Suggestion Box

The site doesn't ask people whether they are non-native English speakers, and the site never requires members to share personal information publicly. Even if there were such a flag that members could opt to turn on if it applied, the site could not make them use it.

Currently anyone who wants to make ESL information known can put it in their BioBlock (which is public to the whole internet) or put it in their Biography tab (which they can set the access restrictions for). They can also put an note inside each of their items, where reviewers are most likely to see it.

If someone doesn't make this type of information available, then the responsibility for getting feedback that doesn't fit their needs is on them, not on the reviewer.

As a reviewer in such situations, it might be less frustrating if you look at it as an opportunity to practice your skills at communicating with an unidentified audience. A couple of appropriate strategies to start with -- perhaps you can think of others:
You have the option of using If __, then __; otherwise, ___. constructions within your comments to provide information along with the indication of who it applies to.
You have the option of providing feedback about what is wrong without giving advice about how to fix it.


Since this is a forum for suggestions for site staff, who don't write the newsletters, the newsletter idea would be better posted as a comment to one of the regular editors' issues of the For Newbies newsletter, which you can do at the bottom of any of those newsletters. The newsletter archive is linked under Community/Newsletters. You could also post a suggestion directly to other community members in the Community Newsfeed by posting in your Notebook.





Hope that helps.

Northernwrites___

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