Peer Response in Second Language Writing Classrooms

2. Contexts of Peer Response: Types of Progroms and Levels of Studems

Chapter 2 Contexts of Peer Response: Types of Programs and Levels of Students This chapter explores the social context of peer response, specifically focusing on factors such as foreign versus second language settings and types ofstudents (younger writers versus adult writers). We believe that there are a number of issues that can potentially have an impact on peer response activities, depending on the setting, the program, and the students involved in peer response. Some of these issues are: the language ofpeer response (L1, L2, or both); the purpose of L2 writing; the L1 and L2 literacy backgrounds of students; the teacher's linguistic and cultural background; and the participation patterns of students in whole-class and group activities . Each ofthese issues will be discussed under the two main sections of this chapter: Second Language versus Foreign Language Settings and Types of Students. Second Language versus Foreign Language Settings To what extent does whether a setting is a second language setting or a foreign language setting have an impact on peer response? What is the nature of the impact, and why? In this discussion of peer response contexts, we will focus on four main issues that we believe have an impact on peer response and are contextually determined, to a large extent: (1) the linguistic and cultural backgrounds of teachers and learners, (2) learners' skill development, (3) class size, and (4) reasons for taking a writing course. - -- ---32 Contexts of Peer Response The Linguistic and Cultural Backgrounds of Teachers and Learners 33 A number of issues related to the teacher may not be as clearcut as they initially appear. One of these issues is whether the teacher is a native or nonnative speaker of English. While it is certainly true that most teachers of English in foreign language contexts are nonnative speakers of English and that most ESL teachers in second language contexts are native speakers, this dichotomy is simplistic, at best. As recent research on issues related to nonnative speakers of English as teachers in TESOL suggests (e.g., Kamhi-Stein 2000; Liu 1999; Samimy and Brutt-Griffler 1999), there is no simple definition of native versus nonnative speakerness; in fact, the use of the term itself is questionable, since it creates a dichotomy that implies differences in language proficiency-which is not necessarily the case-and reinforces bias in hiring practices when only native speakers are urged to apply for jobs. Our position on this issue (both of us are nonnative speakers of English, with one of us often mislabeled as a native speaker based on language proficiency and ethnic background ) is that the language status of the teacher may not in itself be a relevant issue in peer response; rather, issues of shared linguistic and cultural backgrounds between the teacher and students appear to be more pertinent, as these issues may have important implications for classroom participation styles and especially for norms of group work in the classroom and language use during peer response activities. What is the impact of the teacher's and learners' linguistic background on peer response? First ofall, we need to consider the possible types of contexts based on teacher and student linguistic backgrounds. In foreign language settings, the classrooms tend to be linguistically and culturally homogeneous, so a couple of classroom scenarios are typical: the teacher does share the language of her or his students (e.g., a Japanese teacher of English in Japan); or the teacher does not share the native language of the students (e.g., an English teacher from the United States teaching in Taiwan). 34 Peer Response in Second Language Writing Classrooms In second language settings, the picture becomes even more complicated, since the classroom tends to be heterogeneous, although it can be homogeneous in certain areas ofthe United States where there are larger concentrations ofspeakers ofcertain languages, as in the case of Spanish speakers in some Southwestern areas ofthe United States and in the case ofspecial programs and classes developed for students. Therefore, in second language contexts, the following scenarios are possible : the teacher shares the native language of the students, the teacher shares the native language ofsome ofthe students, and the teacher does not share the native language of any of the students. The linguistic and cultural backgrounds of the students also complicate these scenarios. For example, students may share the same cultural and linguistic background with each other, which is typically the case in...