As scientists we have a number of tools in our toolbox for breaking a big multifacted problem down into doable steps. Most senior astronomy majors are perfectly comfortable with immensely ambitious statements like “My research will discover the first signs of life on other planets” or “Our data will help explain the origin and evolution of the universe”, but at the same time “I will write a paper about my results” can seem like a huge and intimidating task! This project focuses on reworking the course structure of ASTR 482 ("Scientific Writing", a course for upper-level astronomy majors) to help students approach writing as a scientific process and tool, using weekly assignments and focus areas that contribute to the core class project of writing a scientific research paper. By employing techniques that are familiar to students conducting long-term research projects, we'll develop the crucial scientific skills of communication, clarity, and compelling writing.
The Writing@UW Fellowship has been an invaluable opportunity to set aside dedicated time during the busy academic quarter for reflection, critical thought, and in-depth analysis of how we teach writing, how students learn writing, and how we can expand our pedagogical approach to achieve course goals.
It's been particularly valuable to hear from other Fellows in very different subject areas who incorporate everything from physical movement to detailed lab report roadmaps in their classrooms. The shift in perspective has been fantastic and has extended to the very title of my course: "Scientific Writing" is typically read as "this will be a course about scientific writing, aka journal papers and conference abstracts and so on", but our discussions of how to teach writing have led me to think of "Scientific Writing" as "the science of writing itself"; approaching writing scientifically, and applying STEM skills when tackling communication challenges in our field.
