ABSTRACT
Introduction As geography has become increasingly de-emphasized in the US K-12 curriculum, more students have limited geographic literacy and consequently lack the ability to think and communicate in the geographic lexicon. By the time students enroll in geography classes in post-secondaryUS institutions,many have the belief that geography is just memorizingmaps and place names (Fournier, 2002; Mansfield, 2005). This misperception often affects their level of interest and even their comprehension of geography as a broader and more complex discipline. Another consequence is that students often fail to recognize the importance of writing as a tool to communicate with a broader audience about geographic ideas. Students often perceive writing as an onerous task rather than as an opportunity for
learning and communication. For example, teaching assistant John Isom once lamented, “They like maps . . . They liked Geography. But they shied away from the writing assignments I was trying to add to the course” (Smith, 2010). However, getting students more comfortable with writing regularly within the geography discipline can increase the overall quality of their learning and help develop better communication skills (Winchell & Elder, 1992; Gedye & Chalkley, 2006). Similarly, many institutions also compartmentalize writing as a communication tool rather than a learning tool. This constraint overlooks the opportunity to recognize writing as a part of the learning process. Combined, these challenges have prompted some geography instructors to seek innovative pedagogies to
stimulate interest and assist learning in geography by introducing writing as a tool for learning and communication. Writing across the curriculum (WAC) is a process in which writing is integrated into
courses within all disciplines and at all levels of the curriculum as a tool for learning and thinking (McLeod, 1987). This paper reports on two separate studies (conducted in Spring 2009 and Spring 2010) in which writing activities were used in geography classes at a large American University as part of a College of Humanities and Social Sciences WAC initiative. The objective of this paper was to identify impacts of writing-to-learn activities on student learning. Specifically, we were interested in the following questions: . Did students perceive that writing could help them better understand geographical
concepts and applications? . Did writing help students to better understand geographical concepts and
applications as manifested through improved student grades?
