UNews - Eric Low

Grad students get a leg up with new English class

trevor.kenney — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 20:08:03 +0000

Undertaking a master's degree can be daunting for anyone. Not only does it involve extensive research, it requires a great deal of writing – something that's a challenge for many students. Now try doing it in another language.

For international students studying at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, working on a master's thesis can be especially difficult. This summer, a group of 10 international graduate students at the U of L received a little assistance by learning to organize, present and write about their ideas in new and effective ways. All the while, they gained additional insight on everything from finance and statistics to evaluating shards of ancient pottery.

Academic English for International Graduate Students ran for the first time this summer as a pilot project. This new class is designed to prepare international students for the challenge of writing literature reviews, theses and other materials throughout their graduate studies.

"The purpose of the class is to make the transition to graduate studies as easy as possible for international students," explains Eric Low, instructor of the course and consultant at the U of L's Writing Centre. "The idea is to orient them to the expectations of academic writing in a Canadian university and specifically at the U of L."

Students learn techniques for creating outlines, writing literature reviews, organizing and structuring their ideas and engaging in reader-based writing. They gain an understanding of writing styles and citation styles as well as techniques for thinking critically about their research topics. As much as possible, the class incorporates each student's individual needs while remaining broad enough to be relevant for all of the students.

"Eric asks us for feedback on our expectations and what we want to learn, and in turn he gives us feedback on what we need to work on," says Shengchen Huang, one of Low's students.

"The personalized approach is extremely helpful," adds Ghaderpour Ebrahim. "We can go to him anytime for one-on-one meetings."

The course's mandate stays true to the liberal education philosophy of the U of L by allowing students to broaden their minds into different fields of study.

"We have students in this class from a wide variety of disciplines – from math to archaeology to health sciences," says Low. "By discussing their research in class, they not only learn about different areas of research but also help each other see their research from different perspectives. They can also help each other challenge the constructs surrounding their research questions and hypotheses."

Indeed, the students learn much more than writing.

"We've gained skills in presentation and discussion, exchanged ideas and gained confidence," says Thabit Alomari. "We've also gained cross-cultural communication skills."

The students have formed a close group of friends, reveling in the opportunity to learn about each other's cultures as well as Canadian culture.

"This should be a central course for international graduate students," says Montserrat Villanuevo Barbolla. "Sometimes international graduate students can lose their way, and this class provides guidance."

Low agrees that the course is an important way to help international graduate students stay on track.

"This class is a first step in demonstrating to international graduate students that we care about their well-being, want them to succeed, and that they have access to resources here when they need them."

Finding the language of belonging

trevor.kenney — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 21:36:08 +0000

There's a language of belonging when entering an academic environment, and finding the key to unlocking that language is more difficult for some than others. Thankfully, there's a gatekeeper on hand to assist in the search.

Eric Low (BA '75) mans the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's Writing Centre, a haven for those searching for guidance when trying to write in a language that, at times, can seem foreign.

"There's a misunderstanding that writing takes place alone. I don't know very many practicing writers who don't collaborate in some fashion," Low says. "Writing, by its nature, works well in a collaborative situation."

The Writing Centre is not a remedial centre and Low, along with Manager of Language Services, International Centre for Students, Jenine Hawryluk, is not there to simply edit papers. Instead, they offer an opportunity for students to vet their ideas and gain feedback on whether they are hitting the mark with their papers.

"A great deal of what we do here is listen and respond, at any stage of the process," Low says.

"We're here to encourage, to suggest, to diagnose problems or patterns and to make suggestions. It then all goes back to the student. After talking to us, it's the student's job to say, 'This is what I'm going to do.' "

Low's jack-of-all-trades background is extremely beneficial in the work he does with students. An English graduate, he also studied drama and eventually earned a master's degree in journalism from ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Western Ontario. At the U of L he has taught drama, English, English as a second language and academic writing, as well as some management and communications courses.

"That's one of the reasons I'm here, I have a varied background and very little astonishes me," he says.

An Ottawa, Ont. native, Low says the Writing Centre welcomes students at all stages of the writing process. Whether it's helping them with the first stage of unpacking an assignment and making sure they begin on the right path, to clarifying the organization of their ideas and then finally recognizing grammatical pitfalls, it's all a process to help students understand the forum within which they are now writing.

"Anytime a student begins feeling anxious to the point of being concerned about an assignment is the time to come in," Low says.

Students and faculty both profit from this collaboration. To that end, Low and Hawryluk encourage faculty to promote the Writing Centre to their students. Some even make it a requirement to visit the centre at least once during the writing process.

To better understand the needs of faculty, the Writing Centre is sending out an electronic survey that will ask faculty questions on style and formatting and just how they'd prefer their students to write.

GET THE FACTS

• The Writing Centre's survey for faculty should be sent out during the first week of classes.

• The Writing Centre is located in L1012 in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Library. It's an ideal location and allows for collaboration between the centre and the librarians.

• Students can book 30-minute or 50-minute Writing Centre appointments online. The Writing Centre is also open for drop-in appointments Monday to Friday,
9 a.m. to noon, and Monday to Thursday, 1 to 4 p.m.

• For more information on the Writing Centre, visit the website at www.uleth.ca/ics/writingcentre

Historical knowledge leads to future insight

trevor.kenney — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 15:43:44 +0000

By ERIC LOW
Dr. Christopher Epplett teaches in the History Department at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge and has a broad number of research interests that include ancient military and social history, particularly that of the Hellenistic world and the later Roman Empire. He is not, however, always thinking of the past.

Epplett believes the study of the ancients is one way of understanding contemporary situations and events. His work with the Galt Museum & Archives, for example, helps him keep an eye to the future.

Epplett believes that knowledge of local history can help a community move forward in a direction that's consistent with the path it has chosen in the past.

"I have an interest in local history even though it's not my specialty," Epplett says, "it's essential for a community to keep in touch with its roots, to understand where it came from."

Awareness of all the accomplishments of citizens in the past builds pride and a sense of community. At the Galt Museum & Archives, Epplett helps develop upcoming exhibits, such as the Medieval and Egyptian exhibits in 2008, strategies for fundraising, and ways to increase awareness of the Galt in the community and at various levels of government. He assists in ensuring that the Galt has a broad appeal for all members of the community.

Since January 2008, Epplett has also served as chair of the Galt's Cultural History Collection Committee, which works with the curator to set policy decisions related to acquisition, storage, and de-accession of artifacts. The committee makes policy decisions after considering future exhibits at the Galt, as well as complementary exhibits at other museums, and then brings a plan back to the board. Lucelle Prindle, chair of the Galt's board, feels it is beneficial to both the museum and the U of L to have faculty members like Epplett on the board.

They bring "valuable expertise and insight," Lucelle says, and the museum provides "opportunities for students to gain experience by working in the archives and exhibits of the museum."

As a teacher and a researcher, Epplett believes it is important to support and to play an active role in the community.

"I think it's the responsibility of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ," he notes, "to ensure that its programs and its graduates are well-prepared to serve the community and perform a useful function. Those who study history and have a good grasp of it are better-rounded citizens."

Motivated by his passion for history and his sense of duty to educate both the local and broader community, Epplett enjoys finding and fitting together pieces of the historical puzzle. While present-day southern Alberta is a long way and time from the Roman Empire, Epplett is gaining recognition internationally for his research, and contributing to the cultural well being of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and the local area.
This story originally appeared in Lethbridge living magazine

UNews - Eric Low

Grad students get a leg up with new English class

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Finding the language of belonging

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Historical knowledge leads to future insight

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