Linguicism and Racism in Assessment Practices in Higher Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/lhs.v3i3.325Keywords:
Writing Assessment, Linguicism, Racism, Discrimination, Genre PedagogyAbstract
This paper aims to demonstrate how linguicism, a kind of “linguistically argued racism” (Phillipson, 1992), concealed by existing requirements of writing assessment based solely on ‘standard’ academic varieties of English contributes to the language-based discrimination of international students at an Australian university. In order to achieve the purposes of this study, we will provide evidence from one context on how students’ performance on graded assignments (as marked by the course lecturers) correlates with their language proficiency (as measured independently by trained language experts). After looking at the quantitative data, we will present detailed linguistic analyses of students’ writing to show how texts written by students from a North American, British, and Australian (NABA) background differ from texts written by students from a South and South East Asian (SESEA) background. The findings from these analyses will be used to discuss the role of World Englishes and race in assessment practices in higher education.
References
Amin, N. (1999) Minority women teachers of ESL: negotiating white English. In G. Braine (ed.) Non-native Educators in English Language Teaching 93–104. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Bourdieu, P. (1988) Language and Symbolic Power. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Canagarajah, S. (1999) Resisting Linguistic Imperialism in English Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Christie, F. (1992) Literacy in Australia. ARAL 12: 142–155.
Christie, F. (1997) Curriculum macrogenres as forms of initiation into a culture. In F. Christie and J. R. Martin (eds) Genre and Institutions: Social Processes in the Workplace and School 134–160. London: Cassell.
Cope, B. and Kalantzis, M. (eds) (1993) The Powers of Literacy: A Genre Approach to Teaching Writing. London, UK: The Falmer Press.
Cotton, F. and Conrow, F. (1998) An investigation of the predictive validity of IELTS amongst a group of international students studying at the University of Tasmania. EA Occasional Paper 1: 72–115.
Dooey, P. and Oliver, R. (2002) An investigation into the predictive validity of the IELTS test. Prospect 17: 36–54.
Elder, C. (1993) Language proficiency as a predictor of performance in teacher education. Melbourne Papers in Language Testing 2(1): 68–85.
Eggins, S. (2004) An Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics. London: Continuum.
Fairclough, N. (2001) Language and Power. (Second edition.) Essex, England: Pearson Education Ltd.
Feez, S. (1998) Text-based Syllabus Design. Sydney: National Centre for English Language Teaching and Research, Macquarie University.
Fox, T. (1999) Defending access: a critique of standards in higher education. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook.
Gibbons, P. (2005) Bridging Discourses in the ESL Classroom. London: Continuum.
Hill, K., Storch, N. and Lynch, B. (1999) A comparison of IELTS and TOEFL as predictors of academic success. International English Language Testing Research Reports 2: 52–63.
Humphrey, S., Martin, J., Dreyfus, S. and Mahboob, A. (2010) The 3x3: setting up a linguistic toolbox for teaching and assessing academic writing. In A. Mahboob and N. Knight (eds) Appliable Linguistics: Texts, Contexts, and Meanings. London: Continuum.
Johnson, D. and Kress, G. (2003) Globalisation, literacy and society: redesigning pedagogy and assessment. Assessment in Education 10(1): 5–14.
Kachru, B. (1992) The Other Tongue. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
Kachru, B. B., Kachru, Y. and Nelson, C. L. (eds) (2006) The Handbook of World Englishes. Oxford: Blackwell.
Kubota, R. (2002) The author responds: (un)raveling racism in a nice field like TESOL. TESOL Quarterly 36(1): 84–92.
Kubota, R. (2003) New approaches to gender, class, and race in second language writing. Journal of Second Language Writing 12(1): 31–47.
Kubota, R. (2004) Critical multiculturalism and second language education. In B. Norton and K. Toohey (eds) Critical Pedagogies and Language Learning 30–52. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Kubota, R. and Lin, A. (2006) Race and TESOL: introduction to concepts and theories. TESOL Quarterly 40(3): 471–493.
Macken-Horarik, M. (2002) ‘Something to shoot for’: a systemic functional approach to teaching genre in secondary school science. In A. M. Johns (ed.) Genre in the Classroom 21–46. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Mahboob, A. (2009) Racism in the English language teaching industry. In A. Mahboob and C. Lipovsky (eds) Studies in Applied Linguistics and Language Learning 27–37. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Mahboob, A. (2010) The NNEST Lens: Non-native English Speakers in TESOL (2 volumes). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Mahboob, A., Dreyfus, S., Humphrey, S. and Martin, J. (2010) Appliable linguistics and English language teaching: Scaffolding Literacy in Adult and Tertiary Environments (SLATE) project. In A. Mahboob and N. Knight (eds) Appliable Linguistics: Texts, Contexts, and Meanings. London: Continuum.
Martin, J. R. (1993) Genre and literacy – modeling context in educational linguistics. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 13: 141–172.
Martin, J. R. (2001) Giving the game away: explicitness, diversity and genre-based literacy in Australia. In R. de Cilla, H. Krumm and R. Wodak et al. (eds) Loss of Communication in the Information Age 155–174. Vienna: Verlag der Osterreichischen Akadamie der Wissenschaften.
Martin, J. R. and Rose, D. (2003) Working With Discourse: Meaning Beyond the Clause. London: Continuum.
Martin, J. R. and Rose, D. (2005) Designing literacy pedagogy: scaffolding asymmetries. In R. Hasan, C. M. I. M. Matthiessen and J. Webster (eds) Continuing Discourse on Language 251–280. London: Equinox.
Martin, J. R. and Rose, D. (2008) Genre Relations: Mapping Culture. London: Equinox.
Martin, J. R. and White, P. R. R. (2007) The Language of Evaluation: Appraisal in English. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
McKay, S. L. and Wong, S-L. C. (1996) Multiple discourses, multiple identities: investment and agency in second-language learning among Chinese adolescent immigrant students. Harvard Educational Review 66(3): 577–608.
Motha, S. (2006) Racializing ESOL teacher identities in U.S. K-12 public schools. TESOL Quarterly 40(3): 495–518.
Pennycook, A. (1994) The Cultural Politics of English as an International Language. London: Longman.
Pennycook, A. (1999) Introduction: critical approaches to TESOL. TESOL Quarterly 33(3): 329–348.
Pennycook, A. (2001) Critical Applied Linguistics: A Critical Introduction. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Phakiti A. (2008) Predicting NESB international postgraduate students’ academic achievement: A structural equation modeling approach. International Journal of Applied Educational Studies 3(1): 18–38.
Phillipson, R. (1992) Linguistic Imperialism. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.
Silva, T., Leki, I. and Carson, J. (1997) Broadening the perspective of mainstream composition studies: Some thoughts from the disciplinary margins. Written Communication 14(3): 398–428.
Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (1988) Multilingualism and the education of minority children. In T. Skutnabb-Kangas and J. Cummins (eds) Minority Education: From Shame to Struggle 9–44. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Turpin, T., Iredale, R. and Crinnion, P. (2002) The internationalization of higher education: Implications for Australia and its education ‘clients’. Minerva 40(3): 327–340.
Van Dijk, T. A. (1993) Elite discourse and racism. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
White, E. M. and Thomas, L. L. (1981) Racial minorities and writing skills assessment in the California state university and colleges. College English 43: 276–283.
Woodrow, L. (2006) Academic success of international postgraduate education students and the role of English proficiency. University of Sydney Papers in TESOL 1: 51–70.
Bourdieu, P. (1988) Language and Symbolic Power. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.
Canagarajah, S. (1999) Resisting Linguistic Imperialism in English Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Christie, F. (1992) Literacy in Australia. ARAL 12: 142–155.
Christie, F. (1997) Curriculum macrogenres as forms of initiation into a culture. In F. Christie and J. R. Martin (eds) Genre and Institutions: Social Processes in the Workplace and School 134–160. London: Cassell.
Cope, B. and Kalantzis, M. (eds) (1993) The Powers of Literacy: A Genre Approach to Teaching Writing. London, UK: The Falmer Press.
Cotton, F. and Conrow, F. (1998) An investigation of the predictive validity of IELTS amongst a group of international students studying at the University of Tasmania. EA Occasional Paper 1: 72–115.
Dooey, P. and Oliver, R. (2002) An investigation into the predictive validity of the IELTS test. Prospect 17: 36–54.
Elder, C. (1993) Language proficiency as a predictor of performance in teacher education. Melbourne Papers in Language Testing 2(1): 68–85.
Eggins, S. (2004) An Introduction to Systemic Functional Linguistics. London: Continuum.
Fairclough, N. (2001) Language and Power. (Second edition.) Essex, England: Pearson Education Ltd.
Feez, S. (1998) Text-based Syllabus Design. Sydney: National Centre for English Language Teaching and Research, Macquarie University.
Fox, T. (1999) Defending access: a critique of standards in higher education. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook.
Gibbons, P. (2005) Bridging Discourses in the ESL Classroom. London: Continuum.
Hill, K., Storch, N. and Lynch, B. (1999) A comparison of IELTS and TOEFL as predictors of academic success. International English Language Testing Research Reports 2: 52–63.
Humphrey, S., Martin, J., Dreyfus, S. and Mahboob, A. (2010) The 3x3: setting up a linguistic toolbox for teaching and assessing academic writing. In A. Mahboob and N. Knight (eds) Appliable Linguistics: Texts, Contexts, and Meanings. London: Continuum.
Johnson, D. and Kress, G. (2003) Globalisation, literacy and society: redesigning pedagogy and assessment. Assessment in Education 10(1): 5–14.
Kachru, B. (1992) The Other Tongue. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
Kachru, B. B., Kachru, Y. and Nelson, C. L. (eds) (2006) The Handbook of World Englishes. Oxford: Blackwell.
Kubota, R. (2002) The author responds: (un)raveling racism in a nice field like TESOL. TESOL Quarterly 36(1): 84–92.
Kubota, R. (2003) New approaches to gender, class, and race in second language writing. Journal of Second Language Writing 12(1): 31–47.
Kubota, R. (2004) Critical multiculturalism and second language education. In B. Norton and K. Toohey (eds) Critical Pedagogies and Language Learning 30–52. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Kubota, R. and Lin, A. (2006) Race and TESOL: introduction to concepts and theories. TESOL Quarterly 40(3): 471–493.
Macken-Horarik, M. (2002) ‘Something to shoot for’: a systemic functional approach to teaching genre in secondary school science. In A. M. Johns (ed.) Genre in the Classroom 21–46. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Mahboob, A. (2009) Racism in the English language teaching industry. In A. Mahboob and C. Lipovsky (eds) Studies in Applied Linguistics and Language Learning 27–37. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Mahboob, A. (2010) The NNEST Lens: Non-native English Speakers in TESOL (2 volumes). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Mahboob, A., Dreyfus, S., Humphrey, S. and Martin, J. (2010) Appliable linguistics and English language teaching: Scaffolding Literacy in Adult and Tertiary Environments (SLATE) project. In A. Mahboob and N. Knight (eds) Appliable Linguistics: Texts, Contexts, and Meanings. London: Continuum.
Martin, J. R. (1993) Genre and literacy – modeling context in educational linguistics. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 13: 141–172.
Martin, J. R. (2001) Giving the game away: explicitness, diversity and genre-based literacy in Australia. In R. de Cilla, H. Krumm and R. Wodak et al. (eds) Loss of Communication in the Information Age 155–174. Vienna: Verlag der Osterreichischen Akadamie der Wissenschaften.
Martin, J. R. and Rose, D. (2003) Working With Discourse: Meaning Beyond the Clause. London: Continuum.
Martin, J. R. and Rose, D. (2005) Designing literacy pedagogy: scaffolding asymmetries. In R. Hasan, C. M. I. M. Matthiessen and J. Webster (eds) Continuing Discourse on Language 251–280. London: Equinox.
Martin, J. R. and Rose, D. (2008) Genre Relations: Mapping Culture. London: Equinox.
Martin, J. R. and White, P. R. R. (2007) The Language of Evaluation: Appraisal in English. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
McKay, S. L. and Wong, S-L. C. (1996) Multiple discourses, multiple identities: investment and agency in second-language learning among Chinese adolescent immigrant students. Harvard Educational Review 66(3): 577–608.
Motha, S. (2006) Racializing ESOL teacher identities in U.S. K-12 public schools. TESOL Quarterly 40(3): 495–518.
Pennycook, A. (1994) The Cultural Politics of English as an International Language. London: Longman.
Pennycook, A. (1999) Introduction: critical approaches to TESOL. TESOL Quarterly 33(3): 329–348.
Pennycook, A. (2001) Critical Applied Linguistics: A Critical Introduction. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Phakiti A. (2008) Predicting NESB international postgraduate students’ academic achievement: A structural equation modeling approach. International Journal of Applied Educational Studies 3(1): 18–38.
Phillipson, R. (1992) Linguistic Imperialism. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.
Silva, T., Leki, I. and Carson, J. (1997) Broadening the perspective of mainstream composition studies: Some thoughts from the disciplinary margins. Written Communication 14(3): 398–428.
Skutnabb-Kangas, T. (1988) Multilingualism and the education of minority children. In T. Skutnabb-Kangas and J. Cummins (eds) Minority Education: From Shame to Struggle 9–44. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Turpin, T., Iredale, R. and Crinnion, P. (2002) The internationalization of higher education: Implications for Australia and its education ‘clients’. Minerva 40(3): 327–340.
Van Dijk, T. A. (1993) Elite discourse and racism. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
White, E. M. and Thomas, L. L. (1981) Racial minorities and writing skills assessment in the California state university and colleges. College English 43: 276–283.
Woodrow, L. (2006) Academic success of international postgraduate education students and the role of English proficiency. University of Sydney Papers in TESOL 1: 51–70.
Published
2010-06-14
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Mahboob, A., & Szenes, E. (2010). Linguicism and Racism in Assessment Practices in Higher Education. Linguistics and the Human Sciences, 3(3), 325-354. https://doi.org/10.1558/lhs.v3i3.325
