UNews - communications courses

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ benefits from international culture

trevor.kenney — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:28:02 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is extremely fortunate in that international students come from all over the world to study in the English for Academic Purposes (EAP) program, typically to meet the English Language requirement for studies at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

Students are assessed upon arrival and must advance through up to three levels of competency (Intermediate, High Intermediate and Advanced), taking classes in grammar, communication, reading and writing at each stage. The purpose of the EAP program, run through the International Centre for Students, is to prepare students linguistically and culturally for success in their academic pursuits at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

Brenda MacKinnon, along with Robbyn Hoffe, instructs in the EAP program and ironically, both hail from the Maritimes. They have been with the program for nearly nine and seven years respectively.

"We try to encourage more authentic learning," says Hoffe. "Aside from being very academic, we still try and make the program interesting and relevant by giving them assignments and activities that will help them integrate into university life."

Although these types of authentic and relevant tasks are woven into all courses, those involving integration within the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community fit most naturally in the communications courses. It is here that the focus is on creating and delivering academic presentations, engaging in and facilitating discussions and debates, as well as listening to and taking notes from lectures.

One of the communication tasks is to observe a university class and present a report about that experience. It might sound like a simple task but it forces a student to contact a professor for permission to sit in on a class, observe a completely foreign educational environment, and then prepare and present a summary, all in a new language.

"It's really quite interesting to hear the international students' perspectives on what they see happening in the Canadian classroom," says MacKinnon. "It spurs them on to ask more questions and is really a good opportunity for them to understand what they will be experiencing."

Another communication assignment involves sending students to the Atrium during the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's annual Clubs Week. The goal there is to get international students interacting with their peers as they seek out information about the various campus clubs. Some use the exercise as an opportunity to test their language skills while others seize the chance to join clubs and immerse themselves deeper into Canadian culture.

Other assignments include having students attend relevant lectures and workshops on campus to help them not only adjust to university life but also to engage in an authentic listening and note-taking experience.

An international student's success is a success for the entire ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community and only adds to the campus culture.

"International students are such a rich resource for our campus," says MacKinnon, bringing diverse perspectives right to our doorstep."

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ benefits from international culture

trevor.kenney — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:30:08 +0000

Brenda MacKinnon, along with Robbyn Hoffe, instructs in the EAP program and ironically, both hail from the Maritimes. They have been with the program for nearly nine and seven years respectively.

An international student's success is a success for the entire ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community and only adds to the campus culture.

"International students are such a rich resource for our campus," says MacKinnon, bringing diverse perspectives right to our doorstep."

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

UNews - communications courses

��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ benefits from international culture

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��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ benefits from international culture

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Finding the language of belonging

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��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ benefits from international culture

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