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ERIC Number: EJ1191143
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 28
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0826-435X
EISSN: N/A
Academic Literacy Requirements of Health Professions Programs: Challenges for ESL Students
Lum, Lillie; Alqazli, Mahmoud; Englander, Karen
TESL Canada Journal, v35 n1 p1-28 2018
To succeed in Canadian health professions, university education programs students must initially meet a variety of program-specific and English-language admission requirements. For non-native English-speaking (NNES) students, a major challenge can be the demonstration of profession-specific academic literacy and, in particular, adequate language competency prior to admission and throughout the program. Despite the increased numbers in the adult NNES student population in Canada, the current academic literacy requirements within these programs have received minimal research focus. This study explores the congruency of program requirements and learning supports within three major health professions programs across six Canadian universities. The data analyzed for this qualitative study include program documents on publicly accessible websites and a focused literature review. Findings suggest that in medicine, nursing, and pharmacy programs, discipline-specific academic literacy manifests itself in a wide variety of specialized written genres, ranging from reflections to theoretical analysis. Academic literacy is essential to the socialization of new students into these specialized programs and into the professions. Suggestions are offered to enhance universities' support of the development of academic literacy of NNES students.
TESL Canada Federation. 408-4370 Dominion Street, Burnaby, BC V5G 4L7, Canada. Tel: 604-298-0312; Fax: 604-298-0372; e-mail: admin@tesl.ca; Web site: http://www.tesl.ca
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A