In recent years, the number of nonnative speakers of English in colleges and universities in North America has increased dramatically. As a result, more and more writing teachers have found themselves working with these English as a Second Language (ESL) students in writing classes that are designed primarily with monolingual, native-English-speaking students in mind. Since the majority of institutions require these students to enroll in writing courses at all levels, it is becoming increasingly important for all writing teachers to be aware of the presence and special linguistic and cultural needs of ESL writers. This increase in the ESL population has, over the last 40 years, been paralleled by a similar growth in research on ESL writing and writing instruction--research that writing teachers need to be familiar with in order to work effectively with ESL writers in writing classrooms of all levels and types. Until recently, however, this body of knowledge has not been very accessible to writing teachers and researchers who do not specialize in second language research and instruction. This volume is an attempt to remedy this problem by providing a sense of how ESL writing scholarship has evolved over the last four decades. It brings together 15 articles that address various issues in second language writing in general and ESL writing in particular. In selecting articles for inclusion, the editors tried to take a principled approach. The articles included in this volume have been chosen from a large database of publications in second language writing. The editors looked for works that mirrored the state of the art when they were published and made a conscious effort to represent a wide variety of perspectives, contributions, and issues in the field. To provide a sense of the evolution of the field, this collection is arranged in chronological order.

ESL Readers and Writers in Higher Education describes the challenges ESL students in U.S. postsecondary institutions face when studying in a second language, and offers suggestions for how teachers, advisors, tutors, and institutions might provide support that meets the reading and writing needs of this very important student population. Because the ESL profession as a whole, including what professionals are doing in the classroom, sits under the umbrella of an institutional response to a language-related challenge, some solutions aimed at helping students achieve optimal proficiency lie outside of the classroom. As such, this book is based on the assertion that language development support is not the sole responsibility of language teachers. Everyone on campuses that hosts ESL students bears some responsibility for these students' language development. Chapters are therefore, intentionally adapted to appeal to a wide variety of readers from classroom teachers, and teachers in training, to admissions officers, academic advisors, and international student advisors.

Teaching Academic ESL Writing: Practical Techniques in Vocabulary and Grammar fills an important gap in teacher professional preparation by focusing on the grammatical and lexical features that are essential for all ESL writing teachers and student-writers to know. The fundamental assumption is that before students of English for academic purposes can begin to successfully produce academic writing, they must have the foundations of language in place--the language tools (grammar and vocabulary) they need to build a text. This text offers a compendium of techniques for teaching writing, grammar, and lexis to second-language learners that will help teachers effectively target specific problem areas of students' writing. Based on the findings of current research, including a large-scale study of close to 1,500 non-native speakers' essays, this book works with several sets of simple rules that collectively can make a noticeable and important difference in the quality of ESL students' writing. The teaching strategies and techniques are based on a highly practical principle for efficiently and successfully maximizing learners' language gains. Part I provides the background for the text and a sample of course curriculum guidelines to meet the learning needs of second-language teachers of writing and second-language writers. Parts II and III include the key elements of classroom teaching: what to teach and why, possible ways to teach the material in the classroom, common errors found in student prose and ways to teach students to avoid them, teaching activities and suggestions, and questions for discussion in a teacher-training course. Appendices to chapters provide supplementary word and phrase lists, collocations, sentence chunks, and diagrams that teachers can use as needed. The book is designed as a text for courses that prepare teachers to work with post-secondary EAP students and as a professional resource for teachers of students in EAP courses.

The ESL Writer’s Handbook is a reference work for ESL students who are taking college-level courses. Because its purpose is to provide help with the broad variety of writing questions students may have when working on school assignments, the text focuses on English for Academic Purposes. Unlike other handbooks on the market, this book’s sole purpose is to address the issues of second language learners. The spiral-bound Handbook complements a student writer’s dictionary, thesaurus, and grammar reference book. It would be suitable as a text for an advanced ESL writing course when used together with the companion Workbook (978-0-472-03726-1). The new edition features significant revisions to Sections 3 and 4; in particular, both APA and MLA style guides have been updated and new sample papers for each are included. The new edition includes new and revised exercises and many new samples of student writing. Like its predecessor, the 2nd Edition has these special features: The topic selection is based on ESL writers’ needs as observed by the authors over many years. The coverage of topics is more complete than the limited amount usually provided for ESL writers in first language or L1 handbooks. The explanatory language is appropriate for ESL students, in contrast to the more complex and idiomatic language of other English handbooks. Many of the examples of paragraphs, essays, research papers, and exercise sentences were written by ESL students to help users realize that they too can become effective writers.

The CondensedESL Writer’s Handbook is a reference work for ESL students who are taking college-level courses. Because its purpose is to provide help with the broad variety of writing questions students may have when working on school assignments, the text focuses on English for Academic Purposes. Unlike other handbooks on the market, this book’s sole purpose is to address the issues of primary importance to language learners. The Condensed Handbook complements a student writer’s dictionary, thesaurus, and grammar reference book. It would be suitable as a text for an advanced ESL writing course. The Condensed Handbook is concise and easily navigated; is accessible, with clear and direct explanatory language; and limits its focus to the grammatical and style aspects of writing and reference material. Included as special features in the Condensed Handbook are: • The explanatory language is appropriate for ESL students, in contrast to the more complex and idiomatic language of other English handbooks. • The level of detail is more manageable for ESL students, compared to what is in other English handbooks. • Many of the examples of paragraphs and exercise sentences were written by ESL students; this encourages users of this Handbook to realize that they too can also become effective writers. • Additional samples of MLA and APA reference entries. The Full Handbook (978-0-472-03403-1) and Workbook (978-0-472-03404-8) are also available.

Finally, a book written for writing center tutors who assist ESL students. Combining practical tutoring advice with insights that build cultural bridges, ESL Writers helps tutors create a more meaningful and effective exchange between themselves and nonnative English speakers. ESL Writers is divided into three parts: Cultural Contexts examines many of the challenges students face as they become proficient speakers and writers of English. The ESL Tutoring Session focuses on individual meetings with students whose primary language is not English. Packed with helpful tips and new perspectives on familiar routines, this section demonstrates strategies likely to be effective with nonnative speakers. A Broader View adds depth and breadth to the discussion by demonstrating how writing centers abroad operate, offering insights into the rules and conventions of English, and sharing the stories of ESL students who visit the writing center. For tutors, this indispensable guide gives them the know-how to make better informed choices as they conduct sessions with ESL students. For writing center directors, ESL Writers is the perfect training text, and its examples and scenarios are the ideal jumping-off point for staff meetings and group problem-solving sessions.

Understanding ESL Writers: A Guide for Teachers responds to the overwhelming concern non-ESL faculty have expressed with the influx of ESL students into their classes.