Department of English
First-Year Writing Program
The Department of English at California State University, Fresno welcomes you to campus. We look forward to working with you in our First-Year Writing Program, which meets the General Education Area A-2 requirement.
About the Program
You have an important decision to make about the writing class you will take to meet the university's General Education first-year writing requirement. Unlike many universities that place students into a course without their input, in the Fresno State writing program we use a Directed Self-Placement approach, or DSP.
We want you to choose the first-year writing class that best meets your needs. Below are your options, most of which also come with supplemental support.
Exempt
No first-year writing class needed.
This is for students who scored 3 or higher on the AP exam or have the equivalent course at another institution of higher education.
Accelerated
Semester | Choice 1 | Choice 2 |
---|---|---|
First OR Second semester
|
English 10 |
English 10 WITH English 1L |
English 10: Accelerated Academic Literacy
(1 semester, 1 course, 3 units)
OR
English 10: Accelerated Academic Literacy
WITH
English 1L: Writing Center Tutorial
(1 semester, 2 courses, 4 units)
Stretch
Semester | Choice 1 | Choice 2 | Choice 3 |
---|---|---|---|
First semester |
English 5A |
English 5A WITH English 1L |
English 5A WITH English 1L |
Second semester |
English 5B |
English 5B WITH English 1L |
English 5B WITH English 1L |
English 5A and 5B: Academic Literacy I and II
(2 semesters, 2 courses, 6 units)
OR
English 5A and 5B: Academic Literacy I and II
WITH
English 1L: Writing Center Tutorial (during one semester)
(2 semesters, 3 courses, 7 units)
OR
English 5A and 5B: Academic Literacy I and II
WITH
English 1L: Writing Center Tutorial (during both semesters)
(2 semesters, 4 courses, 8 units)
Multilingual
Semester | Choice 1 | Choice 2 | Choice 3 |
---|---|---|---|
First semester |
English 5A |
English 5A (in Linguistics) WITH English 1L |
English 5A (in Linguistics) WITH English 1L |
Second semester |
English 5B |
English 5B (in Linguistics) WITH English 1L |
English 5B (in Linguistics) WITH English 1L |
English 5A and 5B: Academic Literacy I and II (Linguistics)
Note: This option is taught in the Department of Linguistics. It provides additional language support and learning for students who need it.
(2 semesters, 2 courses, 6 units)
OR
English 5A and 5B: Academic Literacy I and II (Linguistics)
WITH
English 1L: Writing Center Tutorial (during one semester)
(2 semesters, 3 courses, 7 units)
OR
English 5A and 5B: Academic Literacy I and II (Linguistics)
WITH
English 1L: Writing Center Tutorial (during both semesters)
(2 semesters, 4 courses, 8 units)
*Please note: English 1L is a semester-long, small-group tutorial that directly supports the work students do in the first-year writing class they choose. Students must sign up for this optional Writing Center tutorial during the first-week visit to the center as part of your first-year writing class, by going to the center (Education Building, room 184), or by calling 559.278.0334 within the first two weeks of instruction.
How to Choose Your Option
To determine which option best matches your current level of reading and writing proficiency, we ask that you first take the Directed Self-Placement Self-Inventory survey. You have already received the survey to your Fresno State email, but if you haven't yet taken the survey, please do so now.
If the survey alone does not help you determine which class best meets your individual reading and writing needs, we suggest you consult some of our additional web pages to find out more about the different options, including our Frequently Asked Questions page, which addresses multiple measures, AP exams, and other relevant information for choosing a first-year writing course.
Remember that English 10 and English 5A/B are required classes that meet the General Education (A-2) lower-division writing requirement. If you have not met that requirement, you need a first-year writing class.
Additional Resources
Fresno State's Learning Center provides tutoring in a number of disciplines, including ESL tutoring for students. You can access a tutor through scheduled appointments or through drop-in.
The Learning Center is located in the Collection Level of the Library and can be contacted at learningcenter@csufresno.edu or 559.278.3052.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions about Directed Self-Placement for your first-year writing class.
Getting Started
The Department of English at California State University, Fresno uses a method for placing students in writing classes called Directed Self-Placement, or DSP. With guidance and direction from counselors, faculty, the Directed Self-Placement Self-Inventory survey, and the English Department Directed Self-Placement web page, we want you to choose the first-year writing class that best meets your needs.
You have the opportunity to make an important decision about which writing classes are best for you as you prepare to read and write successfully at the university.
International students should also take the Directed Self Placement Self-Inventory survey to determine the best first-year writing course for you.
International students, though, work with the International Student Services and Programs office as well, to be placed in the class that best meets their needs.
Multiple Measures is the system that the CSU uses to place students into first-year writing and math. It is based on several factors, such as test scores, high school grade point average, and high school coursework. You can find out more specifically about multiple measures on the CSU website.
Fresno State uses a more targeted and effective placement approach for students. You can decide to allow the university to place you according to your multiple measure OR you can use the Directed Self-Placement process to give you more specific recommendations based on your personal experiences and abilities.
Early Start English is a course that transitions students from high school English to college English. It is designed for students who are in multiple measures category IV and it is recommended for students who are in multiple measures category III.
Visit the Division of Continuing and Global Education's website for information on viewing your Early Start status and categories.
With that said, students in any category can take the Early Start English course. Also, students who are required to take the course only have to choose one Early Start course, either in Math or English.
Early Start English is a 2-week course that is either face to face or online. Students receive college credit for the course, and this course can transfer to other campuses to meet their Early Start requirements.
Since the classes are held in summer, the Division of Continuing and Global Education organizes all Early Start classes.
Visit the CGE Early Start Program page for information and deadlines, or call 559.278.0333.
Directed Self-Placement and the English 10 choice
At the beginning of English 10, your instructor will outline the kinds of work you will be doing. She or he will also ask you to do some writing and look at your writing to see if there is any indication that you are better suited to another course. If, within the first week, you believe you have not made the best decision, you may be able to switch to another course.
Such changes present challenges for the student and the University, and there is no guarantee that you will be able to make the change that semester. For these reasons, it is best to weigh your options carefully and, when in doubt, you may want to choose the English 5A/5B sequence — particularly because first-year writing is a prerequisite to many General Education courses and failing a course because it is not the right fit would put you behind.
Depending on course availability, some students may be able to make this switch — only within the first two weeks of the semester. However, do not anticipate that this will be the case very often.
In most cases, we will encourage students who feel that English 5A is too easy to view it as additional experience. Rather than anticipating a change, we encourage you to weigh the different options as carefully as possible, based on the questions identified in the Directed Self-Placement Self-Inventory survey.
Yes.
Directed Self-Placement and the English 5A/5B choice
You should consider your experiences and challenges with language as one of many factors in your decision-making process. Your ability with the English language and the conventions of grammar are one of the many characteristics of experienced college writers that both English 5A/5B and English 10 will address.
In all of the first-year writing courses, the focus on language development will focus on how to craft and revise language to address an audience and purpose. We think it is important to remember that language is simply one aspect of successful writing. Many people are very good sentence writers, but still need more practice and instruction regarding planning, organization, developing ideas, reading critically, research methods, and revision strategies.
Instead of focusing on one issue like language, we encourage you to consult the Directed Self-Placement Self-Inventory survey.
Successful completion of English 5A is a prerequisite to taking English 5B. This means that you must receive a CR in English 5A in order to enroll in English 5B.
The credits you receive for English 5A can be applied to graduation as elective credits, and English 5B meets General Education requirements, Foundations Area A-2. Taking the English 5A/5B sequence will not delay your graduation — unless you are in a major that has no room for electives (which there are a few).
With that said, reading and writing are at the core of any kind of education and NOT having the appropriate preparation might also delay graduate. Thus, in the long-term, taking the course that is most appropriate to your experiences and preparedness will increase the chances of a timely graduation.
In most cases you will have the same instructor for English 5B who you had for 5A. Indeed, one of the benefits of the English 5A/5B sequence is that it enables you to make important connections and form "learning communities" with instructors and students who you will see in the same class for an entire year.
The demands of reading and writing are more difficult in college than in High School. There is more specialized language used, the writing is generally longer, and the reading load and complexity increases. Additionally, reading and writing are at the core of most of the work done in the university.
English 5A/5B is designed to give students strategies for being able to manage this new level of workload as well as strategies for reading and writing in new and different contexts. It might seem like a waste of time to take an extra class, but often that extra class is vital to students’ success in the university.
Program Assessment
First Year Writing Program Assessment Report 2015-16 (pdf)
This report, written in response to an on campus proposal for developmental education and supplemental services, provides a history of our writing program, incorporates scholarship on Directed Self-Placement, Stretch Composition, placement into writing courses; summarizes previous and includes current program assessment; and makes a case for smaller class sizes to support students and teachers of writing. This report continues to show the benefit of Directed Self-Placement as a mechanism for student placement and Stretch Model of Writing Courses as the best opportunity for students to be prepared for academic writing.
DSP Retention and Passing Report-2009 (pdf)
The DSP Retention and Passing Report from IRAP uses statistical analyses to compare the English 5A/5B program to its predecessor, English 1. The new stretch program has a positive effect on student retention rates, especially for those who are designated as needing remediation by the university, regardless of whether students pass or fail English 5B. Additionally, remedial students in English 5A/5B perform better than the same students did in the old English 1LA course, passing at higher rates.
FYW Program Assessment-Academic Year 2007-08 (pdf)
The First Year Writing Program Assessment report, prepared by Asao B. Inoue, shows the effectiveness of the DSP program and the student learning occurring in the writing program from a variety of direct and indirect evidence: portfolio ratings, portfolio competency measures, teacher commenting data, entry and exit surveys, passing rates, and grade distributions. From these data, the DSP placements appear to be appropriate and effective for students learning. Additionally, the writing program demonstrates learning growth along all outcomes and high levels of satisfaction.
First-Year Writing Program Two-Year Pilot Report-AY 2007-08 (doc)
The First-Year Writing Program Two-Year Pilot Report, prepared by Ginny Crisco, Magda Gilewicz, Rick Hansen, Asao Inoue, and Bo Wang, includes almost two years of formal research and informal observations about what the new first-year writing program has done for student learning, placement, and support. The successes of the new program include: 1) enhanced teaching effectiveness, 2) improved student attitudes and motivation, 3) creating learning communities, 4) generating community assessment through portfolios, and 4) eliminating stigma of support services. The challenges of the new program include: 1) student advising, and 2) assessment research.
First-Year Writing Portfolio Assessment Project Report-AY 2006/07 (doc)
The First-Year Writing Portfolio Assessment Project Report, prepared by Ginny Crisco and Jennifer Mayer, uses qualitative research to compare the final portfolios of students in the English 5A/5B track with the students in English 10 (spring 2007). Sponsored by the office of Institutional Research, Assessment, and Planning, we collected 120 portfolios from 10 teachers’ classes, 5 from English 10 and 5 from English 5B, to code for particular portfolio outcome categories: 1) Joining Academic Conversations, 2) Language Use, 3) Reading Engagement, 4) Reflection, 5) Research, 6) Writing Process, and 7) Writing Rhetorically. This research found that while all students made progress in each of these categories, students who took the two semester stretch course created more sophisticated, complex, and interesting writing.
DSP Program Preliminary Research Findings-AY 2006-07 (doc)
The Directed Self Placement Program Preliminary Research Findings, prepared by Ginny Crisco, reports research from the first year of the new writing program. This research includes survey data acquired from students, teacher focus groups about how the new first-year writing program was working, and thesis research from Elizabeth Sansone. In particular, it reports survey data taken from beginning and end of the semester / option surveys to track both why and how students made their decisions as well as their satisfaction with these decisions. Additionally, the teacher focus groups asked teachers to gauge how students placed themselves and how the curriculum was working for them and for students. These preliminary findings show that 1) students, for the most part, did place themselves appropriately; 2) students mostly had enough information to make their decision, relied on four primary venues for decision-making, and were glad, for the most part, that they could make a choice; and 3) students’ morale and confidence have improved with the new program. Finally, the report points to the benefits of the new program in reducing the broad levels of student experience and pointing to the benefit of English 5A/B as a learning community.