Each day at the Writing Center we work with a huge variety of writers from all sorts of backgrounds. Whether they differ in age, academic experience, or national/language background, each of our writers has a unique set of experiences that influence our appointments with them. And since there is not universal writer, neither should our rules be universally applied.
This is especially true with English as an Additional Language (EAL) writers. Although much of what we learn as central practices can and should be applied to our appointments with EAL writers, some of our favorite techniques might end up being counterproductive to what we are trying to accomplish.
1. Making a Writer Read Out Loud
One of the most common practices at the Writing Center is to have a writer read their work out loud. For native speakers, this practice is an indispensable way to review a piece of written text and better understand what it is communicating. However, for non-native speakers, this practice can be frustrating and even embarrassing.
Unlike native speakers, most non-native speakers do not have an intrinsic understanding of the English language. Reading out loud therefore is not helpful for self-editing, and in fact causes writers to focus on pronunciation rather than content and form. A small and helpful switch to fix this problem is to read the paper out loud yourself. This practice can help an EAL writer to note where “you stumble, pause, fill in missing articles and modifiers, or read smoothly” (Matsuda and Cox).
Easy to fix, and a world of difference for your writer!
2. Balancing Grammar Considerations
This one is a little trickier. While focusing on global issues first is always the right move, where grammar is placed in the global/local hierarchy can change with each EAL writer.
In some situations, grammar may be the central or even sole concern of the writer. This happens in many Intensive English Program classes—like DePaul’s English Language Academy—where grammar is the foundation of the grading scale and therefore a primary concern for the writer. In these cases, grammar should be valued much more highly on the ladder of concerns, no matter what we may think of their actual argument.
However, sometimes if we solely focus on grammar, it can make EAL writers feel ignored or silenced. If we are always focusing on how they say something, we may not be listening to what they are saying.
When I work with EAL writers, I often find myself leaning too far to one or the other side of this spectrum, and I see many other tutors doing the same. Working with grammar is a balancing act, so instead of returning to set-in-stone hierarchies, take the time to read through an EAL writer’s paper and discuss their concerns first in order to prioritize based on that individual’s needs!
(For more a more in depth exploration of this check out the resources in this section of the UCWbL’s EAL Tutoring Guide.)
3. (Not) Creating Agendas for Conversation Partner Appointments
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned since beginning my work with EAL writers is the necessity of setting agendas for conversation partner appointments. I frequently see tutors chatting with their writers without any clearly set goals. While this can feel like a great time, a bevy of evidence shows that no actual language improvement occurs through unstructured conversation.
To fix this is pretty simple. Just treat the conversation partner appointment as you would treat any other! Make sure to think in a structured way about what your writer wants to practice and lay out an agenda for how this will be accomplished (making this agenda visible, rather than just spoken, is also a great practice when working with EAL writers). Your agenda can change as the appointment continues, but make sure to have clearly set goals and also to discuss next steps at the end (Bruce).
Adding this structure will vastly improve the effectiveness of your appointment and thus your writer’s satisfaction with their experience at the Writing Center! Working with EAL writers can be tricky, but we’ve put together a great guide to help. If you have any further questions, check it out, or ask a member of the CMWR team. Happy Tutoring!