Challenges of Teaching Academic Writing Skills to Students With Limited Exposure to English (South Africa (original) (raw)

Nonformal speech is often considered primary discourse and can be casually picked up in everyday conversational English. Formal English is considered secondary discourse and is usually learned through some form of apprenticeship in particular contexts. One would expect that after 12 years of instruction in English, students should at least be able to distinguish between conversational and formal English and would have enough proficiency in English to hold a sustained discussion. However, this is not always the case, particularly when reduced learner–teacher interaction occurs in English as a second language (ESL) contexts. Using a sample of a selected group of students, this enquiry mainly aimed to explore the English discourse skills some students from isiXhosa language homes and communities brought to the university as well as the English proficiency they demonstrated at the 2nd-year level. With a particular focus on a selected group of 2nd-year students, I set out to explore the spoken and written English proficiency of the students as well as the strategies they adopted to improve their proficiency. The conclusions and strategies for remedial action are thereafter discussed.

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