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Helping L2 writers respond to writing assignments across the curriculum Part 2

Helping L2 writers respond to writing assignments across the curriculum Part 2. Zuzana Toma š Eastern Michigan University ztomas@emich.edu. Overview. Intensive Writing Institute (IWI) Effective response to assignments: demands on L2 writers.

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Helping L2 writers respond to writing assignments across the curriculum Part 2

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  1. Helping L2 writers respond to writing assignments across the curriculumPart 2 Zuzana Tomaš Eastern Michigan University ztomas@emich.edu

  2. Overview • Intensive Writing Institute (IWI) • Effective response to assignments: demands on L2 writers. • Popular IWI activities focused on responding to assignments

  3. Context • Intensive Writing Institute (IWI) • First year as one intensive undergraduate course and extracurricular activities • Large U.S. (Western) university • Designed in a partnership with the US-Sino Pathway (USSP) program • Targeted new conditionally admitted, Chinese undergraduate students

  4. Course design • Hybrid course (four weeks of online course work before the students arrived at the University and two intensive weekends once they were on campus.) • The first weekend session took place before school started and the second session took place the following weekend, after the semester had already begun. This design helped our students with: • Understanding syllabi • Understanding and planning (written) assignments • Contacting professors to ask clarifying questions or arrange for additional help • Navigating the expectations of their courses and professors • Panel with senior international students • Becoming familiar with resources available to help them with their writing assignments (e.g., the tour of the writing center). • Extracurricular activities

  5. Course content and objectives • In terms of content, the course had five major sections: • understanding and planning for common assignments, • implementing feedback, • overview of planning, writing strategies, and reading strategies, • revision and editing practice, and • exploration of cultural and institutional expectations relevant to academic writing.

  6. Student evaluations of the course • Of the 21 students who completed the post-online-sessions survey, 19 (91%) agreed that they had learned something about academic writing • Of the 17 who completed the post-on-campus survey, 14 (82%) agreed that they had learned something new in that portion of the course.

  7. Responding to assignments • To respond to assignments effectively, students must be able to: • Understand the assignment and the corresponding assessment or have the confidence and ability to request additional information or clarification about the assignment (from the professor) • Break down the assignment into manageable steps and draw on available resources if necessary • Understand the the guiding principles of the expected genre

  8. Popular IWI activities focused on responding to assignments • To respond to assignments effectively, students must be able to: • Understand the assignment and the corresponding assessment or have the confidence and ability to request additional information or clarification about the assignment (from the professor) • What do you want from me? • Break down the assignment into manageable steps and draw on available resources if necessary • Understand the the guiding principles of the expected genre

  9. What do you want from me? • Levels: Pre-intermediate, intermediate • Aims: To provide L2 writers with tools to ask for clarification on written assignments, to make students aware of their rights to request additional information about assignments • Class Time: 20 min. • Preparation Time: Five minutes to copy the email template and writing assignment prompt • Resources: • Appendix 1: Writing prompt: Select an article related to the topics we’ve discussed in class and summarize it. Make sure you relate the information from the article to the issues covered in the class. Correct formatting is expected! • Appendix 2: Email template.

  10. What do you want from me? cont. Procedure: • Distribute one writing prompt and one email template per group. • Ask students to identify any questions they may have about the assignment. • Ask students to write an email to a professor Provide support and suggestions as needed while you monitor.

  11. Popular IWI activities focused on responding to assignments • To respond to assignments effectively, students must be able to: • Understand the assignment and the corresponding assessment or have the confidence and ability to request additional information or clarification about the assignment (from the professor) • Break down the assignment into manageable steps and draw on available resources if necessary • Mission “A” Assignment • Understand the the guiding principles of the expected genre

  12. Mission ‘A’ assignment • Levels: Intermediate, advanced • Aims: To provide support for L2 writers’ planning and completion of assignments • Class Time: 10-15 minutes • Preparation Time: Five minutes to copy the worksheet • Resources: Worksheet

  13. Mission ‘A’ assignment cont. Procedure: • Distribute one worksheet per student. • Ask students to complete the worksheet. • Ask students to compare their answers in small groups. • Provide support and suggestions as needed while you monitor.

  14. Popular IWI activities focused on responding to assignments • To respond to assignments effectively, students must be able to: • Understand the assignment and the corresponding assessment or have the confidence and ability to request additional information or clarification about the assignment (from the professor) • Break down the assignment into manageable steps and draw on available resources if necessary • Understand the the guiding principles of the expected genre • Match the paper!

  15. Match the paper! • Levels: Intermediate, advanced • Aims: To make students aware of differences in genres and assignment expectations • Class Time: 20-30min. • Preparation Time: Ten minutes to copy the papers and cut out the title, assignment guidelines, and the paper excerpt • Resources: Three paper excerpts in the Appendix

  16. Match the paper! cont. Procedure: • Distribute a folder that includes 1) the title of each paper, 2) the assignment guidelines, and 3) the assignment excerpt to each group. • Students match the three components correctly. • Have one group representative share the main discussion points on behalf of each group. • Point out any additional genre and assignment features that students have not mentioned.

  17. Conclusion A program such as the Intensive Writing Institute that offers students explicit instruction in, extended practice of, and significant feedback on skills related to the English language (particularly academic reading and writing), strategies, and cultural, institutional, and rhetorical knowledge is well placed to improve the success rates of the increasing international student populations in U.S. universities.

  18. Acknowledgements • Isabel Gardett co-developed the program • Erin Jensen and Jay Jordan co-taught the course

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