Some may think I'm unlucky that I have already had four sessions with ESL clients, but I think I'm lucky. One of those clients is one I've met with three times now. Monday I met with her. She wanted help expressing her thoughts "grammatically correct." We weren't able to finish her one-page paper (though we met again later the day and finished it) because I noticed the same re-occurring error. She was having difficulty using the correct pronoun. She would say his instead of he. By the third time she had made this mistake, I pointed out the sentence and asked her what was wrong. Puzzled and becoming impatient with herself, she pointed out whichever word her pencil landed on. It was then I noticed we had to step away from the plan and focus on pronouns. I pulled out a scrap sheet of paper and wrote short, simple sentences, each of which used different pronouns. I emphasized who was the doer of the verb was and who was the object. I think it helped her seeing simple three word sentences. When I was unable to explain to her the difference between his and her, the examples I provided did. Though it took moving away from the plan and writing examples, she was able to provide examples with the right pronouns.
Although I believe the time spent with this client was beneficial for both of us, I think next time I meet with her (which I am certain we'll meet again since she asked for my hours), we should focus on the text as a whole, leaving the tedious, grammar details later in her drafting. I think I should begin by asking questions about the assignment, what she thought of the text, what her opinions are, how she felt while reading the text, and what she wants to say in her essay. I believe it'll be beneficial to get to her tell me what it is that she wants to us to say, rather than have her ask me how she should say something (grammatically correct). I am quickly seeing that most clients only want their grammar to be perfect. I am quickly seeing freshman writers ask where they should use semi-colons, as if the more of them they use, the better grade they'll get. Many students are beginning to put a lot of emphasis on the grammar that they forget it is what they say. It is the content, not the formality or "correctness" of the paper.
I wrote something a little similar in my blog this week, referring to focusing on what is actually being said in the paper. Students, (certainly myself included), can sometimes get hung up on technicalities rather than the text and it can be hard to find a happy medium. There is something to be said for an impeccable vocabulary and grammar, but it is just as important to have something to say!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great strategy you employed with this client, J.! I'm so impressed by your reflective capacity: You read something for class, and automatically translate the theory into good practice. Our writing center is lucky to have you.
ReplyDeleteAs Amy points out, over-emphasis on grammar and mechanics is common amongst students - but I think teachers have to take some of the blame for this. It's not that we score a disorganized, underdeveloped paper with perfect grammar and mechanics very high; we don't. Content absolutely matters. But I know colleagues who will shred a paper that is well-organized, well-developed, even insightful because the student doesn't use MLA citation appropriately or misuses a semi-colon or writes "there" when she means "their." What message does that send students? Quite simply, that it doesn't matter how good your ideas are, you'd better have the technical stuff perfect, too. I suppose the impression they walk away with, then, is that the technical stuff is really all that matters in the end.
That's obviously not to discourage you from your excellent plan of working more on Higher Order Concerns (HOCs) with all of your clients, ESL and NES alike. Just a teacher's perspective on where the grammar consciousness comes from.
It's good to have our client coming back so that we can see their progress. I also have a client, an ESL, who has already come to see me twice. At the first tutorial, he just came in with a topic and a small note. So I helped him generate his ideas with some leading questions. We talked for like an hour. Then I asked him to come back again with a written draft. The next time he came with the draft, I helped him with the development and organization of the essay. I suggested some ideas where he could improve his paper. He wanted me to proofread the paper before turning it in. It might be a good idea but if I were a writer, I would want different ideas about my paper. So I suggested he see another tutor next time. And he agreed. After he left, at some point I felt unsure if I was doing the right thing. I know he would still learn something from me, but I just want that student to experience different kinds of tutoring sessions.
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