Who is a Non-Native Speaker?

Non-native speakers come from a variety of backgrounds with many different needs. In the Writing Center, we work with students non-native speakers who...

Learned English in school as a second or foreign language.
Speak English at school, work, or with friends but have difficulty writing in English.
Have never used English in an academic setting.
Read and write English well but lack confidence in a classroom setting.
Conversation Hours

Every months I hosts open Conversation Hours for those students who want to improve their English in a relaxed atmosphere. Topics will vary each week to include cultural issues, professional skills, personal stories, current events, and anything else students are interested in discussing. You may attend as many conversation hours a week as you like. There is no need to sign up in advance; simply come to the conference room and join the discussion. Feel free to bring a friend!

Other Resources

I can also provide you a number of books and dictionaries written especially for English language learners. These include helpful charts about English grammar, lists of idioms and common phrases, tips on writing essays, and pictures to accompany many difficult vocabulary words. You dont need an appointment to come and use these materials. You may use them with a tutor or for self-study in your free time during any of your business hours.
And, as is in some senses inev-itable, certain assumptions recognized or not have to be made when writing a grammar.
However, the primary consideration the needs of the prospective (and, practicing) language
teacher. Thus, in contrast to so many modern texts, it is not an introduction to some particu-
lar linguistic theory presented in the guise of an introduction to English grammar being foisted
on students with other interests and goals. If that is what is being sought, it will not be too
hard to find, but it will have to be found elsewhere. sStudents need information about several things that are often either omitted orslighted even in supposedly pedagogical grammars: written English (and its relationship to
spoken English) and the aspects of English which, although they cause little problem for
native speakers do cause problems for non-native speakers of English (countable and uncount-
able nouns, the determiner system, the meanings of the various verb constructions, and so on).
A greater emphasis on written English was necessary because most of my students either
intend to teach or at least are more concerned with written than spoken English. Thus, this
text has sections on spelling, including the crucial connection between word parts and the
spelling of English, and it has an appendix on sounds that includes much on how these sounds
are represented in the spelling system. Primarily the neglected areas were concerned with written English. For this text, thedecisions about what to include and what not to include were dictated by the fact that the text