NEEDS ANALYSIS AND COLLABORATION TO SUPPORT GRADUATE ESL

NEEDS ANALYSIS AND COLLABORATION TO SUPPORT GRADUATE ESL INSTRUCTION Kay Stremler, MA (TESOL), Ph. D (Chemistry) Lecturer, ESL Program; kstremle@emich. edu TESOL 2015

Session Outline Situation Needs Surveys EAP Applications Discipline-Specific Collaboration Conclusions

Eastern Michigan University Graduate focus on Masters degrees Eastern Michigan University has nearly 5, 000 graduate students pursuing master's degrees, graduate certificates, specialist degrees and doctoral programs in more than 180 unique academic programs http: //www. emich. edu/graduate/admissions/ Student populations • • • Total students on campus: approx. 24, 000 Total graduate students: approx. 5, 000 Total international students: approx. 1, 000

Internationals at EMU, Fall 2013 Top 10 Majors for Internationals – About 56% are Graduate Students Accounting and Finance 127 Computer Information Systems 80 Computer Science 69 Business and Management 54 Clinical Research Administration 52 Chemistry 33 Engineering Management 30 Economics 29 Biology 28 Engineering Technology 27

EMU ESL Program Intensive English Admission ESL Conditional Admission to a degree program - Classes do not count for credit - Students may take only ESL classes - Classes may count for credit - Students may be eligible to take degree courses at the same time Students in both admission types participate in the same classes with the same course requirements and the same program advancement procedures.

EMU ESL Program Foundation s Beginning Intermediate Advanced Academi c Graduate Writing Writing Reading Reading Spk/Lis Spk/Lis Electives Electives Disciplinespecific courses

Faculty Survey Goals Understand student’s needs for additional language and cultural support to be successful Focus on language skills and cultural knowledge needs across specific types of assignments and academic units on campus Establish contacts across campus for further collaboration in support of international graduate students

Faculty Survey Approach Who Instructional faculty and academic administrators How/When Survey Monkey, distributed via email in 2011 What Thirteen questions Identifies college and department Focus on faculty who teach internationals in graduate courses Four specific multi-part questions about: � oral skills � tasks requiring written skills � critical analysis skills � academic interactions at U. S. universities

Oral Skills Questions Please indicate tasks requiring oral skills where your international graduate students need improvement (check all that apply). Answer Options discuss course topics or research projects with a group of students present projects or research in an academic environment present projects or research in a professional environment understand be understood by EMU course instructors in class participate in impromptu discussion with others in their major field of study provide instructions to undergraduate students communicate effectively (verbally) with other professionals in their field Other (please specify)

Writing Skills Questions Please indicate tasks requiring written skills where your international graduate students need improvement (check all that apply). Answer Options write essays on exams or outside of class write technical research papers write experimental scientific research papers integrate sources into writing document/cite sources quote, paraphrase and summarize self-edit grammar use peer review and revision/editing strategies Other (please specify)

Critical Analysis Questions Please indicate tasks requiring critical analysis skills where your international graduate students need improvement (check all that apply). Answer Options read research articles read research abstracts read academic text books summarize and analyze research articles synthesize information and ideas from multiple journal articles Other (please specify)

Cultural Perspectives Questions U. S. cultural perspectives are reflected in academic interactions at U. S. universities. Please mark all of the areas that you think international graduate students in your department need to learn more about (check all that apply). Answer Options American academic expectations American professional expectations American work ethic and pace presenting their opinion interacting with others who have differing opinions asking questions and clarifying information politely plagiarism and cheating managing miscommunications Other (please specify)

Faculty Survey Priorities Question: Please indicate tasks where your international graduate students need improvement: Oral Present research projects or research in an academic environment Participate in impromptu discussions with others in their field Writing Self-edit grammar Quote, paraphrase and summarize Document/cite sources Integrate sources into writing Write essays on exams or outside of class Critical Summarize and analyze research articles Analysis Synthesize information and ideas from multiple research articles Culture Presenting their opinion

Graduate ESL Courses Course Content ESLN 512 Graduate ESL Writing ESLN 514 Graduate ESL Reading ESLN 516 Graduate ESL Spkng/Lstng ESLN 518 Graduate ESL Vocabulary ESLN 562 Research Communication for Int’l Students in Science and Technology ESLN 565 Professional Healthcare Communication for Int’l Students

Discipline-Specific Professional Skills � � � ESL integration across campus through collaboration to meet needs Creation of customized graduate-level, creditbearing courses New aspect of our ESL Program offerings: Discipline-specific professional skills

Discipline-Specific Course Development 1. Define needs with content department faculty a. met with department graduate program advisor or advisory board b. reviewed feedback with program advisor c. received additional program materials (syllabus, articles, lab teaching assignment description, etc. 2. ESL staff collaborated to design skills, assignments and assessments. 3. Reviewed course design with program advisor. 4. Instructor developed final syllabus, calendar, materials >>> Approx. timeline – 3 months; we set the pace

Chemistry Faculty Survey Priorities Oral Writing Comprehensible presentation of scientific and technical methods and concepts Impromptu scientific discussion and instructions to students Appropriate use of citations and incorporation of prior work in scientific report writing Use of peer review and self-revision/editing strategies. Analyze and summarize scientific journal abstracts Critical Thinking Summarize a scientific journal article Culture Synthesize scientific information and ideas from multiple journal articles. Presenting their scientific reasoning Asking questions during scientific discussion

Unique Features � � Professional communication skills Professional competence (ethical context) beyond academics Cultural competence in a professional setting Discipline-specific academic skills and language development

Skills, Assignments and Assessments � � Articulate skills needed, discipline specific assignments and assessments of competence Describe in terms that faculty collaborators can relate to Use iterative collaboration to guide definition of the framework Use framework as basis for syllabus, assignments and calendar

Sample Skills, Assignments and Assessments Skills Assignments Assessments Appropriate use of citations and incorporation of prior work in scientific report writing Written evaluation of hedging and qualifying claims in a scientific journal article. Written introduction to an experimental research report. Written discussion and conclusions sections of an experimental research report. Written assignments assessed for expression of ideas: • Identification of author/ source • Logic • Comprehensibility • Grammatical accuracy • Use of own words • Organization of main points • Structure • Use of specific language • Appropriate use of citations

Success! � � � Ongoing communication with program advisors Pre- and post-testing of skills Student surveys (post-course and one year later) Faculty feedback one and two years after first offering Immediate identification of course revisions (minor) with program advisor Regular individual faculty and student feedback

Pre- and Post-Testing Tasks– Critical analysis demonstrated through reading and writing Task 1 Analyze an abstracts’ components. Answer each question below by identifying the number of the sentence(s) that provides the information requested e. g. , 1, 2, etc. Swales and Feak (2009) Task 2 Write a brief summary (as a short paragraph ) based on the abstract content.

Student Feedback Overall how helpful were the goals of Research Communication for International Students in Science and Technology to you for success in your graduate program? Response choices: Very helpful, somewhat helpful or not sure Feedback requested at course end and 1 -year later

Program Faculty Feedback 1 -Year after 1 st course offering completed � Do these students demonstrate the writing skills necessary to succeed in their program? � YES

Conclusions on Course Effectiveness � � � ESLN 562 course goals support student success in their graduate programs Students are better prepared for overall program success Course is a graduate program elective for chemistry and biology international students Fourth course offering completed Fall 2014 Participation in chemistry program revisions as a collaborator (2014 -2015)

Course Offering Expansion Simultaneously developed and taught ESLN 565 for the graduate Clinical Research Administration program 1. same process 2. different context/needs 3. five years of successful completion 4. required course for internationals in CRA program Resolving original problem of plagiarism in research writing Sustaining program dependent on interactions with community partners

Conclusions Goals: To provide: 1. Professional language support for international graduate students – regardless of TOEFL score 2. Resources for graduate program faculty Outcome: To remain a collaborative, innovative, effective service to our campus.

Acknowledgements ESL Program Director Professor of Chemistry and Graduate Advisor Chemistry Department Chair, Chemistry Professor of Biology and Graduate Advisor Interim Assistant Dean, College of Arts and Sciences Professor of Clinical Research Administration and Graduate Advisor