The Pen Pal Project

In the early 1990’s, at a CUNY writing center conference, I heard about a pen pal project between writing center tutors at an Eastern Pennsylvanian University and children from an inner-city primary school. I was intrigued by the description and filed the idea as one that I would like to try if ever I could create the opportunity. By the fall of 2002, conditions and circumstances seemed right to experiment at last with organizing a service-learning project that would connect writing center tutors from my university with children from an inner-city elementary school in a neighborhood that adjoins my university’s.University Writing Cente

Email interviewing: the 'pen pal' method

Email interviewing: the 'pen pal' metho

Foreign-born TESOL Instructors Assisting Adult Immigrant Learners to Develop Civic Literacy Skills: A Pen Pal Project

This article discusses the contributions of foreign-born TESOL instructors helping adult language learners develop literacy skills through a pen pal project, which lasted 10 weeks and consisted of writing letters back and forth weekly. The project provided adult immigrant learners with an opportunity to practice meaningful writing to support their English literacy development.  The research questions include how do foreign-born TESOL instructors support adult immigrant learners develop literacy through a pen pal project? and what components of the pen pal project promote the development of civic literacy skills? Data for this article come from 159 letters product of the writing exchange between instructors and learners, and individual conversational interviews with the instructors. Study findings are presented through four themes: teachers as cultural informants, emotional connection, life and learning advice, and adult ESL learners’ linguistic competence. Study findings add to the body of literature focusing on the powerful contributions of foreign-born TESOL instructors to the education and language-culture acquisition of adult immigrant English learners

Combating Loneliness: An Intergenerational Pen Pal Program

In an effort to both analyze how COVID-19 has impacted traditionally isolated communities and prevent loneliness, we have created a pen-pal program between UM students and senior adults. We have implemented a pilot pen-pal program to create lasting social bonds without exposing seniors to COVID-19. The program is currently running through the Davidson Honors College “Intro to Honors” course, with plans to leave the program self-sustaining in future semesters. To pair partners, we distributed interest surveys and matched relevant interests. To inform people of how loneliness affects seniors, we created a brochure that highlights our research, with plans to distribute it in the Curry Health Center and among our community partners. At the conclusion of our pilot program, we will have our senior partners fill out a feedback form to understand the effectiveness of our program. Our research points toward the need for loneliness prevention strategies, especially in the wake of the pandemic, which has exacerbated social isolation in older adults. Social connection has proven to be one of the most successful mitigation techniques, but physical contact can be dangerous because of the pandemic. Dialogue through letter-writing can create invaluable social bonds without potentially exposing elderly participants to COVID-19. The senior participants in our pilot grew up writing letters and communicating via physical mail so the pen-pal program was extremely comfortable to this generation. Pen-pal programs create a viable and sustainable solution, accessible for all generations to reduce the negative effects the pandemic has had on the elderly

Mitigating the Damaging Effects of COVID-19 Isolation in the Elderly

In an effort to both analyze how COVID-19 has impacted traditionally isolated communities and prevent loneliness, we have created a pen-pal program between UM students and senior adults. We have implemented a pilot pen-pal program to create lasting social bonds without exposing seniors to COVID-19. The program is currently running through the Davidson Honors College “Intro to Honors” course, with plans to leave the program self-sustaining in future semesters. To pair partners, we distributed interest surveys and matched relevant interests. To inform people of how loneliness affects seniors, we created a brochure that highlights our research, with plans to distribute it in the Curry Health Center and among our community partners. At the conclusion of our pilot program, we will have our senior partners fill out a feedback form to understand the effectiveness of our program. Our research points toward the need for loneliness prevention strategies, especially in the wake of the pandemic, which has exacerbated social isolation in older adults. Social connection has proven to be one of the most successful mitigation techniques, but physical contact can be dangerous because of the pandemic. Dialogue through letter-writing can create invaluable social bonds without potentially exposing elderly participants to COVID-19. The senior participants in our pilot grew up writing letters and communicating via physical mail so the pen-pal program was extremely comfortable to this generation. Pen-pal programs create a viable and sustainable solution, accessible for all generations to reduce the negative effects the pandemic has had on the elderly

Literary pen pals: Correspondence about books between university students and elementary students

In a semester-long, pen pal exchange between 3rd and 4th graders with college students enrolled in a Children\u27s literature class, I wanted to engage students in critical thinking about what they read and to involve students in authentic literacy activities. Using qualitative methodology of recognizing patterns and culling themes from more than 200 letters about books, I examined the nature of the letters, categorized the kinds of questions asked, and noted the patterns of communications between the pen pal pairs in order to glean the benefits to both groups. Both elementary and college students learned about books, about themselves, and about one another

Raising Cultural Awareness in Undergraduate Students through an Online Pen Pal Program

International written communication networks, such as pen pal programs, help spread cultural awareness by connecting people from around the world. Competent intercultural communication is the foundation for strong global partnerships. It encourages diversity, increases academic achievement, and gives individuals a competitive edge in the global workforce. This study examines changes in the cultural awareness of 50 U.S. undergraduate participants enrolled in an intercultural communication course at a northwestern university after they exchange private, online pen pal letters with 50 international partners from across the globe. The U.S. participants were divided into Group A (test-group) and Group B (control-group) and then a pretest was administered to both groups to assess their cultural awareness before the letter exchange began. The Group A exchange was conducted over a two-week period, after which the U.S. participants were re-tested. The Group B began their exchange after the second test. The results of the tests were analyzed to determine whether the pen pal program increased cultural awareness in the U.S. undergraduate participants. Although no statistical increase was found, a lot of information and data was collected that future researchers and educators can use to develop their own programs

The official student newspaper of the University of Alaska Southeast - Juneau

MIXED REVIEWS ON ASSESSMENT -- USUAS GETS POLITICAL -- Maggie for President -- Indifference towards war alarms student -- Swedish student seeks correspondence with Alaskan pen pal -- Take out the politics -- Counselor Follett bade farewell -- Nunsense - it's not just for Catholics anymore -- Arizona inmate seeks friendship, correspondence -- USUAS President's Message -- UAS Celebrates ten years with JRC -- The Cure releases newest / oldest hits during pirate radio show -- UAS B-Ball Boosters -- Awareness to Involvement? -- A favorite at UAS -- Campus is not the Indy 500 -- State Mishandles Land Trus

Wellbeing Notebook - Pen and Paper: A Simple Formula for Enhancing Wellbeing

Sitting in her classroom, Lynn wonders whether her pen pal, Jean, has received and read her letter. Several kilometres away, sitting in her armchair, Jean’s eyes light up as she reads the questions that Lynn has carefully written. She takes up a pen and begins to write. Theirs is a mutually beneficial relationship established through pen and paper, with the help of an envelope and an enthusiastic teacher who acted as a courier

“Is Sarah a Bully or a Friend?”: Examining Students’ Text-based Written Expressions of Bullying

Bullying has been recognized as a complex phenomenon with potential for serious negative outcomes. Activities that address complex social situations of bullying, such as reading and writing to a pen pal about fictional literature, provide space for students to think and share about personal issues that they encounter and how characters deal with similar issues in productive ways. For this research, we used a critical literacy lens to explore bullying within the context of language, power and context. This research shares qualitative analysis of letters students wrote to adult pen pals after reading a fictional book with a plot addressing bullying. Letters from 32 students were analyzed and four themes emerged: 1) text-based interpretations about bullying; 2) personal experiences and perspectives about bullying; 3) bullying in relation to friendship and social positioning; and 4) lessons learned for addressing bullying via action and advocacy