American Language Program

Adjunct Program Brings Departments Together to Benefit Students

One might have trouble imagining a common link between the American Language Program of The University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education and the University System of Georgia Independent Study. At first, the two programs appear to serve mutually exclusive populations. After all, the American Language Program (ALP) teaches English to a diverse population of international students who are striving to add English competence to their existing skills in their own languages, whether for the purpose of pursuing degrees or for community integration and personal satisfaction, and Independent Study provides an opportunity for students to earn academic credit while studying academic subjects in a self-directed format.

Staff members of both departments have found a common link between the two programs and, with the support of the faculties and staffs of their respective departments, have collaborated in the design of a course that brings the departments together. Christine Wright, a public service faculty member in the American Language Program, and Carmen White, acting department head of the University System of Georgia Independent Study, collaborated to develop a new course, called an adjunct course, that allows a small group of advanced English-language students from the ALP to enroll concurrently in ALP and one preselected Independent Study course. Successfully piloted during Fall Quarter 1994, the course shows how two departments working together can serve students in ways that either one alone cannot.

What Is an Adjunct Program?

Adjunct programs involve a pairing between a university class and one or more English language classes for the purpose of improving the students' language skills. They are increasingly popular at Intensive English Programs (IEPs) across the nation because they are highly successful motivators. Students in adjunct programs quickly discover a real need to master English in order to comprehend and manipulate the material in their academic class.

Who Are the Students in Adjunct Programs?

University-bound international students who want to study in the U.S. are often academically qualified for admission but unable to meet English language entrance requirements. It is common for international students to have to postpone their educational goals for extended periods while bringing their language skills up to university expectations. After several months (or years) of studying English, whether in their home countries or in Intensive English Programs in the U.S., these students are no longer satisfied with studying the language for its own sake. They are eager to put their knowledge into action. An adjunct course gives them the opportunity to experience university material written in English -- and earn academic credits -- while under the careful guidance of trained English teachers.

The ALP students participating in the first two quarters of the new University of Georgia adjunct program were extremely diverse, coming from such places as Austria, Colombia, France, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Russia, Taiwan, and Turkey and including a petroleum engineer, a dentist, an electronics technician, several students with baccalaureate degrees, and a few recent high-school graduates.

How Is UGA's Adjunct Course Unique?

The ALP adjunct course is unique in that students enroll in an Independent Study class rather than the regular university classes that are part of traditional adjunct programs. Students also take an ALP class called "Adjunct Support," which focuses on American classroom behaviors and academic study skills, and designated sections of two ALP English classes. The special sections for the Fall 1994 course, for example, taught all the skills normally covered in advanced ALP "Writing" and "Reading" classes (such as thesis development, argumentation, analysis, and synthesis), but differed from the norm in that the primary text was not a writing text -- it was the actual textbook from the associated Independent Study class, "Principles of Family Finance." Students received four grades, three from the ALP and one from housing and consumer economics associate professor Julia Marlowe. The Winter 1995 schedule includes ALP "Writing" and "Listening/ Speaking"; "Adjunct Support"; and the Independent Study class "Oral Decision Making," taught by Professor Charles Gruner of the UGA's Department of Speech Communication.

Although students in Independent Study do not sit in classrooms with their English-speaking counterparts, the logistical counter-benefits are significant:

First, the Independent Study format allows the English language teacher to tailor the academic-class syllabus to the special needs of adjunct class members. The learning curves of second-language and native-speaker students are not necessarily identical. Particularly at the beginning of a course, international students may need extra time to absorb huge quantities of specialized vocabulary or learn a specific writing style expected in the discipline of the chosen academic class.
Second, international students benefit from the geographic flexibility of Independent Study. A student who is unable to complete the class during the allotted time or who is recalled unexpectedly to his or her home country can submit lessons from anywhere in the world and can arrange to have the final exam administered at a university in almost any country in the world.
Finally, the Independent Study format gives students more control of their time. International students, particularly those in their first weeks away from home, benefit from the ability to schedule their own time to take advantage of university and community services and activities.

Who Benefits?

When departments and divisions of the Georgia Center, and The University of Georgia at large, collaborate, everyone benefits. The benefits of the ALP adjunct course to the students are: motivation is increased, the transition into the university is eased, and students are supported in ways that enhance their ability to succeed. Faculty and staff members from the diverse institutional units involved with the course reap additional benefits -- an enhancement of mutual respect and understanding, an appreciation for the complexities inherent in each of the involved departments, and a greater awareness of the talents and abilities of international students.

For more information, contact Christine Wright, public service faculty, American Language Program, Georgia Center for Continuing Education, The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-3603, 706-542-4095 or Carmen S. White, acting department head, University System of Georgia Independent Study, Chicopee Complex, The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-3603, 706-542-3243. You can send e-mail to Carmen White at cwhprofs@uga.cc.uga.edu.

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