Thesis and Dissertation Writing in a Second Language: a handbook for Supervisors

particularly if, in the student’s thinking, intellectual ability and language pro-
ficiency are in some way equated. Similarly, anxiety about potential failure or
rejection of the thesis can become paralysing for the international student for
whom, as pointed out in the previous chapter, the stakes are that much higher.
The other side of the anxiety coin is the desire to write the ‘perfect’ thesis,
which can be just as paralysing, especially when submission draws nearer. Those
second-language students who tend to perfectionism may struggle with writ-
ing in English and experience anxiety about error.
The supervisor should be alert for the potential of the above issues to affect
progress on the thesis. We have found it useful to discuss the impostor syn-
drome with students as an issue – the relief that students experience is often
palpable as they realize they are not unique in this regard. They need to know
that they would not have been accepted into the programme were they con-
sidered incompetent. Our students are often relieved to hear that very few
students actually ‘fail’ a PhD and to be reminded that ‘it’s a PhD, not a Nobel
Prize’ – a quote from one of the experienced examiners interviewed by
Mullins and Kiley (2002) in their article with the same title which looked at
how experienced examiners assess research theses.
Murray (2002) points out that fear of the supervisor’s feedback or fear of the
supervisor him- or herself can also have an effect on the student’s ability to
write. Often this fear is related less to something the supervisor may have done
but more to the student’s own image of the supervisor as a punishing and
judging figure. Unfortunately, fear may lead to avoidance behaviour by the
student, thus depriving him or her of a valuable source of improvement. Riazi
(1997) found that the Iranian doctoral students he interviewed reported that
their supervisor’s feedback was extremely helpful in their English language
development. His study illustrates that the supervisor’s comments were
regarded as a significant resource for improving not only the content and ideas
but also language use and the rhetorical organization of their writing.
Our advice is to schedule regular meetings, to give clear, comprehensible,
constructive and above all actionable feedback (i.e. that the student can act
on) appropriate to the writing stage the student is at. Discuss written feed-
back with your student to ensure they understand your comments. Explain
the meanings of specific terms you use when you provide feedback so that you
can develop a common language with your student in this regard. Encourage
a climate in which they feel able to ask what your feedback means if they are
not sure. Allow challenge. Allow them to tape-record your sessions in the ini-
tial stages while they become accustomed to your accent, intonation and
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Thesis writing in English as a second language

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general speech patterns. Consider Murray’s suggestion that students attach to
their draft a cover sheet that outlines:
●
the purpose of what they have written;
●
the kind of feedback they are seeking on this specific piece of writing;
●
how they have responded to your previous feedback.
(Murray 2002: 202)
Remember the Traditional Feedback Sandwich when giving feedback:
●
first the good news (what and why in detail);
●
then the bad news (suggestions on how to overcome it);
●
finally a note of encouragement.
A final suggestion for those students who are able to discuss their topic and
put forward their arguments quite coherently orally but who experience great
difficulty with writing is to ask them to talk into a tape recorder and then
have them edit the typed transcript. We have found this approach has helped
several of our students to ‘unblock’.
The three factors discussed below are different in that they provide ways of
responding to the psycho-affective issues raised here.