2010 - Public Relations Society of America

school assessment, and that the program leaves students on their own to find the right highschool
writing instruction to prepare them for college. The authors suggest shifting the focus
from generic assessments to writing courses before, during, and after 12 th grade to enable
students to bring their writing skills up to university level.
Implications for the Workplace
The assessment and improvement of student writing in mass communication programs
gains urgency when viewed in light of the skills employers expect of graduates. A substantial
body of literature has underscored the importance of solid writing skills as a prerequisite for
career employment in the communications field. “Writing as an advanced skill becomes both the
means and the expression of critical thinking and problem solving,” wrote White in 1993. “When
critical thinking and problem solving have been taught, they have been taught through writing.”
In its 2006 report, the Commission on Public Relations Education wrote that the top-rated
competencies sought in hiring entry-level practitioners included writing skills, critical thinking
and problem-solving skills, a good attitude, the ability to communicate publicly, and initiative.
A substantial body of literature has also established that communication graduates as the
whole are not prepared to write at a professional level, and that this skills deficit is costly to
employers in a variety of ways. The Commission on Public Relations Education (2006)
identified writing skills, and critical thinking and problem-solving skills as major deficiencies in
entry-level practitioners. In 1993, Hansen noted that managers and executives spend nearly 25 %
of their day writing business letters, memos, and reports, and that unclear writing at that time
was costing U.S. businesses more than $1 billion annually. By 2004, the National Commission
on Writing estimated this figure to be more than $3 billion. In a 2008 survey of 120 diverse
American corporations, Cole et al. found significant dissatisfaction with the writing performance
of entry-level public relations practitioners. On the whole, respondents in this study rated the
skills of their entry-level colleagues as “bad” and “getting worse.” While the quality of entrylevel
public relations writing appears to be declining, new graduates are facing a constantly
growing set of writing challenges, particularly in the area of new media.
In a 1999 study, Treadwell et al. found that 25% of respondents said they regretted
hiring a new communication graduate. Respondents cited reasons including basic writing skills
(spelling and grammar), intellectual skills (research, reasoning, problem solving, synthesizing
information, writing for multiple audiences), and lack of attention to detail among others.
Writing Assessment Measures in Mass Communication Programs
A well-documented body of literature has established that from the mid-20 th century
onward, mass communication programs have utilized a range of measures to assess the writing
of entering students. These have included minimum GPAs, language skills exams, Grammar,
Spelling, and Punctuation (GSP) tests, and written essays. GSP testing grew rapidly in the 1970s
as scores on national standardized testing indicated declining writing abilities. Many programs
have required all incoming students to complete a basic writing skills class. However, despite
longstanding interest in formally assessing writing skills of entering students, nothing
approaching uniform standards has ever been applied across institutions.
An early study by Fedler and Taylor in 1982 found that scores on a writing skills entrance
exam were a strong predictor of later student success in journalism courses. The same study also
established a strong correlation between scores on the writing skills exam and grades in English
composition courses.
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