ELI Program Helps Non-Native Speakers Reduce Errors

The English Language Institute offers a program of sustained tutoring called the Assessment and Tutoring Services (ATS) program for non-native speakers of English.  Students who are referred by a faculty member are eligible for eight free hours of tutoring with the same tutor, scheduled one hour a week for eight weeks. 

Rather than focusing only on the challenges of particular writing assignments, the tutoring helps students reduce problems that recur in their writing.

Common patterns of errors include: 

- sentence structure and word order;
- verb tenses and forms;
- singular and plural forms and agreement; and
- unclear references.

Broader writing problems common to many non-native speakers of English can also be addressed in sustained tutoring.  These include problems with:

- topic development 
- paraphrasing
- plagiarism
- appropriate academic style 
- understanding assignments  and the expectations of faculty.

To refer a student for the ATS program, faculty should contact Melissa Allen, Coordinator of Support Services for Non-Native Speakers of English at the English Language Institute, via email at malle2@gmu.edu or phone at 703-993-3642.