Writing, math centers needed for student success
Every university will be saying the same thing this week: spare us from stiff budget cuts.
It’s expected. No one wants their department to lose funds for their school. But at the end of next week, Interim University President Kathy Wilbur will begin looking over ways for each department to cut costs by as much as 9 percent (except for the medical school, but that’s another issue I won’t start on).
But there’s one area that needs to be spared, and the numbers support it: the math and writing centers. Since 2003, the average GPA of 100-level ENG and MTH courses has dropped, according to the on-campus grades summary report.
The average for 100-level ENG courses GPA in 2008-09 was 2.78, while the average in 2002-03 was 2.93. The average GPA for the 100-level MTH courses in 2008-09 was 2.41, compared to 2.60 in 2002-03. Math and writing are the two basic skills students need to have when they leave Central Michigan University. If nothing else, being able to do these basic skills can spring someone above the competition when looking for employment.
A bachelor’s degree is nice, but what good is it if you can’t write a cohesive sentence, or perform math problems according to the order of operations?
And the numbers don’t support that fact. Back in April, the Academic Senate approved the increase of writing-intensive courses to four from two for this academic year. It realized how important it is for students to be able to reason and write clearly.
Both the English Language and Literature and math departments see most students take at least one course through them, and the math and writing centers are crucial for student success in these areas. As many as 10 percent of students use the centers, said Mary Ann Crawford, director of the writing center and an English professor.
If even half those students cannot receive assistance from the help centers, think of what it could do to the average GPA in those lower-level, important areas. CMU can lose attraction if its students cannot write or do math proficiently, something the university cannot afford with high school enrollments dropping.
And it’s clear students are not getting the basic skills before coming to college. Only 18 percent of graduating high school seniors are prepared for college in Michigan, according to an article published Sunday in the Detroit Free Press.
This week is crucial for students. This is the week their education’s fate could be decided by the people who run CMU. While programs such as environmental studies, integrative public relations and psychology are still important, they require that students be able to do the basics: write and compute math.
And if students don’t receive the proper support with the basics, they cannot expect to succeed in more challenging fields.
