EPPIC has conducted focus group sessions with multilingual and international students, post-docs and visiting scholars in the Penn State community to better understand their pressing concerns relating to academic and professional language learning and socialization in the context of U.S. higher education.
Findings from this project have been summarized in a focus group report (available upon request) that includes recommendations for support services and resources to facilitate successful learning and professional development among multilingual internationals at Penn State.
Comments from focus group participants have shaped the content and delivery of EPPIC’s programming, including weekly academic speaking support groups (Let’s Talk and Speak UP), weekly writing group sessions (Write-A-Thon), workshops on a variety of topics related to academic writing, group work, classroom participation, teaching in the U.S., American English pronunciation, research presentations, and job searches.