1 / 13

Beyond the Tutorial: Strengthening One-on-one Conferences through Communicating Expectations

Beyond the Tutorial: Strengthening One-on-one Conferences through Communicating Expectations. Leah R. Mittelmeier Soule Lisa E. Williams Tennessee State University. Where O ur Students Come From. Dominican Republic United States Ghana Peru Senegal Israel Saudi Arabia India. Yemen

eloise
Download Presentation

Beyond the Tutorial: Strengthening One-on-one Conferences through Communicating Expectations

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Beyond the Tutorial: Strengthening One-on-one Conferences through Communicating Expectations Leah R. Mittelmeier Soule Lisa E. Williams Tennessee State University

  2. Where Our Students Come From Dominican Republic United States Ghana Peru Senegal Israel Saudi Arabia India Yemen Mozambique Ethiopia Bangladesh Benin Iran Brazil Somalia Egypt Iraq Haiti Afghanistan Mexico Trinidad Kurdistan Morocco Jordan Vietnam Nigeria Sudan Uganda Panama Puerto Rico

  3. Tutor Anxiety List some of the reasons you feel anxious before or during a one-on-one tutorial session with an ELL student. I have difficulty figuring what our session should focus on. I’m not sure what the student expects from me. I don’t know much about the student’s culture. I don’t know the student. Some concepts are difficult to explain to a native speaker let alone a non-native speaker. I’m not sure how to explain the purpose of tutoring.

  4. Gaining Perspective Write a paragraph about the parliamentary structure of Britain. • Don’t include a topic sentence. • Don’t include information from outside sources. • Don’t use “a,” “an,” or “the.” • Add the letter t to the ends of all verbs except verbs with three syllables. • Start every adjective with the letter e. • Make the subject the last word of the sentence. (Wills 9) “We will increase the effectiveness of ESL conferencing only when we understand, accept, and respond to the differences between the needs of ESL and native-speaking writers” (Powers 46).

  5. Balancing an ELL Session Considerations Cultural writing differences Tutor expectations Student expectations • Tutor knowledge • Tutor accuracy • Respect for authority • Level of education • Contrastive rhetoric • Student preparedness • Session agenda • Assignment familiarity • Exchange and dialogue

  6. Roles and Perceptions Student expectations -Tutor knowledge -Tutor accuracy -Respect for authority Tutor Roles -Teacher -Expert -Cultural Authority -Confidant

  7. Roles and Perceptions Tutor expectations -Student preparedness -Session agenda -Assignment familiarity -Exchange and dialogue Student Roles -Writer -Learner -Listener -Communicator

  8. Expectations and Purpose Student Achievement and Growth -Practice -Repeat -Speak -Perform Tutor -Teacher -Expert -Cultural Authority -Confidant Student -Writer -Learner -Listener -Communicator Crowley, Catherine. “Are we on the same page? ESL Student Perceptions of the Writing Center.” The Writing Lab Newsletter 25.9 (2001): 1-5. Print

  9. Contrastive Rhetoric “Contrastive rhetoric examines differences and similarities in ESL and EFL writing across languages and cultures as well as across such different contexts as education and commerce” (Connor 493). “Writing is culturally influenced in interesting and complex ways” (Connor 495). “Traditional contrastive rhetoric has often viewed ESL students as members of separate, identifiable cultural groups” (Connor 504)

  10. Strategies • Give students time to work alone • Use the Socratic method • Discuss the student’s experiences • Allow time for interruption • Look for common experiences • List the objectives • Use appropriate body language “the tutor has to do some assessment about a variety of things including some sense of what skills the student has…--not an easy matter when it might be that the writer’s low level of language proficiency, not weak writing skills, is causing the problem” (Harris and Silva 528).

  11. Resources • Technology • Google Images • dictionary.com, thesaurus.com • Virtual Writing Center • Texts • Idiom book/handout • Handbook • Student’s textbooks • Experience • Student’s • Yours

  12. Conclusions • Anxiety in tutoring sessions with ESL students stems from a miscommunication of roles. • Reflection on roles clarifies expectations and enhances communication. • New techniques and new resources enhance sessions.

  13. Discussions • Becoming a strong ELL tutor necessitates time, patience, and vigilance. • Sometimes establishing rapport is more important than teaching. • Not every session is effective, but every session is a learning experience for you and the student. • Reflection and communication with other EL tutors strengthens tutoring practice.

More Related