How can a student connect current classroom learning to skills applicable to their future discourse communities? The best answer I can come up with is to take seriously reading and writing during the undergraduate years. I did not come up with this idea, though I wholeheartedly believe it – in the book “What Is College-Level Writing?,” professor of English John Pekins writes a brief section discussing the necessity of reading in college education. He recognizes some of the educational problems faced by community college English professors and outlines possible solutions to make the system better. Primarily, he discusses the fundamental lack of reading in the classroom and how this has caused students to not be challenged in the ways of literacy skills. How can students be expected to write well if they have not been exposed to quality writing themselves through literature? Premed students need to ask themselves this question! It is immensely important to begin building writing skills from the beginning in college. In order to do well – not only in the workplace, but in the larger academic field of research – one must be able to communicate ideas effectively through writing.
Many students feel that they can coast through basic classes like English, especially if it does not appear to pertain directly to their field of study. What they fail to realize, however, is that writing is, indeed, a foundational skill necessary for success in all academic fields, including professional discourse communities. Employers, whether or not they realize it, search for workers who show competence through written language, because it is needed to meet the demands of many jobs. It also communicates professionalism and intelligence. Members obtain high status in their fields through maintaining credibility in their writing. For the medical field, especially, writing is essential to active participation. Proper integration and status-gaining in professional discourse communities involves a thorough competence in writing.
Take Pekins’ ideas to heart. If you apply these skills to your academic career now, you will succeed in the future. Discourse communities require full preparation, but never fear – reading is here!
Pre-Health Student Blog 