New York, NY (PRWEB) December 01, 2014
According to a 2013 AACU survey, more than 75 percent of employers say they want to see competency in graduates in key areas including: critical thinking, complex problem solving, written and oral communication, and applied knowledge in real-world settings. Since employers often express that many new workers are lacking in these areas, adequate preparation in the development of these skills is imperative for boosting students’ career prospects. Pearson recently released its 2014 Writing Space Efficacy Implementation and Results Report, which features institutions and educators that have positively affected student performance after the implementation of Writing Space. Designed to help students master course content while developing critical thinking skills through writing, Writing Space provides a single place to create, track, and grade writing assignments, supply writing resources, and quickly and easily exchange meaningful, personalized feedback with students.
The case studies featured in this report show Writing Space’s impact on student learning, highlighting implementations of Writing Space within Pearson’s MyLab products. REVEL, which provides an immersive learning experience designed for the way today’s students read, think, and learn, will include Writing Space starting in 2015.
This report includes both quantitative and qualitative case studies, each detailing successful Writing Space implementations and positive measurable results across a range of general education courses in the Social Sciences, Humanities, and Business with both large and small enrollments from both two- and four-year institutions.
Houston Baptist University redesigned its General Psychology course by integrating MyPsychLab with Writing Space. After implementing MyPsychLab with Writing Space, average final exam scores increased eight percentage points. Frequent assessments and personalized learning helped students better prepare for exams. As a result of the implementation, students had multiple opportunities to write about course material, which helped improve their conceptual understanding while developing their critical thinking skills.
Des Moines Area Community College redesigned its Introduction to Sociology course by integrating MySocLab and Writing Space into the course. By assigning MySocLab and Writing Space activities in advance, students came to class better prepared, which led to more engaging class discussions. In addition to providing students with feedback, Writing Space’s auto-grader saved the instructors time and provided students with personalized, immediate feedback on content and mechanics, helping to improve their writing and critical thinking skills.
John Tweeddale, Pearson’s Senior Vice President of Efficacy and Quality, said, “The Writing Space Efficacy Implementation and Results Report demonstrates how educators have effectively empowered students to spend time writing -- helping to achieve a deeper understanding of course content, while developing important writing and critical thinking skills, essential for college and career success.”
About Pearson
Pearson is the world's leading learning company, with 40,000 employees in more than 80 countries working to help people of all ages to make measurable progress in their lives through learning. For more information about Pearson, visit http://www.pearson.com.
Media Contact: Brandon Pinette, brandon.pinette(at)pearson(dot)com or 800-745-8489