How can HE tutors help international students to develop diverse academic literacy skills?

Academic literacy modelsskills based model Academic socialisation modelacademic literacies model

MethodsReview of the literatureAnalysis of marking criteria of assignmentsSemi-structured interviews with students

Case for diverse literacy practicesGilbert (2012) diversity provides an opportunity to

develop generic skills in different areas and to improve literacy

Wharrad, Allcock and Meal (1995), using different assignments can encourage the development of skills such as group work and IT skills

Billington (2010 p.1) students who did well in poster and presentations often did poorly in essays, and vice versa

Cope and Galantis (2002 p.4) increasing diversity in academic literacy practices means traditional textual meaning- making can be augmented by the inclusion of spatial, visual, audio, and behavioural meaning making

Literature suggesting issues with diversity of practiceDryden et al (2003): number of issues in meeting the

criteria of presentations. Firstly, reliability and validity of assessment: the criteria does not allow for consistency of marking, given the transient nature of presentations. Secondly, criteria such as voice are subjective, the criteria may not assess skills and knowledge as criteria such as delivery skills may overshadow them

D’Angelo (2005): posters frequently evaluated across three dimensions: the style and organisation, the oral presentation, and the content of the poster.

Long preparation time of 6-8 weeks for posters (Lippman & Ponton 1989), associated production costs (Pelletier 1993) and some difficulties with accessing resources (Rees 1990) (cited in Moule et al 1998)

Students’ responsesPresentations require a student to be able to

present effectively, utilise notes, and operate a slide show simultaneously.” (Ali-Adib, 2013)

Whilst learning to write essays helps to develop workplace skills, such as critical thinking and high levels of literacy, I can see the benefit of diversifying assignments to further develop skills. From doing presentations, for example, I have improved my time management, public speaking, and organisational skills.

ContinuedI get really stressed when I have to do

posters or presentationsI never know what lecturers are marking forI had to write abstracts in a specific style; I

had no idea what was requiredOne of our tutors asked us to use social

media platforms; I found it really hard I wish I just had to master essay writing,

instead of all these other assignments

Genre based approach“Genre” refers not only to types of literary texts but also to the predictable and recurring patterns ofeveryday, academic and literary texts occurring within a particular culture (Hammond andDerewianka, 2001).

What are the commonalities?What makes assignments different?How will a genre based approach support

learning?

Essay style assignmentsIssues ConventionsWork may lack structure

and clarity Repetition of ideas may be

an issueInappropriate grammatical

constructionsInappropriate /change of

use of tenseInconsistent or

inappropriate narrative mode, e.g. first person to third person

Referencing, using departments preferred conventions

Sustaining a clear line of argument

Consistent narrative mode

Structure- introduction, main body, conclusion

Presentations Issues conventionsMulti-tasking- eg

operating Power Point, utilising notes, and presenting effectively.

TimingsSpeaking clearlyRemembering phrasing Reading from notes/

slides

Content appropriate for a presentation

Use of slidesEffective deliveryVoiceUse of technology

Posters issues conventionsFormattingUsing columnsIncorporating graphs

and charts and picturesWorking with landscape

and A3 formatsWriting concisely

To be clear and readable from a distance

To be conciseOrganisation of the

materialImage content and qualityCorrect use of quotes and

appropriate fonts & styleEffective use of short

statementsSufficient white space

Lab Reportsissues conventionsInformation may not be

in the correct sectionReport may be too

descriptiveOver emphasis on

statistical information

Completeness, all sections must be completed

Scientific and technical validity. All information is correct, the theoretical description is valid, appropriate units and notations are chosen.

Presentation, the report such have a logical structure and be clear

Graphs and tables to be labelled

Methods to be clearly explained

Students’ experiences of useful supportOne to one sessions were useful Treating them as different types of

assignments helped me get to grips with them

Understanding how they were marked helpedPractising presentations and multi- tasking

was useful.I think you need to develop specific strategies

for different assignments

Using a genre based approachBuild the context- why is genre used- purposeDeconstruct the text- features of textJoint construction of the text- create a poster

in classIndependent construction of the text-

students to create their own poster

Multi- sensory approaches with a genre based approachIncorporate colour in presentations- red for

major points, green for minor pointsUse post it notes to identify different

elements of text- in an essay- highlight introductory elements, main arguments, and analysis etc.

Create a poster using paper, as opposed to on a computer programme

DiscussionSome evidence that diverse assignments can

be preferred by students. Students recognise the benefit of diversity in acquiring new skills

Increase in learning load, requiring students to respond to different tasks

ConclusionDiversity of assignments can be a positiveIssues with mastering diverse skills.

Students, however, recognised the opportunity for broadening of skills

Teachers can play a role in supporting students to develop skills

Treating presentations and posters as a genre requiring the acquisition of specific skills, teachers can support students in responding effectively to diverse assignments

References Billington, H. L. (2010). Poster presentations and peer assessment: Novel forms of evaluation and

assessment. Journal of Biological Education, 31(3), 218-220.

Cope, B., & Kalantzis, M. (Eds.). (2000). Multiliteracies: Lit Learning: Psychology Press.  D’Angelo, L. (2010). Creating a framework for the analysis of academic posters. Language Studies Working

Papers, 2, 38-50.

Dryden, L., Hyder, T., & Jethwa, J. (2003) Assessing individual oral presentations. Investigations in University Teaching and Learning, 1(1), 79-83.

Hammond, J., and Derewianka, B. (2001). Genre. In R. Carter & D. Nunan (Eds). The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Cambridge: Cambridge UniversityPress

Gilbert, F. (2012). Written assignment types in assessment: a varied and healthy diet?

Lea, M. R., & Street, B. V. (2006). The" academic literacies" model: Theory and applications. Theory into practice, 45(4), 368-377.

Moule, P., Judd, M., & Girot, E. (1998). The poster presentation: what value to the teaching and assessment of research in pre-and Post-registration nursing courses?. Nurse Education Today, 18(3), 237-242.

Wharrad, H. J., Allcock, N., & Meal, A. G. (1995). The use of posters in the teaching of biological sciences on an undergraduate nursing course. Nurse Education Today, 15(5), 370-374.