This questionnaire is divided into two sections. In Section A you simply put a tick in the boxes which apply to you. Section B has four questions which require a short written response from you.
Although this questionnaire is written in English, please write your responses in whichever language you would like to. Your responses will be translated by mother tongue speakers of the language/s you use. In the group interview you will be able to check that your written responses have been accurately interpreted.
STUDENT NAME: .
SECOND SEMESTER MODULES (1999)
a .
b .
POSTAL ADDRESS:
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CONTACT NUMBERS: (Including code) Home:
Work:
Cell:
Fax:
Page 1
1. Which of the following kinds of writing do you do most often outside of your work or university context ie. at home and over weekends? Please put a tick in the appropriate boxes.
There are extra boxes for you to add any other examples that are not here. If there is still not enough space, write on the back of this page.
Kind of writing Not often Often Every Language
(less than (two to five day choice
once a times a
week) week)
Filling in bank forms/ claim forms Making a shopping list
Signing children's homework books Writing Union reports
Sending e-mail messages to friends Making notes for Bible study classes Writing invitations to a .birthday party/
wedding/ prize giving Writing out cheques Filling in donation forms
Writing personal letters to friends Drawing up a family budget Recording telephone numbers and addresses
Appointments in a diary Taking down messages
2. The following are e~amplesofextended! longerkinds of writing. How often do you do these?
Again, please put a tick in the boxes which apply to you, and add any other examples not listed here.
Kind of writing Never Not often Regularly Language
(1 or 2 (every 1 or choice times 2 months)
a year) Poetry
Children's stories Short stories for adults Comic strips
Letters to the personal column in magazines Letters about social and/or political issues to newspapers or magazines
Letters to educational magazines/ newspapers Words for songs
Music
Textbook writing Personal journal/ diary
3. Whi~h of the following best describe you as a writer when you write LILT assignments. You can tick more than one box, and add any other words you would like to.
o
o o o o o o o
o o o
skilled confident struggling successful unsuccessful nervous frightened
SECTIONB
1. Which kinds of writing that you do privately/ personally have helped you cope with assignments in theLILT module? Please explain why you think this is the case.
2. How can the writing demands in theLILT module be changed so that you can use the writing skills and experiences you already have?
3. How would you have liked your understanding of the key concepts and principles of the LILT module to be assessed i.e. what method (or combination of methods) of assessment would you have liked us to use? Please give as much detail as possible here.
4. Do you think some kind of special writing skills development programme should be included in the first year ofthe B.Ed programme? If yes, please explain your answer, giving examples of what you think should be covered. If no, please explain your answer too.
Many thanks for your time and effort!
Page 4
Interview questions
1. How would you describe the kind of writing that the REd demands of you?
Descriptive/ narrative/ argument! report! procedural? Are these demands consistent across modules?
2. When you started the REd, did you feel powerful! confident as a writer, or inadequate?
3. Did this change as the course went on? In what way?
4. Did you think you would be penalised if you didn't write in exactly the way your lecturers wanted you to? Were you in fact penalised? How?
5. What are your feelings on how assignments were marked in LILT? The other modules you did? Where did markers put their emphasis - on grammar, spelling etc.
or meaning, or organisation and structure? Was this the 'right' emphasis?
6. How many of your markers 'coached from the margin'? Or did you get comments like 'tease out'/ 'elaborate'/ 'make explicit'/ 'put more structure'? What kinds of comments were completely meaningless/ unhelpful to you? What kinds of comments would you have liked? .
7. Were there clear indications of the standard of work and style of writing expected of you in LILT? In the other modules? How were these conveyed to you? How would you have liked them conveyed?
8. Did you ever feel 'falsely encouraged'? - in LILT? In the other modules? As in, the lecturer making comments to you - either verbally or in writing - that you were' on the right track'/ 'doing well' , only to discover in assignments that your grades contradicted this? What are the issues at stake here? What is happening?
9. What 'cultural issues' impacted on your performance/ university writing - in LILT?
In the other modules? Were you aware of power relations which had their source in cultural difference? Is there a way round these?
10. What 'conditioning' within you, either stops you challenging the university 'writing norms', or makes you feel confident to ignore/ manipulate/ deny them in order to make your own voice heard?
11. What is the most difficult thing you had to face when you did LILT? Any other REd module?
12. In your own view, what areas of your writing need improvement? Are you clear on how to improve these?
13. When you think about it now, which writing context (school/ home) prepared you most for university writing? Which school writing experiences contributed
particularly negatively/ positively to the kind of writing expected of you at the university?
14. What do you understand the term 'academic discourse' to mean? How is this different from the kind of writing you do outside the university? How would you interpret the term 'academic literacies'? Is this a more accurate reflection of what goes on in the academic context ie. that each discipline/ module has its own way of doing things? So what is common to them all and makes us able to say that one student 'writes well' and another 'writes badly'?
15. How many discourse communities do you belong to?
16. Which gemes dominate here? Which of these intimidate you, which are you confident of?