Acknowledging Differences in Writing

    
         The readings from this week were full of wonderful insights! I have always enjoyed writing, and looking at it from a multi-dimensional, multilingual, and multicultural standpoint was very beneficial.
The Contrastive Rhetoric Hypothesis Theory was first brought up in Hinkel Chapter 4. It is where different speech communities have different ways of organizing ideas in writing. Native English speakers can't judge nonnatives, because as we learned through the readings, different cultures write in different styles and with different structures! What is acceptable to us will likely be different than in another culture. However, there are some criticisms of this theory. We need comparable data to have meaningful contrastive research. It is hard to compare genres and writing styles cross-language. In fact, there may be different rhetorical patterns associated with different genres. Also, there may be genres in one or more languages/cultures without counterparts in other languages and cultures. One example of different writing styles based on cultures is how an argumentative text in American and British English is defined by problem-solution structure and its purpose is to convince readers of superiority of the solution provided in text. However, in Hindi, the issue is discussed with different opinions and approaches and then gently arrived at a desired solution. A recap of the essay is not necessary in the conclusion, unlike in the writing style I have grown up using! One of the biggest dangers we can fall into is assuming nonnatives are incapable of contributing to the growth of revelant knowledge just because their writing style is different and may not seem legitimate enough because of its distinctions. This is why it is so important that both the reader and writer, regardless of cultural background in writing, share a mutual understanding of expectations and norms of the other. On page 85 of Hinkel, it states that, "the reader is the space on which all the quotations that make up a writing are inscribed without any of them being lost; a text's unity lies not in its origin but its destination" (Barthes, 1977, p. 148). Interpretation is key. Each party should have mutual responsibility, whether it be in writing or reading. An openness to other traditions enriches the available and acceptable range of linguistic structures and rhetorical modes. It is the combination of tension between received conventions and the innovative spirit of the individual that produces good writing in acedmic disciplines.
         In Hinkel Chapter 6, I really enjoyed many of the points made regarding ESL college classes and whether or not they were suitable/acceptable for students, particularly in regards to writing expectations. I currently work with bilingual students in a Reader's Theater program and I work with many children outside of this as well. That is why I am always looking for new ideas, such as dialogue journals, portfolios, etc. Hinkel discussed the use of multiple drafts to really allow students to learn from their mistakes and further develop their writing skills. However, there are precautions that teachers need to make when working with ESL students. By over-emphasizing students writing about their culture and their homeland, we emphasize the differences and make them feel more foreign. Instead, why don't we have them write also about their experiences in the US thus far? Not all of them JUST got to the US anyways! The last thing we want to do is dichotomize cultures. Hinkel states, "writing is so tied to thinking- the inner expression of a person's being- and to communicative style- it's outer expression- thus touching core of writer's identity." So many students have to focus on the exotic parts of their lives and cultures, minimalizing the normality of their cultures! Teachers must be careful not to misunderstand or blow off student comments and insights. It is good to talk about such things. Don't assume students from the same culture share the same mindset or perceptions. One way to get everyone on an equal talking basis is by choosing topics that ALL students can give opinons on, such as issues ongoing in the US. Overall, we must find the balance of acknowledging students' histories and cultural stories while at the same time not alienating them through doing so. We want students to be genuinely motiated, not writing for sympathy, to please the teacher, or because they felt forced to 'open up.' Live in the moment, and make it teachable.
         There are many differences between ESL and native English speakers' writing, as the article "Writing in Multicultural Settings" showed us. ESL texts tend to be shorter in word count and include more errors (spelling, lexicosemantic errors, etc.) Native English speakers tend to write in a deductive manner, going from general to specific. This is not the case with everyone though. Japanese writers write in an inductive manner. Arabics give warnings and are less defining with their writing, while Native English speakers (NES) state rationales for decisions matter-of-factly. ESL writers tend to use undefined terms, have irrelevant detail adn information, and use less of an essay form. Growing up, I remember being taught in school multiple writing strategies. Attention-getting devices were one. I feel as though Americans 'dress up' their essays a lot, finding ways to really engage and persuade the audience. Many ESL writers are less explicit with their writing because they don't want to come off too aggressive.I find this very interesting. It would be interesting to study which method is most effective in convinving readers to see from the writer's perspective? I think it makes sense that ESL writers tend to rely more on texts than NES writers because it may be harder for them to paraphrase what they read, writing it in a different way. They can often be repetitive, perhaps to fill up more space. This is what I call 'fluff.' Thus, a question arises. Should ESL students take classes designed just for them, or should they be in mainstream composition and literary classes? When do these differences in writing styles become deviances? Are they potentially harmful, and in which contexts? Teachers need to give attention to process and product, as well as strategic and textual concerns.
According to Kubota's article "Unfinished Knowledge," the view on culture in teaching ESL reflects the teacher's good intentions to respect cultural difference instead of denying it." Another interesting point I found in this article was how many teachers, such as in the story about Barbara, are quick to assume something must be wrong with the student if they are not being successful in writing. However, I wonder if it is just because we are comparing their writing to the standards of which we were taught here in the US? I imagine it to be like money exchange. You can't expect people in Morocco, Africa to accept US dollars because they are not worth the same- they carry a different amount and value. We are so fast to judge others with our own cultural frame of reference. In the United States, we write with so much emphasis on self-expression and critical thinking. In Japanese, they write much more vaguely. You don't say what you mean the first time, or that would be too harsh. What an interesting distinction! In Chinese, presenting the self in writing too obviously would give people the impression of being boastful in scholarly writing. It is insights like this that allow me to understand why the US often gets the stereotype of being self-indulged and self-centered! Perhaps writing portrays and reflects more than we think...and perhaps we are getting to accustomed to our writing style and failing to see other ways it can be interpreted...One important aspect to remember is that students need not abandon their own culture in writing. They simply need to acquire new cultural conventions in order to succeed in the academic opportunity. It's hard for English speakers to understand Japanese written texts because we lack cultural and linguistic knowledge, not because the text is organizd in a culturally specific way. A strategy teachers can use is engaging the class in topics that are relevant to their lives. Also, the teacher should familiarize themselves with other cultures so we are better able to defend and expand student knowledge! By showing in interest in our students' lives and what they have to offer, we build their confidence and self-concept! Essentialism is when culture is objective, a fixed category that can be discovered scientifically (it is born!). Constructionism is when culture is produced, as implicated in politics and ideology and employed to exercise power.
         One of my favorite parts of the readings this week was seeing how activities teachers plan in the classroom may backfire and have an undesired effect. This is important to know for any teacher! We must always be aware and attentive to how our students are responding to activities. We can't assume things will go as planned. For example, having students compare and contrast target bersus native language and culture might reinforce fixed, polarized views of cultures. Discussing stereotypes may reinforce colonial dichotonomy. Encourage students to be critical thinkers! This is such an important lifeskill that definitely pays off! Ask students about perceptions they have of cultures and when such characteristics apply. Find videos and readings that question stereotypical assumptions. Encourage your students not to listen and accept everything they hear but to challenge and think about it themselves. Students need to learn to advocate for themselves! Raise critical consciousness of how social justice is concealed behind commonly accepted glorious images of culture. Challenge yourself to account for cultural differences in the classroom while still avoiding stereotyping.
Overall, I really enjoyed the readings this week. I gained a lot new ideas and thoughts about how I can be the best teacher I can be. It is important that we take into consideration a student's culture and writing style associated with this culture in order to best serve the student and allow them to be all they can be. We must be careful not to judge the student by their writing style. This is unfair to them, since we all come from different places and educational backgrounds. Just like money used in different countries, so does the writing style drastically change and have more worth with how it is interpreted, or exchanged, in different countries.