Date: Thursday, 25 May 2017
Speakers: Timothy Mossman from Simon Fraser University
This was an overview of the services the SLC at SFU provides to shape student success: workshops, consultations, print and online resources, as well as through classroom collaborations with faculty. Tim described their unique multi-tiered approach to providing these services, which involves professional staff, graduate students, and student volunteers. The focus was on English as an Additional Language (EAL) support and services that he coordinates, including workshops, non-credit courses, and the conversation partners program. He concluded by sharing the results of an evaluative pilot study designed to examine how the current designation โEALโ is understood by the many English language learners who seek help from the Student Learning Commons and the possible implications of this study for how their services are marketed and delivered services to their diverse international and domestic EAL clientele. A lively discussion was held afterwards in which Tim asked the following questions:
- How do you communicate/market to students what resources exist at the university to assist them to learn English in an academic environment?
- How do you identity what gaps exist in your support (if any) for students and how do you fill those gaps?
- What supports and services have students initiated (if any) that you have built for them?
How do you foster interdisciplinary collaborations with Faculties and Units?