Academic Writing Structure: Universal? Not!

Coming to America: When English isn't Your First Language

At Lake Superior College, there are students from all over the world.  Many of them have a Primary Language that is not English, yet here, they must speak, listen, read, and write in English.  That they are successful, and they are, is absolutely amazing.  Kirsi Halonen, LSC English Instructor, was once one such student, and here she:  1. Explains ways that languages, like her native Finnish, are fundamentally different from English, and how she still struggles with some things today.  2. Recalls the things that helped her become a fluent English speaker.  3. Teaches us some basic Finnish so we’re prepared for our next trip to Finland.  Kirsi also recommends certain soap operas that were key to her learning, and probably streaming today.  Listen in.

Reading: Inseparable From Writing

All of this talk about writing. I think it’s time to acknowledge reading. It’s not rocket science that there’s a connection between the two. LSC Reading faculty Keri Stimpson talks with us here about:  1. The literal relationship between these two critical acts.  2. How college reading – reading for content – is hard work, and our social media habits are not exactly helping.  3. Several strategies that writers and readers can use today to get the most out of their reading and writing.  Keri also mentions bears on campus.  Listen in.

Academic Writing Structure: Universal? Not!

All of this stuff you’ve been learning in Comp class? You know, thesis statements, Intros, bodies, conclusions, transitions, citations? All good stuff, right? Well, LSC’s Lindsy Mason O’Brien says sure. Fine. But wait?   She maintains that:  1. There are other ways of academic writing that are totally different and legit in other cultures and contexts.  2. That a clear thesis statement and cracker jack topic sentences might actually be insulting to some readers.  3. That our obsession with citing sources is exactly that. It’s ours, meaning US academic culture’s obsession. In other places, that’s done differently, too.  Lindsy also recommends that we eat our broccoli.  Listen in.

Bob's Your Uncle: How the English Do Writing

As we know from an earlier episode with Amy Jo Swing, this English language comes from...England. OK. Pretty obvious, but in this episode, British expatriate Nicola Scott from LSC’s Tutoring and Learning Center unpacks for us what she learned about writing back in her school days. It’s kind of surprising:  1. That what we would call high school (secondary school) ends much younger there.  2. That after secondary school, there is literally no parallel thing to our College Composition.   3. That Nicola really thinks College Composition courses are a great opportunity that develop even more than writing skills.  Pay attention, because once you hear Nicola speak, Bob’s your uncle this episode will be over. We’ll unpack that weirdness near the end. Listen in.

Thesis: Take Your Pick - Diagnosis, Captain, or Map

Let me guess. You’ve been waiting and waiting for an episode on Thesis Statements. You are in luck, because Paul Richgruber and Jocelyn Pihlaja met me at Mexico Lindo one night to talk about just that. Paul, a writer and history faculty, was really there to get some insight into how to help his students arrive at better theses. And the three of us? Well, we dig into:  1. Analogies from the real world to help students picture theses in different ways.  2. How students who are struggling with the concept can discover a thesis. 3. How a good title is the best friend of a good thesis, and why titles matter, too.  You may have noticed that the plural of thesis is, well, theses, which sounds strangely like things left by dogs on Duluth trails. Don’t let that sidetrack you. Watch your step, and listen in.