Undergraduate students must attempt to satisfy the GWAR during the semester in which they complete 65 units. Transfer students must attempt the GWAR in their first semester in residence at CSULB. All undergraduate students must satisfy the GWAR in order to graduate.
Graduate students must attempt the GWAR during their first semester at CSULB and must satisfy the GWAR before advancement to candidacy.
Students who have satisfied the GWAR at another CSU must submit evidence of satisfying the GWAR, usually a transcript or letter.
To satisfy the GWAR, students must first attempt the WPE or the analytic writing portion of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). If unsuccessful, students may re-take any of these assessments or enroll in an approved GWAR course.
Improve Your Students' Writing
Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) is a pedagogical movement that began in the 80s as a response to a perceived deficiency in literacy among college students. WAC is premised on theories that maintain that writing is a valuable learning tool that can help students synthesize, analyze, and apply course content.
The Writing-to-Learn approach to WAC typically employs journals, logs, microthemes, and other primarily informal writing assignments. This approach is grounded in learning research that suggests that when students write reactions in their own words to information presented in class or in reading assignments, they tend to comprehend and retain information better. In addition to improving students’ engagement in the material, because students write more frequently, they either maintain or improve their writing skills.
The following resources demonstrate how you can incorporate writing-to-learn activities in your classes.
Designing Writing to Learn Activities
