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Kingsborough Community College
The City University of New York
Syllabus
ESL BW 1: Foundations for College-Level Reading & Writing for English as a Second Language
Students, Part 1 - 0 credits, 4 hours
Course Coordinator: Dr. Martha Cummings
Course Description: ESL BW 1 is the first of a two-semester course sequence for English as a Second Language
students (ESL BW 2 is the second course of the sequence). This low-intermediate class
is a portfolio-based course in which students are assigned academic reading and writing
assignments of various genres and lengths. The course is designed to help students
develop the fluency, focus, analytical and organizational skills needed to become
successful college writers and to pass ELA Regents and college placement exams.
College Now Description: This is the first part of a two-semester course designed for students whose first
language is not English and who need to improve their writing and reading skills.
Activities include extensive reading, writing and revision, with an emphasis on developing
proficiency in writing for students who are at the basic level of developmental work.
Explanation: Kingsborough's College Now Program is part of a CUNY College Now Initiative. One of
the missions of this Initiative is to help high school students become competent readers
and writers so that they can perform well on ELA Regents and college placement exams
such as the CUNY ACT Reading and Writing Assessments.
The College Now ESL program, modeled after Kingsborough's ESL Program, is a content-based,
whole-language integrated reading and writing program. The whole-language fluency-first
approach was first introduced at City College and has been successfully replicated
with ESL and developmental English students at Kingsborough Community College. The
content-based and collaborative aspects of the program, which include forging a strong,
dynamic learning community among students in each section, are based on Kingsborough's
Intensive ESL Program, a collaborative and interdisciplinary content-based program.
The content-based whole-language approach requires that students do extensive reading
and writing in various genres in a particular content area of the instructor's choosing.
Readings for the course include at least one full-length work and articles, essays,
poems, etc. from the Internet, Newsweek, or other sources. Students keep journals about their reading, and they keep writing
journals as well. Students' written work includes the writing of a "book" or term
writing project that may be autobiographical or based on the thematic content of the
course. Students are required to read approximately 10 pages per day and to write
approximately 500 words per week, including revisions.
Results of Kingsborough's Intensive ESL Program reveal that through extensive reading
and writing, students improve their academic reading fluency and skills. They also
gain facility in academic writing, and are better able to manipulate the English language
to express their ideas, to explore their own thoughts and feelings, to write reflectively,
to develop ideas, to analyze and explain text, to provide support for their points
of view, to make relevant comparisons, and to explain causes and effects.
Course Objectives: Tasks and objectives are similar in both parts of the ESL course sequence. Reading
material, however, is aimed at a lower level in the first part of the course. In ESL
BW 1, full-length books would be less difficult in regard to vocabulary, syntax, and
complexity of concepts and information. Upon completion of the course, students should
be able to:
- Read and respond to readings of various lengths, both fiction and non-fiction:
Answer questions on readings in a clear, well-focused manner;
Paraphrase and summarize;
Analyze text;
Respond critically to text.
- Write fluent, clear, coherent, well-developed and well-organized essays of varying
lengths.
- Support ideas with explanation, example and reference to text.
- Revise written work with suggestions from peers, teachers, and students' own ideas.
Revision involves reworking and rethinking the essays, moving pieces around, rewriting
and expanding the material.
- Edit written work with assistance from peers with a fair degree of accuracy. Editing
for surface mechanics such as grammar, spelling and punctuation should be done after
the content of the essay has been organized and developed.
- Investigate course topics on the Internet and incorporate research material into student
writings.
Methods of Teaching: A whole-language, fluency-first approach in reading and writing which is student-centered
rather than teacher-directed is emphasized. That is, students take responsibility
for doing much of their work collaboratively in a small-group setting, with the teacher
assuming the role of facilitator. Students write daily, read their writing to each
other, offer suggestions to other group members, and revise written work. Activities
such as brainstorming, clustering and free-writing are emphasized. Point-of-view,
interview, and other writing formats are explored. Editing for correctness/mechanics
should be among the final steps in the writing process. Students respond to readings
in a variety of ways including copying text, reacting/responding, paraphrasing, summarizing,
analyzing, explaining, comparing/contrasting, etc. in double entry and other journal
formats. Journals are discussed, (often in groups) and problems with comprehension
and vocabulary are addressed in these groups. In ESL BW 1 there is also a need for
conversation, discussion, and readings which focus on cultural experiences in the
United States and other countries.
Assignments: There are daily reading/writing assignments that are discussed in class, often in
small-group situations. Internet research assignments are also given.
Method of Evaluation: A modified version of Kingsborough's portfolio assessment system, which is used to
evaluate students in ESL and developmental English courses, will be used. Portfolios
will include two revised essays with all drafts and a final in-class essay.
Required Reading: Readings consist of essays, magazine articles, and fiction/non-fiction books of varying
lengths.
Magazine: Newsweek
Books: Instructors choose from the list of recommended books. Books are often suggested
and added to the list. Books preceded by an asterisk are those that are recommended
for ESL BW 1.
*Axline, Virginia M. Dibs In Search of Self. Ballantine Books, 1964.
Cisneros, Sandra. The House on Mango Street. Random House, 1991.
Columbo, Gary. Rereading America. St. Martin's Press, 1989.
Danticat, E. Breath, Eyes, Memory. Soho Press, 1994.
Divakaruni, Chitra B. Multitude. McGraw Hill, 1993.
Dorris, Michael. The Broken Cord. Harper Perennial, 1989.
Esquivell, Laura. Like Water for Chocolate. Anchor Books, 1995.
*Grisham, John. The Firm. Dell Publishing, 1992.
*Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and The Sea. Macmillian Publishing Company: New York, 1987.
*Henley, Elizabeth. Focus on American Culture (book and video). Prentice Hall Regents, 1995.
Kirszner, Laurie and Stephen Mandell. Common Ground: Reading and Writing about America's Cultures. St. Martin's Press, 1993.
*Kunz, Linda A. 26 Steps - Controlled Composition for Intermediate and Advanced Language Development. Prentice Hall Regents, 1996.
Letkowitz, N. From Process to Product Beginning/Intermediate Writing Skills for Students Of ESL. Prentice Hall Regents, 1987.
*MacGowan-Gilhooly, Adele. Achieving Fluency in English. Kendell-Hunt, 1996.
MacGowan-Gilhooly, Adele. Achieving Clarity in English. Kendell-Hunt, 2001.
McBride, James. The Color of Water. Riverhead Books, 1996.
McKay, S. and Petitt, D. At the Door: Selected Literature for ESL Students. Prentice Hall Regents, 1984.
Moody, Anne. Coming of Age in Mississippi. Dell, 1976.
Puzo, Mario. The Fortunate Pilgrim. Fawcett Books, 1998.
Reid, Joy M. The Process of Paragraph Writing (2nd edition). Prentice Hall Regents, 1994.
*Steinbeck, John. The Pearl. Viking Penguin, 1993.
Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club. Ballantine Books, 1989.
Wolff, Tobias. This Boy's Life. Grove Atlantic, 2000.
Yen Yen Mah, Adeline. Chinese Cinderella. Bantam Doubleday Dell, 2001
*Yezierska, Anzia. Bread Givers. Persea Books, 1980.
Teacher Resource Materials:
Culture Watch Book & Video. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ. ISBN 0135039886.
Endy, Maxine (ESL CN Faculty Member). A Living Resource Integrating the Internet in the College Now ESL Curriculum. January 2001.
Health Watch Book & Video. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ. ISBN 0135017017.
Internet availability in computer classrooms.
Newsweek Website: newsweekeducation.com New York Times Website: nytimes.com/learning.
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