Why is the writing section required and not optional?
The College Board believes that the addition of writing encourages and supports the teaching of writing at every grade level. Colleges and universities have for some time expressed concern about the writing skills of high school graduates. Similar concerns have been voiced in the secondary education community and among business leaders. A 2003 report from the National Commission on Writing for America’s Families, Schools, and Colleges—a blue-ribbon group made up of university leaders, public school superintendents, and teachers, assisted by an advisory panel of writing experts—revealed that the amount of time and money devoted to student writing must be drastically increased in every curriculum and at all grade levels. (For information on the Commission, visit www.writingcommission.org.) The College Board, and its many member advisers, strongly believe that making the writing section required and not optional sends a strong message about the importance of writing for success in college
