This Was an Easy Assignment: Examining How Students Interpret Academic Writing Tasks

This study explored academic writing from the students' side of the desk, examining how different tasks and writing situations in- fluence students' approaches. The study used interviews and process logs and examined how 13 college freshmen interpreted writing as- signments in a variety of courses and how these interpretations dif- fered from their instructors' intentions. These case studies revealed that students draw from a range of individual and situational re- sources in their efforts to define and complete assignments and that these factors can interact in complex ways to shape students' ap- proaches. Students' responses to assignments depended upon what they were actually rewarded for producing. In some situations, stu- dents relied on shortcuts to produce papers and failed to engage in the kinds of learning activities that assignments were designed to promote.