About the Writing Improvement Network of South Carolina

Who We Are and What We Do:

In 1988, teachers involved with the South Carolina Writing Project, an affiliate of the National Writing Project
envisioned a professional development project to assist K-12 public school teachers with changes in instruction
necessitated by South Carolina’s new statewide assessment, the Basic Skills Assessment Program (BSAP). 
The Writing Improvement Network (WIN) is the product of that vision.

Since its inception, WIN has been funded with Education Improvement Act (EIA) monies awarded annually by the
South Carolina General Assembly.  The University of South Carolina serves as WIN’s fiscal agent.  WIN is able to
devote 100% of its state allocated funds to improving reading and writing instruction because the
Department of Instruction and Teacher Education at USC-Columbia supplies, at no charge to the project, all its
physical space and a portion of the fiscal support required to manage the project. 

During its eighteen-year existence, WIN has remained at the forefront of professional development in South Carolina
and has anticipated the changes in English language arts (ELA), mathematics, science, and social studies curricula,
instruction, and assessment now occurring as a result of high-stakes testing:  the Palmetto Achievement Challenge
Test (PACT), the End-of-Course Examination Program (EOCEP), the High School Assessment Program (HSAP),
as well as the SAT and ACT.

With an emphasis on the ELA curriculum standards, the WIN professional development model reaches beyond the
basics and strives for excellence through sustained professional development with teachers to improve reading and
writing instruction for all ages and ability levels in the four major content areas:  ELA, mathematics, science, and social studies.

As part of their direct work with teachers, WIN consultants

• inform the State's public schools and districts of WIN's purposes and activities;

• become involved with other education-related agencies and special projects that affect ELA instruction;

• study student writers within the context of an individual school's ELA instructional program to provide a realistic
  plan for teacher assistance;

• produce and identify instructional materials to enhance or improve ELA instruction for all students, with special
  emphasis on underperforming schools;

• provide professional development for teachers based on current research and theory; and

• collaborate with teachers to develop instructional strategies.

This page updated last on :  04/22/2009