Second-Language Writing in the Composition Classroom: A Critical Sourcebook by Matsuda, Paul Kei, Cox, Michelle, Jordan, Jay, Ortmeier-Hoop (2010) Paperback

by Paul Kei Matsuda

Excellent Book

Paperback

First published July 8, 2010

Reviews

[Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think it's extremely difficult to pull together a good set of readings about English as a Second Language (ESL) issues, mainly because cultural sensitivities and awareness have increased so much in recent years. The internet, which allows us to access multiple parts of the world and multiple cultural views much more easily has helped (in my opinion) break down some of our tendencies to see other cultures/ethnicities/peoples as monolithic--we are more aware now of how dynamic and multi-faceted cultures are. But many ESL essays, especially those written before the mid-1990s, are much more likely to present ESL students as one-dimensional, locked into the norms of their cultures and so on.
That being said, I think this reader pulls together a variety of texts on ESL students' issues--some more culturally sensitive than others--and gives overall a good picture of how complex dealing with ESL students really is. The reader also has articles dealing with issues like incorporating one or two ESL students into a class of predominantly Native Speakers of English, which is the situation I tend to encounter in my first year composition courses. And the reader does have articles addressing differences between types of ESL students in terms of immigants, second-generation bilingual Americans, Non-Standard English Dialect speakers, and so on.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My professor is one of the co-authors on this book. This is a collection of articles on different topics that composition instructors will face in teaching writing. Let's face facts, the days where all your students spoke Enlgish as their first language (if this ever even existed) is past. Every composition instructor is going to be teaching L2 writers. I felt that this book covered topics that were applicable to my job and to my research interests. There were articles on plagiarism, peer-review workshops, language use, etc. This was an excellent collection of articles on second language writing in the composition classroom.

Update Nov. 2013:
I used this anthology extensively for my exams. The readings I found most helpful were:
Chiang, Y. D., & Schmida, M. (2006). Language identity and language ownership: Linguistic conflicts of first-year university writing students.
Land, R. E., & Whitley, C. (2006). Evaluating second-language essays in regular composition classes: Toward a pluralistic U.S. rhetoric.
Valdés, G. (1996/2006). Bilingual minorities and language issues in writing: Toward profession wide responses to a new challenge.