IE@Q-Rethinking Academic English: Balancing Assessment and Linguistic Diversity

The linguistic diversity of Canadian university campuses is increasing. According to enrolment figures from 2021, international students, many of whom have English as an additional language, comprise roughly 14% of the Queen’s undergraduate and graduate student population.

Additionally, recent census data from Statistics Canada shows that one quarter of Canadians, including current and future university students, identify a language other than English or French as one of their first languages. When looking beyond Canada and considering academic English on a global scale as the lingua franca of academia, students and academics with English as an additional language are the majority of academic English users (Mauranen & Hynninen, 2010). In many contexts, this diversity is viewed as a strength to be celebrated; however, within the Canadian post-secondary classroom, plurilingualism/multilingualism is not always valued and some instructors may regard the use of non-dominant languages as detrimental to students’ learning experiences. At the same time, several scholars have pointed to the harm generated by not accepting varieties of English in the classroom and linguistic racism has been linked to adverse mental health effects among international students. In response to these issues/conversations, this panel discussion explores faculty expectations around academic English at Queen’s and asks how we might balance concerns around needing a shared language for classroom discussions and assessment with the need to embrace the linguistic diversity of students.

Panelists:

Bronwyn Bjorkman, Associate Professor of Linguistics and Associate Head Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures

Paula Larrondo, PhD candidate in Engineering

Lindsay Morcom, Associate Professor and CRC in Language Revitalization and Decolonizing Education

For more information, visit: https://www.queensu.ca/conferences/internationaleducation/conference-schedule

To register, visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ieq-rethinking-academic-english-balancing-assessment-and-linguistic-div-tickets-460410308627

This event is part of International Education Week at Queen's. Learn more at https://www.queensu.ca/conferences/internationaleducation/