In recent years, there has been an increase in researching and finding solutions to bridge the gap between students from diverse cultural backgrounds. These research and findings can be found in several sources such as Innovative Voices in Education by Eileen Gale Kugler, Educating Immigrant Students in the 21st Century by Xue Lan Rong and Judith Preissle, and Culturally Responsive Teaching by Geneva Gay. Although the Reading and Writing Center’s main purpose is to help students effectively with reading and writing assignments by helping with grammar, mechanics, structure or content, tutors cannot help these students if they are not culturally sensitive. Tutors must be culturally sensitive when helping students because it forms a connection between the student and the tutor; therefore, this makes each individual session more effective. There are several cultural issues that tutors should be aware, which include oral english …show more content…
According to Rong and Pressle’s, “…oral communication skills in English as a second language require two or three years…Four to twelve years of second-language development are needed for the most advantaged students to reach deep academic proficiency and compete successfully with native speakers.” (87). It is essential for tutors to understand the amount of work and time required for students who are not native speakers. A good strategy in helping students with their academic english proficiency is to help them build their vocabulary. Furthermore, tutors should use the sheets provided by the Reading and Writing Center to help students understand the grammar and mechanics of writing. Furthermore, in giving these sheets to students, the students can go back and use the sheets when they are writing other assignments. The most important strategy is to be patient and respectful with students because they will be more comfortable during the