multiple sources\u201d (68 percent).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This emphasis on communication probably reflects the changing reality of work in the professions. Employers also reported that employees will have to \u201ctake on more responsibilities,\u201d \u201cuse a broader set of skills,\u201d \u201cwork harder to coordinate with other departments,\u201d face \u201cmore complex\u201d challenges, and mobilize \u201chigher levels of learning and knowledge.\u201d<sup><a id=\"footnote-008-backlink\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-008\">2<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0If you want to be a professional who interacts frequently with others<sup><a id=\"footnote-007-backlink\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-007\">3<\/a><\/sup>\u2014presumably you do; you\u2019re in college\u2014you have to be someone who can\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/leap\/documents\/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">anticipate and solve complex problems and coordinate your work with others<\/a>,<sup><a id=\"footnote-006-backlink\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-006\">4<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0all of which depend on effective communication.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-3032 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3033\/2018\/06\/18143822\/computer-3365366_1920-300x281.jpg\" alt=\"decorative image\" width=\"300\" height=\"281\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So how does learning about writing in college help foster the skills employers need? Essentially, writing is thinking and expressing your thoughts to others. Employers want employees who can think and communicate logically, clearly, and appropriately to the audience and situation. Writing helps you become more conscious of these skills which, in turn, helps you hone them. Employers also want employees who can solve problems and who are resilient in attitude and action. As you move through writing processes, you will learn to develop an assertion in answer to a question or problem, and may move through multiple writing phases and drafts in order to\u00a0finalize a piece of writing.<\/p>\n<p>Although college writing itself can take many forms, such as digital text, proposals, reviews of articles, case studies, creative writing, and more, the information in this text focuses on essay writing. Essays are traditional college writing assignments, as they ask you to offer an insight or opinion on a topic and back it up with evidence. Analytical, logical thinking, organizational, and communication skills developed through essay writing are applicable to many work and life situations.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-009-backlink\">1<\/a>\u00a0Hart Research Associates,\u00a0<em>Raising the Bar: Employers\u2019 Views on College Learning in the Wake of the Economic Downturn<\/em>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/leap\/documents\/2009_EmployerSurvey.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/leap\/documents\/2009_EmployerSurvey.pdf<\/a>, 9.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Footnotes\"><sup><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-008-backlink\">2<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Ibid., 5.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Footnotes\"><sup><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-007-backlink\">3<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0If you don\u2019t want to be as interactive, but you want to make good money, you\u2019re better off seeking training in a skilled building trade like plumbing or electrical work. Frankly, a lot of plumbers make more money than a lot of your professors!<\/p>\n<div id=\"footnote-006\" class=\"_idFootnote\">\n<p class=\"Footnotes\"><sup><a class=\"_idFootnoteAnchor _idGenColorInherit\" href=\"https:\/\/milnepublishing.geneseo.edu\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/chapter\/really-writing-again\/#footnote-006-backlink\">4<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Hart Research Associates,\u00a0<em>It Takes More Than a Major: Employer Priorities for College Learning and Student Success.<\/em>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/sites\/default\/files\/files\/LEAP\/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.aacu.org\/sites\/default\/files\/files\/LEAP\/2013_EmployerSurvey.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-2140\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Original<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Why Write? Revision and adaptation of the page Writing in College at https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/engcomp1-wmopen\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/, which is a revision and adaptation of the page Really? Writing? Again? at http:\/\/textbooks.opensuny.org\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Susan Oaks. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Empire State College, SUNY OER Services. <strong>Project<\/strong>: College Writing. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Writing in College. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Lumen Learning. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/engcomp1-wmopen\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/\">https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/engcomp1-wmopen\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/<\/a>. <strong>Project<\/strong>: English Composition I. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><li>Really? Writing? Again?. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Amy Guptill. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: The College at Brockport, SUNY Open Textbooks. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/textbooks.opensuny.org\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/\">http:\/\/textbooks.opensuny.org\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/<\/a>. <strong>Project<\/strong>: Writing in College: From Competence to Excellence. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><li>image of the word Why?. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: 3271136. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Pixabay. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/why-text-question-marketing-office-1780726\/\">https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/why-text-question-marketing-office-1780726\/<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/about\/cc0\">CC0: No Rights Reserved<\/a><\/em><\/li><li>image of people at computer. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: rawpixel. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Pixabay. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/computer-adult-laptop-office-woman-3365366\/\">https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/computer-adult-laptop-office-woman-3365366\/<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/about\/cc0\">CC0: No Rights Reserved<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section>","protected":false},"author":81366,"menu_order":2,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Writing in College\",\"author\":\"\",\"organization\":\"Lumen Learning\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/engcomp1-wmopen\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/\",\"project\":\"English Composition I\",\"license\":\"cc-by-nc-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Really? Writing? Again?\",\"author\":\"Amy Guptill\",\"organization\":\"The College at Brockport, SUNY Open Textbooks\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/textbooks.opensuny.org\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/\",\"project\":\"Writing in College: From Competence to Excellence\",\"license\":\"cc-by-nc-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"Why Write? Revision and adaptation of the page Writing in College at https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/engcomp1-wmopen\/chapter\/writing-in-college\/, which is a revision and adaptation of the page Really? Writing? Again? at http:\/\/textbooks.opensuny.org\/writing-in-college-from-competence-to-excellence\/\",\"author\":\"Susan Oaks\",\"organization\":\"Empire State College, SUNY OER Services\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"College Writing\",\"license\":\"cc-by-nc-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"image of the word Why?\",\"author\":\"3271136\",\"organization\":\"Pixabay\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/why-text-question-marketing-office-1780726\/\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc0\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"image of people at computer\",\"author\":\"rawpixel\",\"organization\":\"Pixabay\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/computer-adult-laptop-office-woman-3365366\/\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc0\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-2140","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":2172,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/2140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/81366"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/2140\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4155,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/2140\/revisions\/4155"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/2172"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/2140\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=2140"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=2140"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-esc-englishcomposition1-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=2140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}