English as a Second Language Accommodations

This is an archived copy of the 2014-15 Catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.norwich.edu/.

Students Who Are Eligible for Accommodation for Functional Difficulty with English Language:

  • Students enrolled at Norwich having come directly from a non English speaking foreign country.
  • Students who are U.S. citizens with background of a multilingual environment.


Determination of Eligibility:

  • TOEFL, SAT, ACT, Freshmen Placement Testing scores and transcripts of English courses at the high school or college level will be reviewed by English department personnel to determine placement in ESL or developmental English courses. Such students, as an adjunct to course placement, will be automatically eligible for academic accommodations in all university courses, except in situations where the actual English skill is being assessed.
  • Eligibility will customarily expire at the end of the first semester, but may be continued for an additional semester on the basis of English performance, additional diagnostic testing and faculty referral on a case by case basis.
  • All eligibility determination will be reviewed by the English department for final approval.


Allowed Accommodations:

  • Reduction of credit penalty for misspellings, words, usage, errors, and sentence structure and punctuation, errors characteristic of EFL/ESL students, except in coursework where those skills are being directly assessed.
  • Alternative assignments to gain credit for class participation where spoken language productivity is a problem.
  • Allowance of short extensions of time on assignments if appropriate tutorial assistance is in process.
  • Allowance of a reasonable amount of additional time for examinations with, or without, a reader, that is administered by the professor or Academic Achievement Center.


Student Responsibilities:

Students with functional language difficulties should seek every opportunity available in the University to practice English language in academic and social situations. Members of the Corps of Cadets, during their time as rooks, should work with their company chain of command to take advantage of such opportunities in ways compatible with both academic and Corps standards.