This semester we are introducing IH 61 and 62, a one credit “lab” for non-native speakers. This workshop will give students the opportunity for greater attention to the writing and reading skills required for success in IH. Jessie Iwata is teaching these new courses and worked with us last summer in a similar structure. I have drawn from her advice, as well as conversations with and writing from others who have been involved in the long-term project of improving the learning experience of ESL students. Thanks to Jill Swavely, Bruce Lapenson, Ralph Young, and Wil Roget for their hard work these past semesters.
Preparing students
Identify your students’ needs. Gather information about their writing histories. Have they completed IH 51 before IH 52? Did they take composition courses in the First Year Writing Program? Are they transfer students? Have they not written a college essay in two years?
Introduce them to their potential resources: IH 61/62, IH student tutors, the Writing Center. Consider encouraging (or requiring) students to meet with you outside of class during the semester.
Establishing a dialogue
Prioritize their needs as developing writers. What is essential for them to express their ideas clearly? Diction, subject-verb agreement, syntax may be more essential to meaning than articles and prepositions. Which grammatical issues are key to understanding? Which are mastered later in a writer’s development?
Translate idiomatic phrases in your assignments. For example, constructions such as “In light of…” or “…drives the plot” may not be clear to non-native speakers. Establish time to review and explain your assignments one-on-one with students.
Encourage multiple drafts and revisions.
Try to evaluate ESL student work in more holistic ways. Identify areas of potential progress that are meaningful to a student who may be acquiring a second or third language. These students may not be improving as quickly or as noticeably, but they will be improving. This may mean keeping copies of papers or some sort of record of their work over the course of the term.
Be aware of potential cultural differences. Assignments or class discussions that invite students to challenge authority may be unfamiliar or alien to students. What are the cultural assumptions of the texts themselves?
Get assignments to students early.
Communicate with Jessie Iwata (Jessbiwa@aol.com).
Articulate to students what you value in their writing. Do you want students to work on building compound sentences and attempt more complicated structures? Do you want them to stick to simple or paratactic forms?