Writing across borders

Several messages were clear in this video. As we have previously discussed in class, international students face many challenges in writing academic essays in English. In some cases, their cultural background dictates how they handle grammar issues, such as clear reference of pronouns (such as he, she, or it). Another challenge involves the difference in writing style taught in their native country, which may differ from the approach used by the majority of American students. Still another challenge mentioned in the video is that of plagiarism and the need to cite sources in academic papers. Students who were raised in countries that highly value the sharing of all resources often find it difficult to understand the need to specifically credit the source of a particular idea or quotation.

I found it interesting that one of the students on the video was surprised by all the format guidelines she had to follow in writing papers at an American university.  She had thought that because there is more freedom in America there wouldn’t be such strict rules for writing.

The brief discussion of L2 writing assessment asked whether all students, whether native English speakers or non-native English speakers in a content-area class or an English composition class should be held to the same standards. The consensus in the video seemed to indicate that teachers should ask the following questions when analyzing L2 student writing: 1) Is the grammar getting in the way of comprehensibility?  2) How many of the errors detract from the meaning? 

The treatment that is suggested is that teachers should allow reasonable accommodations for non-native English speaking students, whether that means additional time to complete in-class assignments or overlooking errors in grammar, especially those that the teacher considers inconsequential or unimportant, such as the use of articles and prepositions. What seems to be important to the teachers and researchers in the video is whether or not the intended meaning is conveyed adequately to the reader. In terms of teacher feedback on student writing, it was suggested that teachers ask students what kinds of feedback they prefer and what helps them the most. One student indicated that receiving a graded assignment covered in red ink was rather discouraging and de-motivating, and that he would prefer more sentence- or paragraph-based comments instead of every individual grammar or lexical error being marked.

Another interesting pedagogical issue that the video brought out concerns lesson planning and testing methods. Students in the video indicated that teachers should re-think topics for class discussions and writing assignments, steering away from anything that might be offensive or too dependent on cultural context for international students to be able to manage. Testing and assessment strategies should also be evaluated. If the class includes any English language learners, perhaps teachers should reconsider assignments and tests which require lengthy, critical writing to be done in-class.

I think my favorite suggestion was to ask students about their previous writing experiences early in the semester. What do they consider “good writing”? Did they consider themselves “good” or “experienced” writers in their L1? What kinds of writing have they done in the past, in their native language, or in other languages?  Questions such as these can help teachers relate to the student’s identity as a writer, as well as helping students recognize their voice in their L1 or L2.