Narratives of Iraqi Adult Learners: Experiences of Spoken Register in English for Academic Purposes Programs at an Australian University

Abstract

This paper explores the perceptions of Iraqi students of three different English Programs (a general English for academic purposes program, a pre-enrolment English program and the English component of a disciplinary bridging program) at an Australian University as reflected in their language learning narratives. It focuses specifically on the students' experience of academic spoken register in the aforementioned programs and how their experiences are affected by Australian English higher education policies. Data were collected through narrative interviews and thematically analysed using an inductive approach of open and axial coding. The data reveal that the acquisition of appropriate register by this cohort was impacted by their backgrounds as mature-aged, Arabic Muslim learners and by the nature of the programs they participated in. They valued programs with a varied range of tasks allowing them to practice academic and non-academic registers within the relevant contexts. They also valued programs that took cognisance of their family responsibilities, learning needs and disciplinary backgrounds. In terms of policy, we show how the programs that followed the Good Practice Principles for English language proficiency for international students – a document that underpins Australian higher education English language policy – were highly valued by this cohort because of an increasingly disciplinary focus and explicit instruction.

“Man, Have I Got a Story for You”

“…Despite this, narrative inquiry is well-suited to address issues of complexity and human centeredness because of its capacity to record and retell events that have been of most influence on us. The use of narratives as data has gained acceptance across a range of disciplines, including education (see Tsui, 2007; Zeek, Foote, & Walker, 2001), and has found a place within the fields of adult education (see Al Hamdany, & Picard, 2015; Daniels, 2008; Gola, 2009; Misawa, 2014) and HRD (see Pettersson, Bolander Laksov, & Fjellström, 2015).…”

Scaffolding English and Academic Skills for Iraqi English as Additional Language (EAL) Learners

“…At the university level, English is viewed as essential for both undergraduate and postgraduate studies in most Science, Technology Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM) disciplines where some subjects are even taught through the medium of English, (Al Hamdany & Picard, 2013). However, there are still various pedagogical and practical challenges such as an absence of English native speakers to communicate with (Al Hamdany & Picard, 2014) and outdated teacher-centered teaching methods (Alseady, 2017). Ali's (2012) study showed that while grammatical structures were scaffolded to a certain extent, scaffolding of context and register was lacking.…”