Examining Differences in Student Writing Proficiency as a Function of Student Race and Gender

Jeff Roberts, Carroll F. Nardone, and Bill Bridges   |    Volume Twelve  |   

Written communication remains an important learning objective for colleges and universities as more and more students enter the workforce without necessary writing skills and experiences. This importance is increased for public colleges and universities within the state of Texas, as that state has adopted written communication as a core learning objective for its students. The efforts to assess student written communication at one four-year, public university in Texas are
highlighted within this study. In particular, differences were examined in student writing performance based upon student race and gender. Using a one-way MANOVA it was determined that no statistically significant relationship existed between student writing performance and either gender or race. It is hoped that the assessment and analysis methodologies presented within this study may serve as models for other researchers seeking to evaluate written communication.

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