Our students actually write a weekly one- or two-page posting about what they have read using Blackboard. However, we implemented a better model to improve students’ critical thinking and writing skills. What is the problem with this model? It is the same process used at many colleges and universities throughout the United States, so it must be considered a best practice. The instructors carefully read the essays and provided written feedback after classes were done at the end of the trimester. In the past, students submitted a fifteen-page essay at the end of the trimester, usually about one of the philosophers they studied. Nonetheless, it gets easier the more students actually write and receive feedback on their work. Tensions mount and apprehension sets in as written requirements are due. It is difficult and even terrifying for many to put their thoughts on paper during a graded exercise for the first time in several years. Yet, they are not writing original ideas. As staff officers, they are encouraged to cut and paste excerpts from regulations and directives into coherent policy letters. However, their writing skills are often lacking simply because they do not write on a regular basis. Most are comfortable with public speaking, and their briefing skills are adequate. We discovered that a majority of incoming students in both the joint professional military education senior- (JPME II) and intermediate-level (JPME I) courses have not written in an academic environment since their undergraduate years. The purpose of this essay is to illustrate how we use the Blackboard Learning Management System in the elective to improve student writing and critical thinking skills. It provides an opportunity for students to read, write about, and discuss several classic works of philosophy and literature including original texts by Aristotle, Plato, Kant, Mill, and other contemporary philosophers. The course is a primer for different philosophers and schools of thought. We teach an elective at the U.S. Naval War College called “Foundations of Moral Obligation” that was developed by Vice Adm. Using Blackboard Learning Management System to Improve Writing Skills Col.
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