Abstract:

Written language competence in higher-level students is vital for their professional training as it allows them to participate efficiently in the discursive culture of the disciplines. Although it is valued, it has not yet reached a relevant place within the subjects or the educational system, despite being the "Achilles heel" of the student body and teachers, due to the deficiencies observed in school tasks, a challenge for which many are not ready. In this sense, the literature on academic writing offers a wide panorama, from the linguistic to the pedagogical and social, on rethinking and implementing practices that promote writing skills at a higher level. Therefore, educational institutions are redirecting efforts in search of programs, resources, and strategies that strengthen the development of said skills but also make it easier for the academic community to meet the specific communication needs of each discipline under innovative, flexible, and comprehensive schemes. This paper presents part of the results of a study that aimed to explore the experiences and learning of the actors involved in the development of written language competence through the accompaniment of the Writing Center of the Tecnológico de Monterrey. An exploratory study was carried out with a mixed approach, which does not try to measure the quality of this space but rather to know the perception of the development of the competition from the point of view of the actors involved. The sample collected was 200 students, 43 teachers, ten tutors, and five coordinators. The results and preliminary findings show that the best practices are those that meet the specific needs of the students, such as classroom experiences (in situ), since they facilitate the monitoring of the competence, the triangulation center-academies-students, and enrich the knowledge construction. However, there are aspects that hinder the monitoring of skill development, which is why a joint and systematic effort is required inside and outside these spaces to generate a significant change towards a quality written culture.

Keywords:

Written language competence, Writing Center, academic writing.