"Reading to Write" in East Asian Studies.

Abstract

A reading-writing initiative called “Reading to Write” began in 2011‒12 at the University of Toronto as a partnership between an East Asian Studies (EAS) department and an English Language Learning (ELL) Program. In this institution, students are expected to enter into scholarly discussions in their first year essays, yet many (both native English speakers and nonnative speakers) did not seem to adequately comprehend or to complete the assigned reading. With a large number of multilingual students enrolled in its courses, EAS was seen as the ideal site to pilot integrated support for English language proficiency. Language-teaching methodology related to reading comprehension, vocabulary expansion, and academic writing was adapted to the disciplinary material and embedded in the curriculum of weekly tutorial (small group) sessions led by TAs. The initiative has resulted in a rapid development in TAs’ teaching ability as well as a rise in EAS department morale. Although a formal study has not been undertaken, the perception among TAs and faculty is that the quality of students’ reading and writing has also improved.