[Teaching_Composition] preparation for the linguistically diverse classroom

Thu, 26 Oct 2006 18:07:02 -0400

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Suzanne Blum Malley asked: "How were you prepared in grad school or
through professional development

programs to work with linguistically diverse writers?"=20

When I worked in the writing center at the U of Minnesota as a grad
assistant, we had a workshop that dealt with different cultural
attitudes toward instructors, intellectual property, and ways of making
meaning (e.g. making explicit connections between ideas or assuming your
audience is smart enough to see the relationship). I found this workshop
very helpful. We also received a handbook on explaining various
grammatical problems, such when to use "a" and "the." (I wish I knew
where that handout was right now, as a matter of fact.) As part of this
session, I remember a good conversation about trying to discover why our
students had chosen their topics. A Laotian student I encountered was
writing a rather boring paper about gun control, but in talking with him
I learned that his uncle owned a small grocery store and didn't know
whether he should buy a gun for protecting his business at night.
Potentially this student could bring a fresh perspective to a worn out
topic.=20

The director of the writing center had follow-up conversations with us
about particular students we had all worked with or about patterns we
saw across groups (such as southeast Asian refugees at that time). I
found this approach productive, too.

Here at Wilson College, the English Department offered a workshop on
preventing plagiarism for the rest of the faculty, and a segment from
the ESL co-ordinator was very well received. She addressed culturally
differences in attitudes toward intellectual property and toward helping
out a struggling classmate (apparently thought of as sort of a duty in
the some of the former Soviet countries). She also offered suggestions
for confronting international students about plagiarism.

Lisa Woolley

Associate Professor of English

Wilson College

Chambersburg, PA 17201

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<DIV>
<P><FONT face=3DArial><FONT size=3D2><SPAN =
class=3D685414521-26102006>Suzanne Blum=20
Malley asked: "</SPAN>How were you prepared in grad school or through=20
professional development</FONT></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>programs to work with linguistically =
diverse=20
writers?<SPAN class=3D685414521-26102006>"</SPAN> </FONT></P>
<P><SPAN class=3D685414521-26102006><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>When I =
worked in the=20
writing center at the U of Minnesota as a grad assistant, we had a =
workshop that=20
dealt with different cultural attitudes toward instructors, intellectual =

property, and ways of making meaning (e.g. making explicit connections =
between=20
ideas or assuming your audience is smart enough to see the =
relationship). I=20
found this workshop very helpful. We also received a handbook on =
explaining=20
various grammatical problems, such when to use "a" and "the." (I wish I =
knew=20
where that handout was right now, as a matter of fact.) As part of this =
session,=20
I remember a good conversation about trying to discover why our students =
had=20
chosen their topics. A Laotian student I encountered was writing a =
rather boring=20
paper about gun control, but in talking with him I learned that his =
uncle owned=20
a small grocery store and didn't know whether he should buy a gun for =
protecting=20
his business at night.&nbsp;Potentially this =
student&nbsp;could&nbsp;bring a=20
fresh perspective to a worn out topic.&nbsp;
The =
director of the=20
writing center had follow-up conversations with us about particular =
students we=20
had all worked with or about patterns we saw across groups (such as =
southeast=20
Asian refugees at that time). I found this approach productive,=20
too.
Here at =
Wilson=20
College, the English Department offered a workshop on preventing =
plagiarism for=20
the rest of the faculty, and a segment from the ESL co-ordinator was =
very well=20
received. She addressed culturally differences in attitudes toward =
intellectual=20
property and toward helping out a struggling classmate (apparently =
thought of as=20
sort of a duty in the some of the former Soviet countries). She also =
offered=20
suggestions for confronting international students about=20
plagiarism.
Lisa=20
Woolley
Associate Professor of=20
English
Wilson=20
College
Chambersburg, PA=20
17201
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