Course that I am teaching this term ( and last term as well) requires the students to do a presentation on the essays that they wrote. They have to do it in groups, combining the contents from each other’s essays. The allocation of groups were on random. As this is an Economic course, I did not put any expectation for their English level to be perfect. Benn (2000) recommends that is the teacher’s responsibility to make the rules clear to international students and this consist of the implicit as well as the explicit expectations. So, they were told beforehand what were expected from them. Sometimes, it is quite hard to understand or even to get the point that they made (and this is quite important especially when they are being graded for it). I totally understand what’s half of the International students are facing because I am an International students too. I would like to share two of the most frequent advises that I gave to my International students and perhaps the readers here could suggest more advises for me to give out or use my suggestions here to give out to your students.
First; Don’t think too much on the grammar during the presentation. International students were taught a very formal English language back home and it is always focused on grammar. The examinations were too focused on grammar. Cut it short, the grammar is everything if you learn English in non- English- speaking countries. So, I get it why sometimes they stopped in the middle of sentences, or when they try to connect between sentences. It is because they are trying to figure out the correct grammar to deliver the words.
Second; Rehearse well. Some students has told me that their group members who are native speakers don’t even need to rehearse. I told them that sometimes we have to accept that the everything is not created equal. Native speakers don’t have to rehearse as much as International students because they are confident with their speaking ability. International students that are facing this problem need to rehearse more if they feel they are not confident. Even native speakers did their rehearsal before deliver the presentations. So, it is expected for the International students who don’t have the confidence to rehearse more.
I think that it is my responsibility as an educator to encourage them to speak more in class to build their confidence for their presentations. I admitted to them that English is not my first language and I have to work hard and put aside my feeling for embarrassment to improve and I told them that they should do the same too. I asked them to just speak more, don’t think too much on the grammar and before the presentations, rehearse well.
Benn, R. (2000). Exploring Widening Participation in Higher Education: Targeting, Retention and ‘Really Useful Knowledge’, Seminar Presentation, University of Southern Queensland.
As a native English speaker, it is very useful to be aware of differences in language and the way that languages are taught to students. Your post highlights these differences clearly and shows a clear need for accounting for these differences in the classroom. Your suggestion for encouraging students to speak more in class is also useful. Personally, I try to engage as much as possible with shy students, but it would also be useful for me to create opportunities for engagement with students whose first language is not English. Thank you for your informative post.
Louisa Thomas