University of Education, Freiburg, and European University Viadrina Frankfurt/Oder (Germany)

“Literacy Development Projects Initiating Institutional Change” By Gerd Bräuer and Katrin Girgensohn

This chapter introduces two literacy development projects  as a means of initiating institutional development with regard to the role of writing in higher education and beyond. In the first portrait Katrin Girgensohn presents GerdBräuer’s model of literacy management. In the second portrait Gerd Bräuer presents Katrin Girgensohn as a pioneer of literacy management and her model of autonomous academic writing groups in Germany’s higher education.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 “Academic Literacy Development”  By Gerd Bräuer

This section essay provides an overview of the landscape of academic writing centers, writing programs, and writing initiatives in the German-speaking countries (Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland). The author sheds light onto some of the major motivations—on both individual and institutional levels—for the emergence of writing support in higher education and uncovers several tendencies in writing center work that seem to trigger institutional change with regard to writing. Peer learning, one of the major features of US-writing pedagogy, seems to have become a vital concept also in the Germanspeaking countries.

RWTH Aachen (Germany)

“Writing at RWTH AACHEN (GERMANY): Lessons from ‘TECHNIK IM KLARTEXT’ By Vera Niederau and Eva-Maria Jakobs

This article introduces the measurements and aims of the “TiK” (Technik im Klartext) project at the RWTH Aachen; the project flourished from 2001 to 2005 and has been recently restructured. Focused onpopular writing aboutscience, TiK aims to build interest in science and engineering careers among pre-university students and to teach university students important skills in reaching wider audiences. Some chosen components of the (teaching) concept will be presented.