So at the risk of sounding xenophobic (actually, being accused of being xenophobic; i doubt i will actually 'be' xenophobic in what i write, but...), at what point does the need for clear communication mandate that such a skillset be demonstrated to retain one's 'position' in an organization?I think Neela's question is a sound one (it sounds like an experiment) - are similar problems being realized for those foreign-born TAs whose spoken and written English skills are up to snuff? I mean, I have a stumbling adequacy in French. Recognizing my limits in French, I would never apply to the Sorbonne. If the Yale TA's English is so bad, how does she do in her studies? Or is she a post-doc, so any real measurement is very subjective. If a limited profficiency Chinese speaking, non-Chinese post-doc went to Tongji University and was assigned as a TA, how would they fare? Would they be treated such that their Chinese language limitations were not a factor due to their overall 'brilliance'? I could see the University providing a place for their research efforts, but not one for their teaching exploits if students complained that they couldn't be understood.In short, if communication in English is required, then there should be some reasonable expectation that this requirement can be met.On the Sepia weblog - I have a problem with the rather flippant 'I have no doubt she [the complaining student] deserved a C' - the blogger, not having seen the grades, tests or what ever else, should not opine on the extent to which the student desrved or didn't deserve any particular grade. Also, the Berkeley student's comments were attached to the Sepia Mutiny weblog post, not this most recent event at Yale. And, since we have little information on Ms. Serrin (the complaining student) she might not be as 'all-American' as the Hyphen poster proclaims (in a pejorative manner). Just what exactly does an 'all American' look like without their team uniform?

GESO, a group of graduate students who want the right of unionization, took advantage of this unfortunate girl and promoted its own agenda.Many heads of the Chinese student group are also very active in GESO. They hijacked its fellow Chinese' intention to help the girl.

So, Yalie, are you saying that she should have been dismissed from her TA role and chastized by her peers because they needed to routinely correct her English in her to-be-published works and that these protests are just a cover used to give the GESO a more palatable setting from which to claim 'hardship' or egregious cruelties by the administration?

The girl has some problem finding an advisor after her previous one left. She did find one in the Forestry school but the Grad school somehow denied her transfer, or denied her funding. Those info are public. I don't know more details of this SPECIFIC case. I don't believe the Dean of Yale Grad school would discriminate a girl from Inner Mongolia.But GESO is steering the case to a higher level, accusing Yale discriminating Chinese and pushing the college to change some policies regarding grad students. The latter is what they have been pushing for a longest time.

so do you think Yale's treatment of her is based on her ethnicity? her failure to secure an advisor or her problems communicating in English? do you think this would occur if her native tongue was French for example? or Latvian? or Twe? it seemed that she acquired an advisor from the Forestry School as you mentioned, so as long as she can pay the bill, why would she have to be dismissed? (Obviously, I have spent little time in the rarified air of Ph.D. and post-doc academia - to busy actually working).

I don't think Yale treated her based on ethnicity.The advisor from the Forestry school only accepts her conditionally. Not sure about details, but at least, she should continue to be a grad student. Since her study has little connection to the Grad school, it refused her.It's unclear why the Grad School refused her transfer request. Someone reveals some money issue but no one, neither the school or the girl, wants to provide more info on that. And it's unclear why the girl doesn't simply quit the Grad school and joins the Forestry school, since she claimed that she has the scholarship from the generocity of a HK gentleman.

so the righteous indignation of bias and mistreament is more likely a case of 'shit happens' and 'it sucks to be her'. re-sheath your swords warriors.

As I said, I only know some partial info about this case. But accusing discrimination seems far-fetching so far, though I do hope this girl able to finish her study.Don't understand "re-sheath your swords warriors." In the end, I am also an int'l, hehe.

the 're-sheath' comment was that the start of this topic\thread sounded like a rallying cry to come to the defense of a wrongfully discriminated against foreign student. Such does not appear to be the case.