Advising Possibilities
Feat. Jessica Williams, University of Illinois at Chicago
While second language learners certainly benefit from classroom instruction, pre-writing exercises, and the composition of multiple drafts, one should not overlook the value of one-on-one advising. Learning to write effectively in another language is a complex, extended process, despite the fact that the undergraduate curriculum for most second language learners only offers a semester-long composition course to specifically address their needs. It is no wonder that students and instructors across disciplines might feel frustrated about persistent language issues. This is why an effective writing center is crucial.
Barbara Kennedy (1993) and others have written at length about how instructors sometimes send second language students to the writing center when they feel they’ve reached an impasse in learning. Perhaps the student has too many issues with grammar patterns than the instructor can address in a class session, or maybe the instructor is simply unequipped to devote so much energy to a particular student with moderate language and composition issues. Muriel Harris (1997) has praised the writing center as a place where students immediately feel more comfortable and eager to discuss their writing. How can the methods of writing center tutors enhance the abilities of second language students?
Ann Raimes makes valid points about the still relevant value of correctness in student writing. Adding to her strategies for approaching writing errors, it is important that tutors avoid simply directing students to grammar textbooks. Instead, tutors can look over handbook exercises and solve a few of them together. It is this process of one-on-one negotiation that is pivotal in language learning.
Further, while Barbara Kroll elaborates on the challenges of the rhetoric/syntax divide in second language learning, pinpointing specific issues to rectify may not always be the best solution. We should avoid conveying to students that writing well is about memorizing rules. Rule knowledge and grammar drills, while helpful, do not guarantee that students will retain the spontaneous knowledge to be able to use these rules accurately and effectively in writing. When reviewing a draft, tutors can mix up their styles of correction by including references to grammar rules in some instances, while simply indicating that something doesn’t sound right in others.
By emphasizing one-on-one negotiation styles of tutoring, and Suresh Canagarajah also supports, second language students can receive the uniquely tailored help that they need for their writing. This ultimately helps second language writers to grasp and process information faster, which seems to be the goal for university administrations. Some critics disagree with this approach, because they argue it places more emphasis on the individual rather than social aspects of writing. But, they underestimate the priorities of writing center tutors to help students articulate their writer voices, as Roz Ivanic suggests. The tutor must remind students that their goals are to cultivate a strong rhetorical voice, while also considering the reader in their prose. Through negotiation methods of language learning, writing centers give second language students the general and individualized help they need.
Barbara Kennedy (1993) and others have written at length about how instructors sometimes send second language students to the writing center when they feel they’ve reached an impasse in learning. Perhaps the student has too many issues with grammar patterns than the instructor can address in a class session, or maybe the instructor is simply unequipped to devote so much energy to a particular student with moderate language and composition issues. Muriel Harris (1997) has praised the writing center as a place where students immediately feel more comfortable and eager to discuss their writing. How can the methods of writing center tutors enhance the abilities of second language students?
Ann Raimes makes valid points about the still relevant value of correctness in student writing. Adding to her strategies for approaching writing errors, it is important that tutors avoid simply directing students to grammar textbooks. Instead, tutors can look over handbook exercises and solve a few of them together. It is this process of one-on-one negotiation that is pivotal in language learning.
Further, while Barbara Kroll elaborates on the challenges of the rhetoric/syntax divide in second language learning, pinpointing specific issues to rectify may not always be the best solution. We should avoid conveying to students that writing well is about memorizing rules. Rule knowledge and grammar drills, while helpful, do not guarantee that students will retain the spontaneous knowledge to be able to use these rules accurately and effectively in writing. When reviewing a draft, tutors can mix up their styles of correction by including references to grammar rules in some instances, while simply indicating that something doesn’t sound right in others.
By emphasizing one-on-one negotiation styles of tutoring, and Suresh Canagarajah also supports, second language students can receive the uniquely tailored help that they need for their writing. This ultimately helps second language writers to grasp and process information faster, which seems to be the goal for university administrations. Some critics disagree with this approach, because they argue it places more emphasis on the individual rather than social aspects of writing. But, they underestimate the priorities of writing center tutors to help students articulate their writer voices, as Roz Ivanic suggests. The tutor must remind students that their goals are to cultivate a strong rhetorical voice, while also considering the reader in their prose. Through negotiation methods of language learning, writing centers give second language students the general and individualized help they need.