Beyond the EAP Border into Graduate Studies: Cross-institutional Curricular Models Jin Kim, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Nigel Caplan, University of Delaware English Language Institute
Agenda 1. Consortium on Graduate Communication (CGC) 2. Characteristics of major assignments and student needs 3. Recommendations for course designers
A professional community of graduate communication specialists Founded 2014 >450 members in 25+ countries Active email list http://gradconsortium.wordpress.com
Course Syllabus Project Cross- Specific Total disciplinary purposes (ESP) Writing (W) 20 6 26 Speaking/Oral (S) 3 0 3 Integrated skills (W/S) 4 4 8 21 universities Mostly U.S.
Overview of Major Assignments 1. Writing Assignments 1) Research-related (90%) 2) Source-based (48%) 3) Other short writing (57%) 2. Oral Assignments 3. Professionalization Assignments Refer to your handout!
Top 5 Research-related Writing Assignments Assigned in 90% of all W and S/W courses 1.Research paper (48%) 2.Annotated bibliography (40%) 3.Literature review (22%) 4.Individualized (22%) 5.Research proposal (18.5%)
Top 3 Source-based Writing Assignments Assigned in 48% of all W and S/W courses 1.Critique/article review (23%) 2.Summary (13%) 3.Argumentative paper (10%)
Other Writing Assignments Assigned in 57% of all W and S/W courses 1.Reflections (30%) 2.Blogging (13%) 3.Vocabulary journal (10%) 4.Project proposal (10%)
Student Needs: Top 1-5 Writing Tasks (UIUC data)
Student Needs: Top 6-10 Writing Tasks (UIUC data)
Top 5 Challenging Writing Tasks (UIUC)
Other Findings Students in advanced stages of their degrees: Have more diverse writing experiences • Find research papers and lit reviews more challenging • Tend to be more satisfied with ESL courses • Compared to STEM, SSHA students write: Fewer research proposals, tech reports, and abstracts • More reflective essays and case-based writing •
Oral Assignments Assigned in 41% out of all CGC courses (n=13 out of 32) 1.Oral presentation (100%) a. Topics : Research, culture, data commentary, definition of a term, business communication, article review, design b. Format : Conference style, individual or group assignments, whole-class and/or poster 2. Elevator speech (6.5%) 3.Other: debate, leading a discussion
Top 5 Speaking Tasks (UIUC) Data)
Top 5 Speaking Challenges (UIUC Data) Giving presentations at conferences 45% Asking and answering questions in a job interview 44% Leading discussions 42% Participating in whole-class discussions 42% Giving presentations in class 36%
Professionalization Assignments Interview with scholars/mentors (6) • CV (3) • Application letters (3) • Bio (2) • Other: Digital story telling, department seminar analysis, memo, professional development activity report
A Case (Study) in Point: MBA Faculty survey, n = 28 University of Delaware Lerner School of Business 23 tasks 1 = not important ←→ 5 very important
MBA: Importance of Skills Rank Domain Rating (s.d.) 1 Listening 4.58 (.48) 2 Reading 4.17 (1.04) 3 Speaking 4.14 (.92) 4 Culture 3.71 (1.12) 5 Writing 3.69 (1.37)
Implications 1. Meeting diverse students’ needs across disciplines by a. Having students choose final projects (e.g., a paper for another course, publication, thesis) b. Requiring interviews/meetings with mentors in their field c. Having Ss Collect writing models from their field d. Aligning assignments with their identified needs
Implications 2. Making our communication classes more relevant a. Integrate professionalization assignments b. Create authentic assignments/environments for communication c. Take advantage of the cross-disciplinary course setting
Implications 3. Support oral communication as well as writing 79% of CGC universities offer writing classes 49% offer oral communication classes (Caplan & Cox, 2016) 4. Differentiate support (Caplan & Cox, 2016) PhD vs Master’s Pre-matriculation, coursework, proposal, thesis
Coming soon …! University of Michigan Press Summer Institute 2016 May 2016 “Bridging English Language Teaching and Writing Studies in Supporting All Graduate Writers” June 9 - 11 Yale University http://gradconsortium.wordpress.com
Questions?
[Extra Slide] Student Needs: Writing skills (UIUC) Logical development of ideas and arguments 37% Synthesizing ideas from different sources or data 30% Developing research questions or thesis 29% Using appropriate vocabulary 29% Reading and understanding sources 23%
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