This quasi-experimental study examined readers’ perceptions of content-evaluative metadiscourse—linguistic and rhetorical signals that indicate an author’s willingness (or lack thereof) to “own” the claims discussed in a text. Specific elements investigated in the study included hedging and boosting (markers of doubt or certainty), attitude markers, and attributions. Fifty-three participants were randomly assigned one of two versions of an article about “technophobia,” the first expressing a concerned, “technophobic” stance and the second expressing an optimistic, tech-enthusiast stance. Analysis of participants’ written responses plus twenty-eight retrospective text-based interviews revealed the relative saliency of specific linguistic cues on participants’ own personal attitudes regarding the topic, and on their perceptions of the author’s stance. The results are analyzed in terms of pedagogical implications, with particular emphasis on practices of rhetorical reading.

AbstractRecent policy changes like AB 705 and 1705 have drastically changed curriculum, course offerings, and placement practices in community college ESL departments across California (Rodriguez, et al., 2022; Shaw, et al., 2018). Though many large-scale studies have examined transfer, completion and throughput rates (David & Kanno, 2021; Hayward, et al., 2022; Park, 2019; Rodriguez, et al., 2022), few studies have conducted qualitative research to investigate the implementation of these policies during a global pandemic. In a longitudinal mixed methods exploratory case study of a Northern California community college (NCCC), I noted patterns across multiple sources of data and created a portrait of the institution (Lawrence-Lightfoot & Davis, 1997). First, I compared the changes from before and after AB 705 and 1705 and emergency remote instruction in ESL course curricula to understand how the bill was implemented at this community college. To understand students’ goals for enrollment, I administered a survey (n = 120) to ESL students at the college. I also conducted interviews with students, faculty, staff, and administrators and analyzed student written work to uncover their perceptions and underlying ideologies about higher education and ESL. The findings provide implications for policymakers as well as educators in the wake of the bills. Keywords: AB 705, policy, language ideology, portraiture, community college, ESL