ABSTRACT
This focuses focuses on an informal case of the development of a university second language writing program over a period of roughly 25 years. It presents an account of the context, history and status of the program, the curricular approach adopted, a description of the focal course. The Director of the ESL Writing Program has always been a member of the faculty of the Graduate Program in Second Language Studies/ESL. During their first year in the Second Language Studies program, the graduate students each teach one of mainstream First-Year Composition per semester and receive a lot of support, including a week of intensive orientation before they begin their first semester and two semesters of mentoring. The course requires the completion of five major writing projects. Students write several drafts for each assignment and receive feedback from both their instructors and their peers.
