scholarly journals The Tutor Development Needs of Writing Centre Consultants Working with Undergraduate Students Using English as an Additional Language

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 290-313
Author(s):  
Maya Pilin ◽  
Michael Henry Landry ◽  
Scott Roy Douglas ◽  
Amanda Brobbel
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Training Needs ◽  
Formal Training ◽  
Language Awareness ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Pedagogical Skills ◽  
Canadian Context ◽  
Writing Tutors

Growing numbers of international students and newcomers attending post-secondary studies means that there are more students using English as an additional language (EAL) at Canadian universities. Consequently, writing centres have recognized the need for specialized training for their tutors as they support these students. However, it is difficult to find research on tutor perspectives about these training programs in a Canadian context. The current project aimed to gather insight regarding tutors’ perceived knowledge and needs in helping students using EAL with their writing. The findings point to a need for tutor development which specifically contributes to supporting EAL writers in the form of ongoing interactive workshops on language awareness, instructional strategies, and communication skills. Twelve writing tutors completed a questionnaire in which they were asked about their previous EAL experiences, their current understanding of tutoring students using EAL, and their training needs in this area. A qualitative analysis revealed that tutors hoped to develop their ability in explaining grammatical rules, as well as improve their communication skills and developing pedagogical skills. These identified areas of development suggest a need to establish formal training in additional language acquisition theory, language awareness, and intercultural communication strategies.

scholarly journals Community Service-Learning: Why Can’t Canada Be More Like Mexico?

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-59
Author(s):  
Victoria Calvert ◽  
Halia Valladares Montemayor
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Community Service ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
National Level ◽  
Community Service Learning ◽  
Community Partners ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Volunteer Programs ◽  
The Government

  In Mexico, the community service strategy and requirements for undergraduate students are both longstanding and mandated by the Mexican Constitution. Students undertake a minimum of 480 hours of service during their undergraduate degrees, which are coordinated through their universities’ Social Service (SS) departments. Many Canadian universities and colleges offer community service through courses and volunteer programs; however, the practice and adoption levels vary widely. Student involvement with community partners, as represented through community service-learning (CSL) and volunteerism in Canada, are sponsored by many post-secondary institutions but are not driven by a national agenda. While, in Mexico, community service is documented at a departmental and institutional level for reporting to stakeholders and the government, in Canada, documentation of community service varies with the institutional mandate and is often sporadic or non-existent; the imperative for systematic student engagement and citizenship development has not been recognized at the national level. This research paper provides an overview of the community engagement practices in both countries, with the national patterns represented through a summative review of selected Canadian and Mexican universities. Suggestions for processes and practices for Canada are proposed based upon the Mexican model.

scholarly journals English for Academic Purposes Programs: Key Trends Across Canadian Universities

2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Roy Douglas ◽  
Michael Landry
Keyword(s):  
Graphical Representation ◽  
English For Academic Purposes ◽  
University Education ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Secondary English ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Canadian Context ◽  
Toefl Ibt ◽  
Program Data

Because of the large number of post-secondary English for academic purposes (EAP) programs and the varying ways they are structured, it can be difficult to identify how a particular program fits within the overall landscape of university education.  To identify general trends across Canada, the webpages for 74 EAP programs at 50 public English-medium universities were examined for key information related to each program.  Data analysis included descriptive statistics as well as graphical representation.  The results pointed to typical EAP programs that are independent units that offer non-credit courses with some credit options, have international tuition fees around $9,000 per semester, provide approximately 22 hours of instruction per week, and generally require IELTS scores over 5.0 or TOEFL iBT scores over 59 for entry.  These results provide an avenue of comparison and indicate the need for future research to better understand how EAP programming is conceptualized in the Canadian context.

scholarly journals Awareness, Policy, Privacy, and More: Post-Secondary Students Voice Their Solutions to Cyberbullying

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 795-815
Author(s):  
Chantal Faucher ◽  
Wanda Cassidy ◽  
Margaret Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Students ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Student Survey ◽  
Online Student ◽  
University Culture ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Stakeholder Groups ◽  
Post Secondary Students

This paper discusses solutions to cyberbullying posed by post-secondary students from four Canadian universities. The qualitative data used in this analysis were drawn from one open-ended question on an online student survey completed by 1458 undergraduate students, as well as 10 focus group transcripts involving a total of 36 students. Seven key themes emerged: awareness and education; policy; protecting one’s privacy; technology-based solutions; empowering better choices and responses; university culture; and disciplinary measures. The findings show that post-secondary institutions need to make preventing and curtailing cyberbullying more of a priority within their campus communities, including engaging in responsive consultation with key stakeholder groups, such as students, to develop meaningful solutions.

Advocating for Transgender and Non-Binary Affirmative Spaces in Graduate Education

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas Knutson ◽  
Em Matsuno ◽  
Chloe Goldbach ◽  
Halleh Hashtpari ◽  
Nathan Grant Smith
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Graduate Education ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Ecological Model ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Educational Success ◽  
Post Secondary Education ◽  
Identity Exploration ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Social Ecological

Nearly 50% of graduate students report experiencing emotional or psychological distress during their enrollment in graduate school. Levels of distress are particularly high for transgender and non-binary graduate students who experience daily discrimination and marginalization. Universities and colleges have yet to address and accommodate the needs and experiences of transgender and non-binary graduate students. Given the multitude of challenges these students may face, educational settings should not present additional barriers to educational success and well-being. In an effort to improve graduate education for transgender and non-binary students, we add to the existing scholarship on affirming work with transgender undergraduate students by addressing the unique concerns of graduate students. We utilize a social-ecological model to identify sources of discrimination in post-secondary education and to provide transgender- and non-binary-affirming recommendations at structural, interpersonal, and individual levels. For practitioners who wish to do personal work, we provide guidance for multicultural identity exploration. A table of recommendations and discussion of ways to implement our recommendations are provided.

Analysis of Demographics and Factors Influencing Student Choice of Major at Five Universities

HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 510b-510
Author(s):  
Tammy Kohlleppel ◽  
Jennifer C. Bradley ◽  
Jayne Zajicek
Keyword(s):  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
The United States ◽  
Student Choice ◽  
Student Interest ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
Choice Of Major ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
University History ◽  
Insight Into

In recent years horticulture programs at universities across the United States have experienced a decline in student numbers. Researchers at the Univ. of Florida and Texas A&M Univ. have developed a survey to gain insight into the influences on undergraduate students who major in horticulture. Five universities participated in the survey of undergraduate horticulture programs, these include the Univ. of Florida, Texas A&M Univ., Oklahoma State Univ., Univ. of Tennessee, and Kansas State Univ. Approximately 600 surveys were sent to the schools during the 1997 fall semester. The questionnaires were completed by horticulture majors and nonmajors taking classes in the horticulture departments. The survey consisted of two main sections. The first section examined student demographic information, high school history, university history and horticulture background and was completed by all students. Only horticulture majors completed the second section, which examined factors influencing choice of horticulture as a major. Results examine fundamental predictors in promoting student interest in horticulture, demographic variables that may influence student choice of major, and student satisfaction and attitude toward current collegiate horticulture programs. Findings from this study will provide insight into the status of post-secondary horticulture education and assist in identifying methods to increase student enrollment in horticulture programs across the country.

scholarly journals Students' Personal and Academic Attributions of University Withdrawal

1995 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 53-77
Author(s):  
Genevieve M. Johnson ◽  
George H. Buck
Keyword(s):  
Academic Performance ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Undergraduate Student ◽  
Psychological State ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Apparent Lack ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Student Academic Performance ◽  
Wide Range

A Commission of Inquiry on Canadian University Education recently reported that approximately 42% of full-time undergraduate students who entered Canadian universities in 1985 failed to obtain a degree within five years. While this statistic is startling, perhaps, of greater concern is the apparent lack of interest shown by most Canadian universities in the subject of undergraduate student attrition. As an initial step toward addressing the issue of Canadian university attrition, a conceptual model of undergraduate student withdrawal is proposed. The model is based on the assumption that students are characterized by a wide range of personal and academic variables. Such characteristics interact or co-exist with institutional variables such as campus integration. This interaction results in the quality of student academic performance and the nature of student psychological condition. Poor quality of student academic performance results in institution-initiated undergraduate withdrawal; a variety of psychological variables (e.g., satisfaction, stress) result in student-initiated undergraduate withdrawal. The bases of this model were findings obtained from questioning 498 undergraduate students who had withdrawn from a large Western Canadian university. Personal student characteristics, institutional factors and societal variables frequently emerged as students' attributions of university withdrawal. Student academic performance was validated as the causal factor for institutional-based undergraduate withdrawal and student psychological state appeared critically related to student-based undergraduate withdrawal. From these findings, preadmission counseling, academic and personal student support and an increased commitment to accommodating students are recommended.

scholarly journals Sex Role Identity, Communication Skills, and Group Popularity

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 19
Author(s):  
Loredana Ivan
Keyword(s):  
Communication Skills ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Sex Role ◽  
Role Identity ◽  
Potential Predictor ◽  
Sex Role Identity

Using two groups of undergraduate students (N = 71) the present paper argues about the importance of sex role identity (Bem, 1981) as a potential predictor of group popularity. The results show that participants with psychological androgine identity tend to use better their communication skills and become popular among their peers. Contray to previous studies (e.g. Hall, 1984; Saarni, 1999) focused on gender gap in communication skills, the current study emphasis on the importance of the sex role identity (Bem, 1974, 1975) in undestanding the relation between communication skills and likeability.

scholarly journals A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Mathematics Education Practices at Canadian Universities

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chester Weatherby ◽  
Donna Kotsopoulos ◽  
Douglas Woolford ◽  
Laaraib Khattak
Keyword(s):  
Mathematics Education ◽  
Standardized Testing ◽  
Secondary Mathematics ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Mathematics Scores ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Mathematics Majors ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
University Mathematics

In response to international standardized testing, many countries are examining mathematics education at virtually every level of instruction. Canada is no exception. Declines in mathematics scores in some international standardized tests have raised concerns amongst some stakeholders that a “crisis” may be unfolding and the readiness of students to study mathematics in university. These results raise questions about the ways in which students are streamed into university mathematics and the supports provided once they begin their studies. Our focus in this research was university-level mathematics education. To mimic how students, parents, counselors and son on are most likely to seek for mathematics support, we engaged in a web-based examination of departments of mathematics at 62 Canadian universities (including “university colleges”). Our objectives were to examine the types of degrees offered, admission protocols (including types of streaming or placement tests), methods for remedial support, accessibility of online information, mathematics help centers, courses for non-mathematics majors, and access initiatives as a preliminary step in analyzing the broader Canadian landscape in post-secondary mathematics education. Our findings reveal remarkably consistent practices across all institutions. A rethinking of practices may be necessary in order to support those students that appear to be underprepared for post-secondary mathematics.

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