The Tutoring Book - California State University, Sacramento

that he was forced to learn five languages because his parents’ jobs required his family to relocate
frequently to a different country, which required learning an entirely new language and a different writing
system each time. Personally, learning a second language throughout my adolescent years was
unbearable, but the thought of having to learn five languages and become fluent in all of them is
something that should be highly valued and praised by us all as an honorable achievement, and a talent
that only multilingual students are capable of accomplishing.
The Differences of Second Language Learners
(by Kristina Kellermann)
ESL. EFL. Multilingual. Bilingual. Generation 1.5. Immigrant. International. There are many
different labels given to students nowadays who speak another language besides English, and just as there
are many labels, there are many levels of proficiency, as well as language and cultural backgrounds for
each multilingual student out there. But what do all these labels mean? How does a tutor identify what
kind of multilingual student they are working with? And perhaps, most importantly, how best to help to
help them?
We all know as tutors that there is a wide variety of students who come into the Writing Center,
and this variety is in no small part due to the diversity of multilingual students who come seeking help.
But one multilingual student is not always the same as the next, and at times, it is difficult to not only
identify that your tutee is an multilingual student, but also what their proficiency in English is and how
best to help them with their writing. Though we are loathe to blithely categorize students into finite
groups, it is helpful to know that there are three distinct general kinds of multilingual students who fall
into two more general classifications of learners. Understanding what kind of learner you are working
with is not only helpful for you as the educated tutor, but also helpful for both you and the student
together so you may help them in a more efficient and conscientious manner.
Many of them may be very new to the country, and others may have lived here in America their
entire lives. Many speak their first language (L1) at home and/or with their home community, and others
may actually be more proficient in English as their second language (L2) than in their first language.
Many multilingual students are better at speaking English than writing in it, and for others, it may be the
reverse. In general, multilingual students, from brand-new freshmen to seasoned graduate students, are
much like English native-speaking students: they study in many of the same degree programs, they enjoy
a lot of shared interests, and they are engaged in common extracurricular activities and sports.
The multilingual students who come to the Writing Center have historically come from several
language backgrounds: Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Hmong (an Asian language), Korean, Hindi, and
others. For many of these students, English may actually be a third or fourth language, though they may
have varying proficiencies in their other languages. There are three general categories of multilingual
students here in the United States, and all three are represented here at Sacramento State University:
international students, immigrant students, and Generation 1.5 students. Each group has its own unique
learning needs.
International students have come from other countries to study at the university for varying
lengths of time, often for one semester or an academic year. Many of these students have been welleducated
in their home country, and their study may be financially supported by their families,
universities or government. Most international students have studied English for at least a few years
before applying to study abroad, and have had to pass rigorous standardized tests like the TOEFL (Test of
English as a Foreign Language) which is a requirement for admission at most American universities and
colleges. In studying English, most international students have learned a lot of English grammar and are
very good at reading, but their writing skills as well speaking and listening skills are often at a much
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