scholarly journals POWER, IDENTITY, AND CULTURE IN INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF ACADEMIC WRITING

2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-95
Author(s):  
Jessica Garska ◽  
Sarah O'Brien
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
International Student ◽  
English Language ◽  
Student Mobility ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Academic Literacies ◽  
Student Body ◽  
Tertiary Institution ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
High Level

ABSTRACT Issues surrounding English for Academic Purposes (EAP) and its use by English as an additional language (EAL) students in higher education have become increasingly significant in recent years, fueled both by increased international student mobility and increased linguistic and cultural diversity within and outside of the student body. As well as posing language-related challenges, the transfer of EAL students to an English-speaking foreign university also demands the negotiation of new university expectations, channeled through a new cultural environment. While Academic Literacies research has identified that concepts such as power, identity, and culture play a role in academic writing, students’ own perceptions remain relatively unexplored. Consequently, this study analyzes the ways in which EAL students articulate their relationship with academic writing at a tertiary institution in Ireland. Data for this study were gathered through questionnaires and interviews and analyzed through discourse analysis through a critical lens. The findings suggest that while participants generally positively reflect on their ability to negotiate academic writing through the English language, there is nonetheless a high level of conflict between dominant linguistic norms and the students’ expression of their identity and culture.

scholarly journals What we talk about when we talk about writing: exploring how English for Academic Purposes teachers and learning developers conceptualise academic writing

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon McCulloch ◽  
Tania Horak
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Strong Evidence ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Academic Literacies ◽  
Professional Identities ◽  
High Ranking ◽  
Academic Writer ◽  
Sense Of Identity

Two main groups of staff currently provide writing support to students in British universities. These staff typically enter their roles from a range of professional backgrounds and, consequently, may hold different professional identities and understandings of what academic writing is. Although there is a body of research on teacher identity and on lecturers’ conceptualisations of writing, few studies have compared the views and identities of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) teachers and learning developers. The current study set out to investigate whether these two groups perceive academic writing in similar or different ways, and why. We undertook a small-scale study, interviewing eight participants at two universities, half from a post-1992 institution and the others from a research-intensive, high-ranking university. While participants varied in their definitions of writing, common themes emerged, lying on a spectrum from an autonomous, text-based, to an academic literacies perspective on writing. To establish the influences on these perspectives, we investigated the participants’ sense of identity as an academic writer, how they learned writing themselves and any influences on them from theory. Neither the EAP teachers nor the learning developers identified strongly as academic writers, despite all holding postgraduate qualifications and some having published their writing. Most reported little to no training in how to write academically themselves, and few mentioned any theoretical stance in their approach to helping students. Although some clustering around particular conceptualisations of writing was observed, we did not find strong evidence that the participants belong to two different ‘tribes’.

scholarly journals Preparing Ell Writers for Becoming Multilingual Writers: Challenges and Strategies

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-140
Author(s):  
Lee Jin Choi
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
English Language ◽  
Writing Development ◽  
Multiple Identities ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Language Learner ◽  
Medium Of Instruction ◽  
Academic Context ◽  
Multilingual Writers ◽  
English Speaking

Summary The increasing number of international students enrolled in higher education in English-speaking countries has presented the growing need to support their academic writing development. It, however, has often led to the hasty assumption that English language learner (ELL) writers need to quickly adopt the dominant academic writing conventions in order to succeed in an English-speaking academic community. Even though the growing number of scholars have started to pay attention to ELL writers’ diverse writing styles and multiple identities, little research and discussion have taken place on how language practitioners could engage ELL writers in developing their voices as multilingual and multicultural writers. By analyzing a qualitative interview with ten experienced writing consultants and instructors, this paper explores major challenges that ELL writers experience and different strategies that could effectively help them develop their voices as writers in the academic context where English is dominantly used as the medium of instruction. Findings show that while many colleges and universities in English-speaking countries still adopt a monolithic view and label ELL writers as ‘a troubled non-native writer’, it is crucial for writing consultants and instructors to acknowledge ELL writers’ multilingual background and help them to develop their unique voices and achieve sustainable development and progress.

The use of general and specialized corpora as reference sources for academic English writing: A case study

ReCALL ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji-Yeon Chang
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Discourse Community ◽  
Academic Experience ◽  
Academic English ◽  
Training Corpus ◽  
English Writing ◽  
English Speaking

AbstractCorpora have been suggested as valuable sources for teaching English for academic purposes (EAP). Since previous studies have mainly focused on corpus use in classroom settings, more research is needed to reveal how students react to using corpora on their own and what should be provided to help them become autonomous corpus users, considering that their ultimate goal is to be independent scholars and writers. In the present study, conducted in an engineering lab at a Korean university over 22 weeks, data on students’ experiences and evaluations of consulting general and specialized corpora for academic writing were collected and analyzed. The findings show that, while both corpora served the participants well as reference sources, the specialized corpus was particularly valued for its direct help in academic writing because, as non-native English-speaking graduate engineering students, the participants wanted to follow the writing conventions of their discourse community. The participants also showed disparate attitudes toward the time taken for corpus consultation due to differences in factors such as academic experience, search purposes, and writing tasks. The article concludes with several suggestions for better corpus use with EAP students regarding the compilation of a corpus, corpus training, corpus competence, and academic writing.

scholarly journals ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC PURPOSES: KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES

2020 ◽  
pp. 40-57
Author(s):  
Olga Ilchenko ◽  
Natalia Kramar
Keyword(s):  
Writing Instruction ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Academic Publishing ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Methodological Principles

English language education, especially in light of the status of English as present-day lingua franca, has become a prolific field of research, and no less prolific area of practical application internationally. Through a critical literature review, the current study addresses one of its most prominent subfields – English for Academic Purposes – with special emphasis on academic writing. We briefly touch upon its evolution and identify the terminological ambiguities involved in EAP conceptualization within the broader framework of ESP (English for Specific Purposes). By examining the changes that academic English is undergoing today due to the overwhelming influence of L2 speakers’ varieties (termed “similects” by Anna Mauranen), we elucidate how English as a Lingua Franca movement can benefit and enrich EAP pedagogic practice. We also discuss how EAP fits within the latest CEFR guidelines, paying close attention to mediating skills, critical thinking and integrative thinking skills, which, as we argue, need to be more extensively incorporated into academic writing instruction. We discuss the rationale and the methodological principles of English for Research Publication Purposes as a new offshoot of EAP, which combines genre-based instruction with the exploration of multiple non-linguistic issues, involved in academic publishing, such as interaction with editors and gatekeepers, choosing a suitable journal, navigating the review process. We hope to demonstrate that EAP teaching, and especially academic writing instruction, is in need of major revision to overcome the yawning gap that currently exists between theory and practice.

scholarly journals English for Academic Purposes: Theory, Trends and Practices

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Gopal Prasad Pandey
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
English For Specific Purposes ◽  
Academic Context ◽  
Intercultural Awareness ◽  
Current Trends ◽  
Professional Needs ◽  
English Speaking

English for academic purpose (EAP) emerged as a branch of English for specific purposes in the early 1980s. EAP grounds English language teaching in the linguistic demands of academic context, tailoring instruction to specific rather than general purposes. There is a growth of interest in EAP in the recent years. The interest in EAP developed in response to the growing need for intercultural awareness and of English as a lingua franca (ELF). EAP has become a major area of research in applied linguistics and focus of the courses studied worldwide by a large number of students preparing for study in colleges and universities. The increase in students’ undertaking tertiary studies in English-speaking countries has led to a steady demand for the courses tailored to meet the immediate, specific vocational and professional needs. Thus, most universities in the present day world prioritize the role of academic skills. The aim of the paper is to examine the key approaches to the teaching of English for academic purposes, current trends in teaching EAP, and to argue the centrality and significance of EAP in the academia. The paper concludes by arguing that a greater emphasis needs to be placed on methodology in EAP.

scholarly journals A Comparative Study of Saudi and International Journals of Applied Linguistics: The Move–Bundle Connection Approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 9-30
Author(s):  
Basim Alamri
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
English Language ◽  
Applied Linguistics ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Research Articles ◽  
Writing For Publication ◽  
Lexical Bundles ◽  
Raising Awareness ◽  
Novice Writers ◽  
Rhetorical Structures

The present study implemented a genre-based approach to analyze the rhetorical structure of English language research articles (RAs): specifically, the Introduction-Methods-Results-Discussion-Conclusion (I-M-R-D-C) sections. Next, lexical bundles (LBs) associated with patterns of moves were identified by applying a corpus-driven approach. The study analyzed two corpora of 30 RAs purposely selected from 16 peer-reviewed journals of applied linguistics published in Saudi Arabia and internationally during the years of 2011-2016. First, a genre-based approach was used to identify the move structures of RAs through analyzing different RA sections by different models. Next, lexical bundles associated with each identified move in each IMRDC section were analyzed using a corpus-driven approach, based on structural and functional taxonomies. The study findings showed that both corpora share similarities and differences related to rhetorical structures and lexical bundles. These findings have pedagogical implications for novice writers, graduate students, and English for Academic Purposes (EAP) instruction, including raising awareness of rhetorical structures and LBs in academic writing for publication, which could help produce more successful publishable research articles.

scholarly journals ENHANCING PROFESSIONAL COMPENENCE OF PHARMACEUTICAL STUDENTS IN THE ACADEMIC ENGLISH COURSE

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (18) ◽  
pp. 84-89
Author(s):  
Oksana Kovalenko ◽  
Olga Afanasenko
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
English Language ◽  
Professional Competence ◽  
Academic Language ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Academic English ◽  
Academic Texts ◽  
Writing Course ◽  
Measurement Tools ◽  
Selection For

The paper presents the ideas on integration of English language academic writing into the training of Mater of Pharmacy students. The academic literature demonstrates a powerful didactic potential for the development of both language and professional competence of students majoring in pharmacy. This fact is evidenced by the empirical study that demonstrates the finding reflected in students’ graduation academic project performance. As a measurement tools we employed assessment rubrics of the graduate project, content analysis and questionnaire on teachers’ feedback. The participants of the study were students from the Pharmacy faculty and teachers of English for Academic Purposes in cooperation with teachers of pharmacy. Together they outlined the criteria for the texts selection. According to the results, students mastered not only academic writing skills, but also the skills of information processing and evaluation, critical thinking, presentation of information and academic integrity. The paper also presents methodological recommendations on academic texts selection for pharmaceutical students and forms of teachingacademic writing to students of non-linguistic specialties. The results of the study allow to draw the conclusion academic writing course will enhance professional competence and reduce students’ misinterpreting of academic language.

Iranian doctoral students’ perceptions of publication in English

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 941-954 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saeed Rezaei ◽  
Haniye Seyri
Keyword(s):  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Evaluation System ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Science And Engineering ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Qualitative Nature ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the English for publication purpose practices of doctoral students in Iran. The overall objective was to explore their motives, hurdles and strategies in academic writing. Design/methodology/approach This case study draws on a narrative inquiry to explore nine science and engineering doctoral students’ perceptions of academic publication. The data were analyzed through a hybrid process of inductive and deductive thematic analysis. Findings The qualitative results showed three dominant themes, namely: motives for publication, hurdles to publication and strategies for dealing with these challenges were extracted. The main sources of motives were students’ desire to publish their works for their graduation, improve their resume, satiate the universities’ evaluation system, and finally share their knowledge worldwide. Their hurdles included: political reasons, language-related problems, center-periphery priorities and the lack of academic writing instruction. In order to overcome these hurdles, the participants employed some strategies in academic writing. Research limitations/implications Due to qualitative nature of this study, only nine PhD students were recruited and therefore the research results are not intended to render generalizability. Besides, only narratives were employed to collect the required data. Future researchers can use surveys to collect more data. Practical implications The findings are discussed within English for academic purposes discourse and some recommendations are provided to alleviate the plights of non-native-English-speaking academic writers. Originality/value The methodology and the higher education context in which this paper was conducted are new to the literature.

scholarly journals Perceptions of the Effect of an EAP Course on English Self-efficacy and English Proficiency: Voices of International Students in China

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Michael Agyemang Adarkwah ◽  
Yu Zeyuan
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
English Language ◽  
Course Evaluation ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Students

The English language has become an essential means for communication and studies for international students globally. With the increasing number of international students trooping to China to study diverse courses which are taught in the English medium, there is a need to address challenges faced by international students from non-native English speaking countries. The study adopted an embedded mixed-method approach where face-to-face interviews and focus group discussions were conducted on freshmen international students taking English for Academic Purposes (EAP) in a specific faculty of a university in China. The interviews were supplemented by the Questionnaire of English Self-Efficacy (QESE) to measure their perceived English self-efficacy after the course. An online questionnaire on English Course Evaluation (ECE) was used to measure the students’ assessment of the course. The findings of the study offer insights into the effect of the intervention, challenges faced by students during the course, and suggestions on things to consider during the implementation of English courses for non-native English students in the future.

Self-access system for English language support

ReCALL ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 5 (8) ◽  
pp. 28-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hilary Nesi
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
First Language ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
Language Teacher Education ◽  
Access System ◽  
Dissertation Writing ◽  
English Students ◽  
Academic Year

In common with similar units in many other British Universities, the Centre for English Language Teacher Education at Warwick University offers support in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) for students whose first language is not English. Students newly arriving from overseas are contacted via their departments and are invited to attend classes covering a range of language skills associated with EAP. Classes are typically well-attended in the first months of the academic year, and attendance tends to fall off in the second term, although there is an upsurge in interest in certain areas, such as Academic Writing, as students become increasingly involved in assignment and dissertation writing.

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