Penn StateUniversity Undergraduate Advising Handbook

 

ADVISING PLACEMENT GUIDE
TALKING POINTS TO ASSIST ESL STUDENTS IN CHOOSING
ENGLISH COMPOSITION COURSES

(Reference: Scheduling First-Year Writing Courses)

During the first week of classes, students in ESL 004 and ESL 015 take an in-class writing test to confirm that they are in the appropriate course.

  ESL 004 ESL 015 ENGL 015
1. What type of writing did you do in your high school English classes? Usually wrote five-paragraph essays of one to two pages Usually wrote essays of more than two pages and also wrote essays that involved some library research Frequently wrote essays of four or more pages and research papers
2. What did the teacher largely focus instruction on? Writing of grammatically correct sentences and structure of the essays Writing to develop and communicate ideas, writing to argue and support a position, practicing grammar, vocabulary, and essay structure Writing to develop and communicate ideas, and writing to argue and support a position
3. How easily can you read and paraphrase someone else's words to support your ideas? Not easily Usually easily but not always Fairly easily
4. How frequently do you revise your papers? Rarely Typically but not extensively Often
5. How often do you read other writer's texts to help you develop your ideas when writing essays in English? Rarely Sometimes Often
6. Do you ever consider yourself to be a confident and competent writer in English? No Somewhat Very much so
7. How often do you make mistakes in grammar and vocabulary while writing in English? All the time Sometimes Rarely

The University may make changes in policies, procedures, educational offerings, and requirements at any time. Please consult a Penn State academic adviser for more detailed information.

This page is part of the University Undergraduate Advising Handbook, which is maintained by the Division of Undergraduate Studies, DUS@psu.edu.


Reviewed: May 2011
Last Update: June 2010