Amanda Wiehl Presentation at EFL_IS Academic Session

Editor's Notes

1. Amanda Wiehl Fulbright T.A. Poznan Poland Presentation on my experience of teaching English academic writing course at the university level Efforts to CR in the teaching of English discourse
2. Writing is culturally influenced in complex ways The point I would like to focus on is What other research has shown is that CR is useful
3. CR allows exploration of L1 and L2
4. Writing is tied to intellectual history Sapir-Whorf- Culture influences language Children learn discourse styles in school Discourse patterns can be incomprehensible to foreign readers
5. Expectations of the reader determine how well-perceived the piece is Reader responsive (Digressive texts) put heavy demands on reader’s processing abilities making it appear redundant
6. The expectations of the reader determine how well-written a piece is perceived to be
7. Globalization of professional communities- Rapid internationalization Differing reader and writer expectations could cause misunderstandings and breakdowns in communication Misunderstanding of academics Proficiency in English is a comodity- Skill to be acquired
8. For Students and Teachers Linguistic Variety
9. L1 is an important resource not a barrier to L2 Reader/Writer responsibility expectations Keep audience expectations in mind when writing- Few students are explicitly taught how to write
10. Textbook examples Implicit and explicit instruction Student discussion of analysis and patterns
11. Transition words, pronoun usage for consistency of topic Look at how structures promote meaning
12. Students unaccustomed to this teaching style. Used to passive Polish learning style
13. Weekly writing assignments Meetings requested by teacher or student We looked students’ individual patterns of writing and analyzed this and their progress. Not to discourage their writing style when writing in Polish but to educate about how to write in English. Empowering process
14. Assignment from Annenburg Media Project Revisions Attention to only underlined parts- SUBJECTS Use of pronoun- textual device utilized in English writing
15. Look at other languages and features of CR to see if valid for other languages Cultural rhetoric can be preserved but not applied wholesale to English