Academic Writing Tutorials for International Students: Deferring to an expert and follow-up advice

Abstract

To support international students using English as a second language, many universities now provide access to one-to-one writing tutorials with language teaching specialists. Although writing tutorials have become widespread, the current study is one of very few investigations into their interactional unfolding. This study examines advice giving as an interactional practice in 21 video recorded writing tutorials at a British university. Using Conversation Analysis and drawing upon Membership Categorisation Analysis, this study highlights two main contextual features of writing tutorials. First, advice is given in a context in which students can make use of two advising bodies for their studies; writing tutors and academic tutors. Second, although the writing tutors cannot give definitive advice on some issues raised by students and defer to their academic tutor, there still remains an interactional opportunity to offer some alternative forms of support during the tutorial. This study will primarily focus on the writing tutors’ post-deferral supporting practices. Despite claims that the writing tutors’ lack of subject-specific knowledge can lead to ineffective support, this study argues that writing tutorials with generalist language teaching specialists are a valuable site for international students to develop institutional knowledge that can support effective contact with academic tutors.

Keywords:

• Conversation analysis
• international student
• advice
• deferrals
• post-deferral support

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1 Sometimes referred to ‘in-course support’.

2 SWOT analysis is an established planning technique frequently used to help people or businesses identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of businesses or their own planning (see Dosher et al. 1960).