1

INTRODUCCIÓN Estrategias y Recursos III. Lectura y Escritura –que se cursa en sexto semestre de la Licenciatura en Educación Secundaria, Especialidad: Lengua Extranjera (Inglés)– se relaciona principalmente con las asignaturas estudiadas anteriormente: Estrategias y Recursos I. Comprensión de Lectura, y Estrategias y Recursos II. Comprensión Auditiva y Expresión Oral. Una queja constante de los profesores a todos los niveles de la educación en México es la mala redacción de los alumnos, y en esta especialidad, ese problema se presenta tanto en español como en inglés. Si bien en otras asignaturas impartidas en inglés, especialmente Inglés I, II, III y IV, se fomenta la expresión escrita integrada a otras habilidades, en este semestre se perfila como esencial que los futuros profesores de inglés alcancen un buen nivel en la escritura del idioma con propósitos académicos. Este dominio les permitirá expresarse por escrito en diferentes contextos y enseñar a sus futuros alumnos de secundaria a redactar en inglés. Por lo anterior, esta asignatura se enfoca principalmente a la expresión escrita, sin descuidar la comprensión de lectura, ya que algunos estudios han demostrado que la lectura y la redacción van de la mano, y se puede decir que entre más leemos, mejor nos expresamos por escrito. La expresión escrita tiene una gran importancia en la sociedad actual por su carácter permanente en contraposición a lo efímero del lenguaje hablado. Otras razones importantes para la enseñanza de la expresión escrita a los estudiantes normalistas son: • Hace más efectivo el aprendizaje global de una lengua: enriquece el vocabulario, desarrolla el

dominio de la gramática y contribuye al mejoramiento de otras habilidades (lectura, expresión oral y comprensión auditiva).

• Su práctica permite a los profesores proporcionar un instrumento diferente de expresión a aquellos estudiantes que no se sienten cómodos expresando sus ideas oralmente; es decir, les posibilita satisfacer las necesidades y diferencias individuales de sus alumnos.

• El trabajo escrito proporciona a los alumnos resultados tangibles acerca de su avance en la clase de inglés. Es necesario recalcar que el sentimiento de logro es muy importante para fomentar la motivación en el estudiante.

• Contribuye a desarrollar la creatividad de los alumnos, ya que escribir es un proceso en el que se puede tomar tiempo para pensar, ordenar las ideas, escribir y revisar lo que se escribió, de tal manera que el impacto del escrito sea profundo.

• Proporciona un cambio de actividad muy útil en la dinámica de una clase, un periodo para la reflexión y la tranquilidad. Asimismo, puede fomentar el contacto con el inglés fuera del aula a través de tareas para realizar en casa.

• En la enseñanza del inglés, la evaluación de la gramática y del vocabulario se realiza generalmente a través de la escritura. Por este medio también puede evaluarse la comprensión auditiva y la lectura, por lo que es necesario que los alumnos aprendan a manejar la escritura.

Tomando en cuenta que en este semestre el nivel de inglés de los estudiantes será más homogéneo, se pretende que lean textos especializados para la enseñanza de la lengua inglesa, principalmente sobre metodología. Los ejercicios propuestos en el Anexo pretenden desarrollar un tipo de expresión escrita que sea paralela a los textos que se lean. En el Anexo también se presentan ejemplos de actividades sencillas que los futuros profesores podrán utilizar directamente con sus alumnos de la escuela secundaria. Cabe mencionar que estas actividades se dirigen principalmente a la expresión libre (free writing), sin que esto excluya la práctica de escritura controlada o semi-controlada. El curso Estrategias y Recursos III. Lectura y Escritura continúa con las bases y lineamientos de los cursos anteriores; es decir, se espera que los estudiantes desarrollen su expresión escrita a un nivel avanzado como parte de la competencia comunicativa, así como las competencias didácticas que requieren para enseñarlo a los estudiantes de educación secundaria. En este sentido, los alumnos normalistas, además de ejercitar ambas habilidades, adquieren las herramientas necesarias para favorecer su desarrollo.

2

PROPÓSITOS GENERALES A través del curso Estrategias y Recursos III. Lectura y Escritura se espera que los futuros profesores de educación secundaria: 1. Consoliden su competencia comunicativa en el inglés escrito. 2. Comprendan las diferencias entre el lenguaje hablado y el escrito, así como la naturaleza de la

expresión escrita en inglés. 3. Ejerciten el proceso de la expresión escrita (planeación, escritura de notas, elaboración de un

borrador, revisión y producto final). 4. Analicen algunos de los formatos para la expresión escrita en inglés y sus diferentes

convencionalismos, de acuerdo con el tipo de lenguaje y registro (variedades de la lengua dependiendo de las circunstancias particulares como: grado de formalidad, participantes, propósito, lugar, etcétera), especialmente en la escritura académica, para que cuenten con las herramientas necesarias que los conducirán a la elaboración de su tesis en inglés.

5. Sean conscientes de que durante el proceso de escritura es fundamental tomar en cuenta al lector (para quién se escribe), así como las razones para escribir.

6. Desarrollen, y pongan en práctica, las competencias didácticas para diseñar diferentes tipos de actividades de expresión escrita para sus alumnos de educación secundaria, que respondan a su nivel de inglés y a sus intereses.

7. Se familiaricen con los diferentes tipos de evaluación de la expresión escrita, tales como: la revisión, corrección y reescritura de las producciones individuales, y la integración de un expediente personal de los alumnos que permita tener referentes objetivos de sus progresos, entre otras estrategias; que comprendan la conveniencia de definir el uso de códigos para marcar cierto tipo de errores y establecer las condiciones necesarias para favorecer autocorrección y corrección entre los mismos alumnos.

8. Continúen desarrollando la comprensión lectora a niveles avanzados. Estos propósitos se lograrán a partir de exponer a los alumnos a diversos géneros de textos escritos que traten, generalmente, sobre la metodología de la enseñanza del inglés.

ORGANIZACIÓN DE LOS CONTENIDOS Con la finalidad de que los profesores que imparten esta asignatura cuenten con referentes comunes, a continuación se proponen algunos temas en torno a los cuales pueden seleccionarse las actividades más adecuadas. • Metodología de la enseñanza del inglés. • Descripciones de personas y lugares. • Narraciones de eventos: vacaciones, viajes, eventos familiares, aventuras, etcétera. • Temas polémicos: globalización, ecología vs. progreso, tecnología sin límites, etcétera. Se sugieren estos temas porque se prestan para la expresión escrita, sin embargo, el profesor, de acuerdo con las necesidades específicas de sus estudiantes y de su contexto, podrá decidir cuáles son los idóneos. El curso se plantea alrededor de tres ejes principales: 1. El fortalecimiento de la comprensión lectora. 2. El desarrollo de la expresión escrita de los estudiantes normalistas, especialmente la de tipo

académico. 3. El diseño, organización y aplicación de actividades para los alumnos de educación secundaria. Hay una gran diversidad de actividades que pueden realizarse en esta asignatura, sin embargo, es conveniente tener presente que todas deberán propiciar, principalmente, el desarrollo de la expresión escrita en inglés, y que ésta es un proceso cognitivo, intelectual y comunicativo que incluye: • Identificar el formato idóneo (por ejemplo, una carta formal o informal, un mensaje de correo

electrónico, un artículo para una revista) para planear la estructura textual y los convencionalismos a utilizar según los patrones retóricos.

3

• Identificar al lector y el propósito del escrito para pensar en el tono y lenguaje a utilizar (por ejemplo: amigable, respetuoso, impersonal, persuasivo, sumamente lógico).

• Generar ideas y registrarlas por escrito (a manera de guión, esquema, lluvia de ideas, etcétera) para facilitar el proceso de la escritura en temas amplios.

• Seleccionar, ordenar y desarrollar los puntos o ideas, para iniciar la planeación estructural del texto (por ejemplo, decidiendo el contenido de cada párrafo).

• Anotar palabras, frases u oraciones claves que se quieran incluir. • Escribir un borrador (aquí conviene orientar a los estudiantes con la recomendación general de

escribir en forma directa, sencilla y concisa, evitando las oraciones largas y complejas, con una oración central en cada párrafo y las otras claramente relacionadas con ella).

• Revisar el escrito, cuidando la coherencia (secuencia de ideas, contenido y estructura de cada párrafo), la cohesión (uso de conectores y puntuación) y corrigiendo faltas de gramática, vocabulario y ortografía.

Se recomienda usar textos de extensión variada, desde selecciones hasta artículos especializados completos, para dar la oportunidad al estudiante de ejercer su capacidad crítica y creativa en cuanto a la comprensión de lectura y la expresión escrita.

BLOQUE I EL FORTALECIMIENTO DE LA COMPRENSIÓN DE LA

LECTURA Y SU RELACIÓN CON LA EXPRESIÓN ESCRITA PROPÓSITO Desarrollar la comprensión lectora para enriquecer la capacidad de la expresión escrita 1. Reconocimiento de la lectura como elemento fundamental para mejorar la escritura

constantemente • Lectura de textos especializados en la enseñanza de inglés • Diversos géneros de textos escritos

- Listas de compras - Mensajes - Postales - Anuncios - Cartas - Poemas - Letras de canciones - Manuales técnicos - Informes - Ensayos - Artículos periodísticos - Historias - Cuentos - Novelas

2. Aplicación de las principales estrategias de lectura puestas en práctica en cursos anteriores

• Localización de palabras clave • Identificación de las ideas principales • Subrayado e investigación de vocabulario nuevo • Otras

BIBLIOGRAFÍA BÁSICA • Davies Evelyn and Whitney Norman (1985), Study Skills for Reading, Londres, Heinemann

Educational Books Ltd. • Dixson Robert J. (1971), Modern Short Stories in English, Nueva York, Regents Publishing

Company, Inc., pp. 89-106.

4

• French Allen Virginia (1991), A Reading Spectrum, Washington, English Teaching Division – Educational and Cultural Affairs – International Communication Agency, pp. 59-65.

• Richards Jack C. (2003), New Interchange, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, pp. 51, 71, 77, 91, 103.

• Richards Jack C. and Sandy Chuck (1998), Passages, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, pp. 13, 21, 45, 65, 69, 77,105, 109.

• SEP (1994), El libro para el maestro – Inglés – Secundaria, México, SEP. ACTIVIDADES SUGERIDAS (Nota: Todas estas actividades y las de los siguientes bloques serán cien por ciento en inglés) 1. Formular las siguientes preguntas para discutirlas en equipo y externar las opiniones, sobre

cada una de éstas, al grupo en general:

• ¿En qué forma ayuda la lectura para mejorar la escritura? • ¿Por qué y para qué es importante saber escribir correctamente? • ¿Cuáles son las diferencias entre la expresión escrita y la expresión oral? • ¿Cómo se logra redactar correctamente? El maestro supervisa las discusiones de los equipos y los apoya en lo que sea necesario. Después de los análisis de las preguntas, por parte de los equipos, el maestro modera las participaciones de éstos y participa con sus propias ideas para construir las mejores conclusiones.

2. Leer, por parejas, textos de diferentes géneros, para aplicar las principales estrategias de lectura

e identificar, subrayando, the topic sentence, development, and conclusion, de cada uno los párrafos. Al terminar la actividad cada pareja lee al grupo lo que identificó de los tres aspectos en estudio para hacer comparaciones con el resto de la clase. • Se recomienda trabajar con la página 179 del material de apoyo. • El maestro modera las participaciones y al final de éstas proporciona el resultado correcto

que haya sido aportado por los mismos alumnos. 3. Analizar y comentar en equipo cuáles son los principales problemas para comprender las lecturas

en forma eficiente y completa. Enseguida se debe redactar un párrafo exponiendo cuáles son los problemas y sugerir soluciones para éstos, incluyendo una conclusión breve. • El maestro ayuda a los equipos en lo que necesiten para la elaboración del párrafo. • Al terminar, los equipos leen su trabajo al grupo mientras que el profesor escribe en el

pizarrón las soluciones que se proponen y marca las ideas cada vez que se repitan para elaborar una conclusión general.

4. Leer individualmente un artículo para localizar las palabras clave y enseguida compararlas en

equipo de cuatro alumnos para analizar las que resultaron más comunes e importantes. Se recomienda leer City Scenes (p. 172 del material de apoyo). • El maestro pide que cada equipo mencione cinco de las palabras clave que se localizaron y

las escribe en el pizarrón para compararlas y comentar por qué son consideradas importantes en el texto.

5. Leer individualmente Things You Can Do to Help the Environment (p. 175 del material de apoyo)

para subrayar las palabras desconocidas e intentar, por parejas, adivinar su significado. • El maestro solicita que los alumnos escriban en el pizarrón las palabras que no conocen y

pide a la clase participar con opiniones sobre los significados de éstas. Asimismo facilita los significados de las palabras que no haya encontrado la clase.

5

BLOQUE II EL DESARROLLO Y PERFECCIONAMIENTO DE LA EXPRESIÓN ESCRITA

PROPÓSITO Conocer el proceso de la expresión escrita de tipo académico para lograr una comunicación eficiente en diferentes contextos 1. Comprensión de los pasos del proceso de la expresión escrita

• Prewriting - Especificación del trabajo - Planeación - Bosquejo - Recolección de datos - Elaboración de notas

• Composing - Primera escritura

• Revising - Reorganización - Cambio de énfasis - Enfoque de la información - Registro

• Editing - Revisión de gramática - Vocabulario - Puntuación - Ortografía

2. Análisis de los tipos de escritos según la información que contienen

• Descripción • Definición • Ejemplificación • Clasificación • Comparación y contraste • Causa y efecto • Generalización y calificación • Interpretación de datos • Polémica • Desarrollo de conclusiones

BIBLIOGRAFÍA BÁSICA • Jordan R. R. (1980), Academic Writing Course, Londres, Collins ELT. • Richards Jack C. (2003), New Interchange, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, pp. 51, 71,

77, 91, 103. • Richards Jack C. and Sandy Chuck (1998), Passages, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press,

pp. 13, 21, 45, 65, 69, 77,105, 109. • Robinson Lois (1967), Guided Writing and Free Writing, E.U.A. Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc. • Scott, Foresman (1989), English for a Changing World 5, Workbook, Glenview, Illinois, Scott,

Foresman and Company, p. 21. • Scott, Foresman (1989), English for a Changing World 6, Glenview, Illinois, Scott, Foresman

and Company, p. 122. • SEP (1994), El libro para el maestro – Inglés – Secundaria, México, SEP. • Tribble Christopher (1996), Writing, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

6

ACTIVIDADES SUGERIDAS 1. Leer y analizar en equipo un texto modelo del tipo académico (p. 183 del material de apoyo)

para identificar las principales partes que lo componen y posteriormente escribir individualmente uno que contenga el mismo formato y convencionalismos, pero con un tema diferente. El profesor pide a un alumno que lea el párrafo y solicita al grupo que le indiquen al alumno lector que se detenga al finalizar the topic sentence, que continúe leyendo y de la misma forma haga un alto al encontrar the development y finalmente the conclusion, para que de esta forma quede clara la localización de los tres aspectos en estudio a todo el grupo. Los párrafos escritos individualmente se entregan al maestro para ser revisados y corregidos en lo que deba mejorarse.

2. Escribir individualmente un dictado de un texto modelo (p. 185 del material de apoyo) y al

terminarlo comparar los escritos en equipo y corregir la ortografía.

El maestro solicita a un alumno que escriba el mismo texto en el pizarrón y pide al grupo hacer correcciones, si se requiere, para luego identificar entre toda la clase los siguientes aspectos: • Formato (carta, mensaje, artículo ensayo, etc) • Tipo de lector • Propósito del escrito • Tono El profesor modera las participaciones de los alumnos y contribuye con su opinión personal cuando ya lo haya hecho la clase para llegar a las repuestas correctas.

3. Escribir en equipo textos mencionados en el número uno del bloque uno, en clases diferentes y

siguiendo el proceso de tipo académico para practicar la expresión escrita y mejorarla en cada trabajo siguiente. Por ejemplo: postales Se reúnen los equipos para escribir una postal (ficticia) utilizando los tiempos presente, pasado y futuro para luego escribirlas en el pizarrón y hacer las correcciones que se requieran con la participación de grupo en general. El maestro supervisa el trabajo de cada equipo y apoya en lo que se necesite cuando se escriban las postales en el pizarrón. Después de ser revisadas todas las postales cada alumno escribirá una para ser analizada y corregida por el maestro.

4. Escribir grupalmente en el pizarrón un description paragraph de acuerdo con las instrucciones de

la página 169 del material de poyo, para analizar los aspectos que debe contener este tipo de escrito y para prepararse a escribir uno cada alumno.

El maestro modera las participaciones de los alumnos y las escribe en el pizarrón, preguntando al mismo tiempo a la clase si hay algo que deba corregirse; hace los cambios de palabras que considere pertinentes y entre alumnos y maestro estructuran el párrafo de descripción que servirá de ejemplo para escribir uno cada estudiante. Finalmente el profesor recoge cada trabajo para revisar y corregir lo que sea necesario.

BLOQUE III EL DISEÑO DE ACTIVIDADES DE EXPRESIÓN ESCRITA

PARA ALUMNOS DE EDUCACIÓN SECUNDARIA PROPÓSITO Reforzar el conocimiento de actividades de expresión escrita dirigidas a la práctica docente 1. Diseño y aplicación de actividades atractivas para alumnos de secundaria

7

• Intercambio de escritos - Cartas - Experiencias personales

a) Problemas familiares o de trabajo b) Pequeñas o grandes mentiras c) Satisfacciones d) Momentos inolvidables

- Aventuras - Viajes

2. Selección de temas de interés para los estudiantes • Vacaciones • Deportes • Música • Películas • Aventuras • Temas polémicos

- Globalización - Ecología vs. progreso - Guerras - Emigración - Otros

BIBLIOGRAFÍA BÁSICA • Davies Evelyn and Whitney Norman (1985), Study Skills for Reading, Londres, Heinemann

Educational Books Ltd. • Dixson Robert J. (1971), Modern Short Stories in English, Nueva York, Regents Publishing

Company, Inc., pp. 89-106. • French Allen Virginia (1991), A Reading Spectrum, Washington, English Teaching Division –

Educational and Cultural Affairs – International Communication Agency, pp. 59-65. • Grellet Francoise,(1981), Developing Reading Skills, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. • Jordan R. R. (1980), Academic Writing Course, Londres, Collins ELT. • Richards Jack C. (2003), New Interchange, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, pp. 51, 71,

77, 91, 103. • Richards Jack C. and Sandy Chuck (1998), Passages, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press,

pp. 13, 21, 45, 65, 69, 77,105, 109. • Robinson Lois (1967), Guided Writing and Free Writing, E.U.A. Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc. • Scott, Foresman (1989), English for a Changing World 5, Workbook, Glenview, Illinois, Scott,

Foresman and Company, p. 21. • Scott, Foresman (1989), English for a Changing World 6, Glenview, Illinois, Scott, Foresman

and Company, p. 122. • SEP (1994), El libro para el maestro – Inglés – Secundaria, México, SEP. • Tribble Christopher (1996), Writing, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

ACTIVIDADES SUGERIDAS 1. Escribir en forma individual un enunciado en el que se mencione un recuerdo inolvidable y real

para practicar la escritura personal. Sin escribir los nombres de los alumnos en los escritos, se recogen y se reparten al azar entre el grupo y se leen para toda la clase, permitiéndoseles mencionar cuál fue el que escribieron si así lo desean.

El profesor pregunta a la clase si se comprendió cada enunciado y pide participaciones para corregirlos y mejorarlos si es el caso. Asimismo aporta su opinión para cada uno de los escritos, en cuanto a la gramática, claridad, ortografía, etc.

Esta actividad se puede llevar a cabo con los demás elementos del número uno del bloque tres y en forma de párrafos con diferentes temas de interés para los estudiantes.

8

2. Elaborar una carta inventada a un personaje famoso (estrella de cine, deportista, cantante, etc.) entre varios alumnos simultáneamente para practicar la escritura. Se les pide a los alumnos participantes (10) que expresen en una frase o enunciado lo que desean decirle al personaje acordado y lo escriban en el pizarrón ante la atención del resto del grupo. Al final de la participación de los diez alumnos, con la colaboración de toda la clase, se revisa y se corrige lo escrito, con la finalidad de mejorarlo en los aspectos que se necesiten.

El maestro examina cada una de las frases o enunciados escritos en el pizarrón y pide a la clase que participe haciendo posibles correcciones; después da su opinión acerca de lo que se pueda mejorar.

3. Redactar en equipos, para practicar la escritura, un informe sobre una misma película que hayan

visto mencionando de qué trató; qué les gustó o qué no les gustó; y si la consideran una película mala, buena o excelente. Se sugiere leer a la clase en general los informes de cada equipo y se pide que la clase opine de cuál película se habla en cada escrito para analizar si está claro lo que se quiso decir.

El maestro modera las participaciones de la clase, apoya a los alumnos cuando necesiten ayuda para expresar algo y colabora con su opinión.

4. Conformar equipos para presentar al grupo una estrategia que favorezca la expresión escrita en

los alumnos de secundaria, exponiéndola al grupo y solicitando opiniones para mejorarla y perfeccionarla de acuerdo a los temas de interés de los estudiantes.

El maestro organiza el orden de la participación de los equipos y de los demás alumnos que cooperan con sus opiniones para mejor la estrategia. Todo el grupo debe tomar nota de las estrategias propuestas para su posible utilización en las clases de inglés de secundaria.

ORIENTACIONES DIDÁCTICAS Es importante recordar que uno de los principales objetivos de la licenciatura es favorecer que los estudiantes utilicen el inglés como otro medio de comunicación, finalidad que supera la tendencia a estudiar para aprobar exámenes centrados exclusivamente en la gramática. En el caso de la expresión escrita, es necesario que el texto mismo comunique hechos e ideas de manera clara y efectiva; por lo tanto, el profesor de esta asignatura deberá mantener la comunicación como un elemento central de sus clases. En el apartado “Organización de contenidos” se sugirieron temas sobre los cuales se puede hablar y escribir. Como se podrá constatar, el propósito de los ejemplos de actividades que contiene esta guía, es ayudar a los estudiantes normalistas a escribir mejor, para lo que se sugieren técnicas que consisten en relacionar la lectura con la escritura y viceversa. La primera relación (lectura-escritura) ayuda a los a los estudiantes a producir su propio texto, pero similar a un texto modelo, siguiendo los convencionalismos apropiados, entre otras cosas. La segunda relación (escritura-lectura) los ayuda a ser conscientes del efecto que sus escritos tengan sobre un lector (comprensión completa y clara, comprensión parcial, malentendidos, confusión total, etcétera). 1. Diversificación de las formas de trabajo Para trabajar la comprensión de lectura las actividades pueden ser las mismas, o algunas similares, a las que se proponen en la guía Estrategias y Recursos I: Comprensión de Lectura, pero a un nivel más avanzado y con textos más extensos. En cuanto a la expresión escrita, se recomiendan las siguientes actividades: • Descubrimiento de formato y convencionalismos de un texto modelo del tipo que después se va

a escribir. • Dictado de un texto modelo, que puede ser de un párrafo. • Lluvia de ideas y/o discusión sobre el tema a desarrollar.

9

• Toma de notas sobre las ideas que se quieren expresar. • Organización de las notas: reconocimiento de las ideas principales y secundarias del tema a

desarrollar. • Práctica sobre expresiones útiles, conectores, puntuación, etcétera. • Revisión de un texto con fallas: de coherencia, de cohesión, lingüísticas o de puntuación. • Escritura creativa; se puede hacer en grupos o parejas, no sólo en forma individual. • Desarrollo de un pequeño proyecto, individual o en grupos (como una revista o boletín escolar

en inglés). Estas actividades pueden modificarse de acuerdo con las necesidades particulares de cada grupo y/o estudiante. Como ya se mencionó, es de suma importancia tomar en cuenta las diferencias individuales, los estilos de aprendizaje y los intereses de los alumnos. Es fundamental recordar que en este nivel los estudiantes ya deberán contar con los recursos necesarios para expresarse efectivamente en inglés. Se ayudará a los alumnos que tengan dificultades en el dominio del idioma y se incentivará a los que muestren un nivel más avanzado. Asimismo, es necesario que el profesor fomente el gusto por la lectura y la escritura, de modo que éstas sean actividades placenteras para que el estudiante logre un nivel de autonomía y finalmente él mismo lea y escriba por gusto. Es importante que el maestro no sea el único lector y “comentarista” del trabajo escrito de los estudiantes. Es necesario fomentar la relación escritura-lectura o escritor-lector también entre los estudiantes. Algunas tareas se prestan para esto, por ejemplo, el intercambio de cartas de tipo personal o simulando situaciones como la solicitud de una beca y su posible respuesta. Además, los alumnos pueden intercambiar trabajos escritos y comentarlos entre ellos; por ejemplo, los que se escribieron en grupos o parejas tal vez sea posible someterlos a una especie de concurso: se pegan en el pizarrón o la pared con un número de identificación, con el fin de que todos los compañeros los lean y luego voten para decidir cuál es el mejor; de esta manera también sabrán cuál es el segundo, tercero o cuarto lugar. Después sería conveniente platicar en grupo de los méritos de los dos o tres mejores trabajos 2. Planeación y análisis de las sesiones de práctica en la escuela secundaria Como ya se mencionó, la asignatura Estrategias y Recursos III. Lectura y Escritura gira alrededor de la competencia comunicativa y de la competencia didáctica del alumno. Por esta razón, es importante que, además de la bibliografía sugerida al final de esta guía, se consulten materiales como el Libro para el maestro. Inglés. Educación Secundaria, libros de texto para secundaria u otros documentos que permitan a los estudiantes normalistas considerar las necesidades e intereses de los adolescentes al momento de preparar y organizar la práctica docente que realizarán en las jornadas de observación y práctica en las escuelas secundarias. Los estudiantes prepararán de manera autónoma las actividades de práctica, aunque previamente a las jornadas se destinará un tiempo de clase para tratar cuestiones relacionadas con algunos problemas específicos que encuentren al planificar. Asimismo, en sesiones posteriores a las actividades realizadas en la escuela secundaria, se analizarán las estrategias utilizadas, con el fin de identificar dificultades y aciertos y explicar por qué se lograron o no los propósitos previstos. En el curso Observación y Práctica Docente IV analizarán la experiencia en su conjunto.

EVALUACIÓN Se recomienda evaluar a los alumnos de dos maneras: • En forma continua a partir de los escritos realizados durante el semestre. • Por medio de un ensayo o proyecto de una extensión aproximada de 1 000 palabras, donde el

estudiante desarrolle un tema específico relacionado con la enseñanza del inglés y demuestre las habilidades adquiridas en el curso.

10

En cuanto a la evaluación de la capacidad del estudiante para trabajar con los adolescentes el desarrollo de estas habilidades, se propone que el futuro maestro diseñe, seleccione y adapte actividades de lectura y redacción para cada uno de los grados de secundaria y posteriormente se analicen en el grupo para promover la coevaluación. Es recomendable que al inicio del semestre el maestro acuerde con los estudiantes la forma precisa de la evaluación y los criterios que se aplicarán. En el caso de que se requiera un examen final, éste se deberá diseñar tomando en cuenta las actividades que se realizaron durante el curso.

ANEXO Sample activity 1. Writing contrasting concepts

a) How do (would) you teach grammar? Discuss with a partner. b) Read the following text. Deductive vs. inductive language learning Deductive reasoning applies a general rule to particular instances while inductive reasoning involves inference from the particular to the general. Language learning is most clearly deductive when a teacher gives an explicit statement of the rule, which the students then apply to examples. The term “inductive” most obviously applies when a child learns its first language by inducing the rules from exposure to the language in use. A deductive approach is most closely associated with the grammar-translation method of teaching languages, while an inductive approach is considered characteristic of audiolingualism, where meaning and grammar were not explicitly explained but induced from carefully graded exposure to and practice with examples in situations and substitution tables. In the grammar-translation method, the focus on rules was conscious and explicit. In audiolingualism, learning of the rules could be either conscious or unconscious (depending on what the learner was thinking about) but they were not explicitly formulated. In between these two approaches, there is a range of techniques, commonly called “discovery” or “guided discovery” techniques, in which explicit focus is combined with inference from examples. These techniques vary according to whether explanation of the rules takes place before or after practice and according to the degree of guidance the students are given in working out the rules. Frequently, in the presentation stage, the teacher establishes a context or situation and elicits appropriate language, asking concept questions to check understanding of form, meaning, and use. Or he or she might put two contrasting items on the board and elicit the difference in meaning between them. The procedure is direct and teacher-fronted, but by eliciting the rule rather than telling the rule to the students, the teacher introduces an element of discovery learning, albeit heavily guided. At other times the students may work more independently of the teacher in pairs or groups, engaged in a problem-solving approach to new language. They might be asked to find all the different ways of referring to the future in a text, or to work out the differences in form and meaning between sets of contrasting sentences. After “discovering” a rule for themselves in this way, they can be asked to formulate it for the class. Such procedures, though involving inference from examples, have been labelled “modified deductive” because there is explicit formulation of the rule before practice. Where the rule is explicitly formulated, either by the teacher or the students, after the students have been guided to work it out through practice, the label “modified inductive” has been used to distinguish this from a purely inductive approach in which the rule is left implicit. The common denominator with this range of techniques is the fact that the students are actively engaged mentally, which is not only motivating but is believed to lead to more thorough learning. From one lesson to another, and throughout the same lesson, a teacher may switch approach. Feedback on errors, for example, could take the form of either telling the student the rule or guiding him to work it out himself. Students are likely to understand and remember better what they have worked out for themselves; on the other hand, when time is short or it is difficult for the students to

11

work out the rule themselves, a deductive approach may be more appropriate. (From J. Gollin (1998), “Deductive vs. inductive language learning”, in ELT Journal, vol. 52/1.) c) Note the steps followed in the text.

• In the first paragraph: How does the author begin the text? How does the author show the contrast between “deductive” vs. “inductive” reasoning?

• What does the author do in the second, third and fourth paragraphs? • What is the main characteristic of the last paragraph?

d) Write a similar explanation of two contrasting key concepts in ELT. Here are some ideas: • Communicative vs. non-communicative activities. • Accuracy vs. fluency. • Teaching vs. testing. • Learning vs. acquisition.

Sample activity 2. Writing a general-specific text

a) Read the description of a certain kind of text used in English, then discuss this question with a partner: Is it the same in Spanish? General-specific (G-S) texts. This kind of texts usually begin with:

• a definition, short or extended, or • a contrastive or comparative definition, or • a generalization or purpose statement.

G-S texts move from broad statements to narrower ones. However, they often widen out again in the final sentence. The shape is similar to that of a glass or cup: A general statement Specific detail More detail A broad statement b) Now read the following G-S text: Writing Writing is a complex sociocognitive process involving the construction of recorded messages on paper or on some other material, and, more recently, on a computer screen. The skills needed to write range from making the appropriate graphic marks, through utilizing the resources of the chosen language, to anticipating the reactions of the intended readers. The first skill area involves acquiring a writing system, which may be alphabetic (as in European languages) or nonalphabetic (as in many Asian languages). The second skill area requires selecting the appropriate grammar and vocabulary to form acceptable sentences and then arranging them in paragraphs. Third, writing involves thinking about the purpose of the text to be composed and about its possible effects on the intended readership. One important aspect of this last feature is the choice of a suitable style. Because of these characteristics, writing is not an innate natural ability like speaking but has to be acquired through years of training or schooling. c) The “shape” of this passage is something like this. Complete the diagram. 1) __________________________________________________ 2) Main skills involved 3) Skill area 1 4) ___________ 5) Skill area 3 6) _________________ 7) __________________________________________________ d) Now in pairs, write a G-S text about one of the following:

• Communicative Language Teaching. • Task-based Learning. • Consciousness-raising activities. • Motivation in ELT.

Note that a definition has a typical structure:

12

term class specific detail (A) _______ is (a) ___________________ wh-word _____________________ A task is a piece of classroom work which

involves learners in comprehending, mani-pulating, producing or interacting in the target language while their attention is principally focused on meaning rather than form.

(Adapted from Swales, J. y C. Feak (1994), Academic writing for graduate students, University o Michigan Press.)

Sample activity 3. Writing an abstract

a) In groups of three, discuss the following questions: What is an abstract? What is the purpose of an abstract? b) Read the following abstract and discuss the questions after it Peer evaluation: “I am not the teacher” This article is based on an exploratory investigation of a secondary school writing class in Hong Kong. Through examination of the way learners in this study viewed the roles of the teacher and learner as “readers” of the compositions they had written, it explores the extent to which the broader educational context and its belief system shaped six ESL students’ perception of peer evaluation. Finally, the article questions whether notions of collaborative construction of knowledge in the classroom are viable options within an examination-driven, accuracy-oriented L2 curriculum which may preclude learners (and teachers) from re-conceptualizing their traditional roles. (From S. Sengupta (1998), “Peer evaluation: ‘I am not the teacher”’,in ELT Journal, vol. 52/1.) What kind of information can we get from an abstract? How is the above abstract structured? c) Look at a couple of abstracts in TOEFL journals like Tesol Quarterly or ELT Journal. d) Read an article, cover the abstract and as a group, write one for the article you have read. When you have finished, read the abstract the author of the article has written and compare it with yours.

Sample activity 4. Using questions to write a narrative (possible in Secondary School)

a) Get into groups of according to the number of questions to be asked, e.g. seven people for seven questions. b) Take a blank sheet of paper. You are going to write a story. Look at the guiding questions on the board: What time was it? Who was the person? Where was s/he? What was s/he doing? What did s/he say? What did s/he do after that? What happened in the end? c) Each student in your group answers one question in turn. When the first student has answered his/her question, s/he folds the paper over so that the next student cannot see what s/he has written, and so on. When all the questions have been answered, the students unfold the sheet of paper and read their story. For example: It was 10 o’clock at night. It was 9 o’clock in the morning. My neighbor Joaquín. My classmate Lupita. Was at home. Was at the disco. He was watching TV. She was studying for her math exam. He said, “I have to kill that spider”. She said, “I love you”. He opened the door. She closed her eyes.

13

He saw a black cat. She discovered a dead body. The stories can yield funny results and motivate students. This activity can also be used at all levels. (Adapted from D. Byrne (1991), Teaching writing skills, Longman.)

Sample activity 5. Writing an e-friend e-mail (possible in Secondary School)

a) In groups of three discuss if you have cyber friends. Do you chat with them? What do you chat about? Do you write e-mails to each other? b) Now read the following e-mail sent to you by a Swedish student. To: tperez19@yahoo.com From: shanson21@hotmail.com Hi, I’m a Swedish Biology student who would like to make Mexican friends. I’m 21 and live in Stockholm. The place where I live is beautiful, there are many lakes around. I love the city. But I don’t like the weather, it can get very cold in winter. I’m interested in tropical plants, especially palm trees and would like to visit Mexico sometime. I have some good friends at university and a lot of cyber friends from all over the world. I have a sister who lives with my parents in Lund, South Sweden. If you’d like to be my friend, please write to me and tell me all about you. I found your e-mail address on the ICQ. Bye, Sven c) Individually answer Sven’s e-mail. Note: This activity can be done for real if there are computers available for students.

14

15

MATERIAL

DE

APOYO

16

17

Postcards You may write postcards for many different purposes, for example: • To tell someone about your holiday or trip. • To let someone know travel details. • To tell someone your new address or

telephone number. • To send news about friends or family. • To ask for news of friends or family. • To send a greeting (e.g. for a birthday or

New Year). • To remind someone to write to you. • To let someone know you are thinking of

them. Keep these points in mind when writing postcards: • Because postcards are informal and

personal, you may begin and end in any way you like.

• Because there is not much space you usually: o Mention just a few things o Use shortened sentence forms.

• You do not have to follow strict rules of punctuation. For example, you may use dashes (-) instead of full stops or commas to separate ideas.

Notes and messages We usually write notes to or receive notes from any of the following people: • friends • family • trades people • people who work with you • people who share your house • teachers • landlords or rental agents • the public • others When writing notes or messages: • Write every time and day/date if it is

important • Emphasize the important words by using:

o Capital letters o Underlining or other marking o Punctuation

• Leave out unnecessary words if you wish. Full sentences are not necessary especially in notes to friends and family members.

• Use dashes (-) instead of full stops, commas and even question marks if you wish. However, question marks are

sometimes necessary to make your meaning clear.

• End in any way you like. Formal endings are not necessary. Usually your name is enough.

Advertisements Advertisements are used when someone wants to: • Buy something • Sell something • Hire someone • Find a job • Publicize a business • Publicize an event • Give information to the public • Ask for information from the public Keep these points in mind when writing advertisements: • Choose your first word carefully for a

classified advertisement. The reader will use the first word to find what they want. It is usually the name of the item or service being advertised.

• Keep classified advertisements short to reduce the cost. Shortened sentences and abbreviations can help.

• Make your advertisements for a window or notice-board stand out. (Use, for example, underlining or big print)

• Draft and revise carefully, even if you send a classified advertisement by phone.

Personal letters Personal letters usually have one or more of the following purposes: • To thank • To send greetings or express your feelings

about some occasion or event. • To apologize • To invite • To make arrangements • To make or renew contact with someone • To give news • To request news • To accompany enclosed material (photos,

gifts, etc.) • To reply to another letter. Important point to keep in mind: • Write your address and the date in the top

right-hand corner. This is often done informally, and sometimes the address is not necessary at all.

CONTEXT UNITS FUNCTIONAL WRITING CONTEXTS

18

• Begin your letter with a greeting of some kind. ‘Dear…’ is by far the most common.

• Use the first paragraph to set the scene and to state the main purpose of your letter (if there is one). If replying to a letter, say thank you for it here.

• Organize the rest of your letter into paragraphs. In general, you should begin a new paragraph every time your change topics but this may not be necessary in a shorter letter.

• Don’t worry too much about punctuation rules. o You can often use a dash (-) instead of

a full stop or a comma or even a question mark.

o Your can use exclamation marks, capital letters and underlining to add emphasis.

o You can use brackets to separate anything extra to the main thoughts.

• Use the last paragraph to send good wishes, say goodbyes, mention future meetings and so on. It is common to begin this paragraph with a reason for ending the letter (time to go to bed, to the post office, etc.)

• Finish your letter with a farewell message of some kind. Common endings are: love all my love love and kisses bye for now see you soon best wishes regards

• Add anything your have forgotten to say as a postscripts (PS). You sometimes see more than one postscript to a letter (PPS, PPPS, and so on).

Formal letters We write or receive formal letters from: Local councils Banks Insurance companies Landlords or rental agencies Gas or electricity bodies Government departments Education bodies Solicitors Travel or holiday companies Others When writing a formal letters: • Write the name, the position and the

address of the person you are writing to in

the top left-hand corner (lower than your address). You will not always know the name or the position. Use what you know.

• Use: • The person’s surname (Dear Mrs Smith) if

your know it. Only use the first name if you know him or her very well.

• “Dear Sir” if you are writing to a man and don’t know his name.

• “Dear Madam” if you are writing to a woman and don’t know her name.

• “Dear Sir/Madam” or “Dear Sir or Madam” if you don’t know the name or the sex. You can also use the person’s position (Dear Councillor/Resident/Manager/etc.).

• Write your address in the top right-hand corner

• Write the date under your address. • You can write a short statement to

introduce the main point of your letter. (‘Re’ means ‘about’.) This is not always necessary.

• Begin with a sentence which explains the purpose of the letter. (You should do this even if you write a statement as mentioned before). If you are writing in reply, mention the date of the letter received and any reference code.

• Then write any extra information. Keep to the point. Only mention what is necessary. If the letter is very short you could put everything in one paragraph. If it is longer and includes several points, you will need more than one paragraph.

• End with a sentence like ‘Thanking your for your assistance’.

• Follow these rules for ending: • Use “Your faithfully” where your have used

“Dear Sir” or “Dear Madam”. • Use “Yours sincerely” where your have

used the person’s name (“Dear Mrs Smith”). “Yours sincerely” is, however, seen more and more in both cases.

Job applications When you apply for a job you may have to: • Write a letter of application • Fill in an application form • Write a résumé of yours background and

experience. (A résumé is also called a Curriculum Vitae)

Your application may be used to decide if you get an interview for a job. So it is very important to give the right impression.

19

When writing job application letters to accompany a résumé: • Mention the position you are applying for

and where you learnt of the vacancy. • Expand on some pints about your

background or experience, showing how they are relevant to this job. Do not repeat all the information on your resume or application form.

• Emphasize your interest in and suitability for the job. If possible, show you have some knowledge of what the company does.

• Mention that you have attached a copy of your resume or a completed application form.

• State that you are willing to attend an interview.

• Set your letter out clearly. Follow closely the layout and punctuation of formal letters. If possible, have your letter typed. If not, make sure it is very neatly written.

• Keep a copy of the letter and advertisement.

Stories The stories you write may be about events from your own life, or from your imagination. Your may choose to write them for yourself, for friends and family to read, or for wider publication, for example in a school magazine. (If possible, organize such a school magazine.) Here is a useful plan to follow to make your stories interesting to read. Include: • An orientation or introduction. Here the

writer explains who the story is about (the main character or characters) and perhaps where the story takes place (the setting).

• A complication or middle part. Here the main events of the story unfold and some problem or crisis occurs.

• A resolution or conclusion. Here the problem or crisis is resolved.

Adapted from Brown Kristine and Susan Hood. Writing Matters, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1997

20

INTRODUCTION The next three units are very important. They describe the three main stages of the writing process. For ease of discussion, we present these three stages like this:

But in practice the process is often more like this:

The writing process depends on: • who you are writing to or for (reader) • why you are writing (purpose) • What you are writing about (content) • Where you are, how much time your have,

how you feel, etc. (situation). There is no one way to write. The ideas in the next three units are only suggestions. Try them all. Some you may find useful in one type of writing. Some you may find useful every time you write. Whatever you do, you will benefit from lots of practice. So write often – even if it’s only for a short time and even if it’s only for yourself. Many of the exercises which follow continue through the three units, so keep in your writing until the end of Unit 3, revising.

1. Preparing to write Introduction Most writing requires some preparation. How long you sped on this preparation, and what you do, largely depends on your reader, your purpose, the content and the writing situation. For example, a quick message to a friend requires different preparation from a letter to a company applying for a job. The ideas below will be useful to you in preparing to write. Remember: Keep all the writing you do in these exercises for use in the next two units. IDEAS BRAINSTORMING This means you ‘storm’ or search your brain for ideas. • Write them down very quickly. Then don’t

have to be in English. • Don’t worry about how useful they will be. • Don’t worry about neatness and

correctness. e.g. Brainstorming in preparation for a job application letter:

Exercise 1 Choose an item that interests you from those below. You are going to write something about it for a student magazine (a letter to editor, an article, a story). Prepare by brainstorming. (Keep the notes you make for use in exercise j, Unit 2, Drafting.)

PART 1: CORE UNITS THE WRITING PROCESS

21

SPEED WRITING This is a warm-up activity to get your writing freely. • Give yourself a time limit (say two

minutes). • Write as much as your possibly can on a

topic. • Write whatever comes into your head. It

doesn’t matter if it doesn’t all make sense. • Keep writing until the time is up. • Don’t worry about neatness and

correctness.

e.g. Speed writing in preparation for a letter to a teacher about a child’s problems at school:

22

Exercise 2 Choose from one of the following topics and write a letter to the editor of your class magazine. work children television Prepare by doing two minutes speed writing. (Keep your writing for exercise 4, Unit 2, Drafting.) ASKING YOURSELF ‘WH’ QUESTIONS This idea is useful for longer pieces of writing. • -Write down some questions about the

topic. • who…? what…? where…? when…? why…?

how…? Thing of as many questions as you can. e.g. ‘Wh’ questions in preparation for a letter to the Council about the bad condition of the roads:

Exercise 3 Imagine you are planning to move to another city. You need to have accommodation arranged before you move. Prepare a letter to send to some real estate agents in your new city, telling them what you are looking for. Make up a list of ‘wh’ questions to remind yourself of what you need to mention in your letter. e.g. ‘When do I need the accommodation?’ (Keep your questions for exercise 3, Unit2, Drafting.) GETTING YOUR IDEAS INTO ORDER This is something you could do after brainstorming, speed writing, or ‘wh’ questions. • Look through your notes. • Use numbers or arrows to put them in the

order you want to mention them in writing.

e.g. Ordering notes in preparation for a job application letter:

Exercise 4 Below are some notes a writer made in preparing to write a letter of complaint to the council about the lack of playgrounds in the area. Rewrite the notes in the order you would mention them.

Exercise 5 Use some of the notes you made in one of the previous exercises (brainstorming, speed writing, ‘wh’ questions). Use numbers or arrows to put the notes in the order you want to mention them. USING MODELS Models or examples can help you with what to write and how to write it. • Look for models of the kind of writing you

want to do. • Keep a file of these so you will have them

when you need them. • Think about the content (the information

included, the questions asked, the ideas mentioned).

• Look closely at the language used. Underline or make notes of any useful expressions.

• Look closely at the organization of ideas. • The model on the left was useful in writing

the advertisement on the right.

23

Exercise 6 Imagine you want to sell a refrigerator. Look carefully at the advertisements below. • Take note of any useful words or

abbreviations. • Discuss with other students the kind of

information included, and the order in which it is mentioned.

Exercise 7 Read the following letter to the editor carefully. • Write down the three phrases that are

used to introduce and to link the writer’s three arguments against the death penalty.

• Write down any other useful words or expressions.

MARKING POINTS TO MENTION IN REPLY If you are replying to a letter or advertisement:

• Reread that letter or advertisement. • Underline parts that you want to mention

in reply. • Keep the letter or advertisement handy

when you are writing as a reminder of things to mention.

e.g.

Salesperson We are seeking a mature person with experience in sales. Some experience with selling power tools would be and advantage, and applicants should hold a current driver’s licence and be available for some weekend work. Salary is negotiable. A company Vehicle will be proved. Applications Should be directed in writing to: Mr Alf Singer Personnel Manager ANDERSON and LEECH POWER TOOLS PTY LTD P.O. Box 635 Port Adelaide 5015 Exercise 8 Van received this letter from some friends overseas. Note the parts he might mention in reply.

Additional exercises Exercise 9 Think of someone you would like to write to, someone you haven’t written to for a long time. • Quickly jot down as many things as you

can think of that have happened to you over the last 6 months.

• Group together those events that seem to belong together.

• Decode which you will mention first and a rough order for the rest of your news.

24

(Keep your notes for exercise 5, Unit 2, Drafting.) Exercise 10 Choose one of the ideas described in this unit to prepare for the following: a) A note to someone who is minding your

house, telling them where everything is. b) A letter to your landlady asking for some

repairs to be done. c) An advertisement to sell some furniture

you no longer want. d) A story about your childhood. (Keep your notes for exercise 6, Unit 2, Drafting.) Exercise 11 Think of something you personally need to write at the moment. Prepare for your writing in one of the ways suggested in this unit. (Keep your notes for exercise 7, Unite 2, Drafting.)

25

“Writing to me is a voyage, an odyssey, a discovery, because I’m never certain of precisely what I will find.”

- Gabriel Fielding Understanding the Process The basic steps in the writing process discussed in your handbook cover different aspects of mind travelling. Prewriting helps you select and shape a subject for writing. Writing the First Draft helps you connect all of your thoughts about your subject. It is your first complete look at a developing piece of writing. Revising helps you make changes in your writing until it says what you want it to say. Editing and Proofreading help you check your revised writing for correctness and prepare it for publication. Publishing helps you evaluate the effectiveness of your work. Sharing a finished piece of writing with your classmates is one form of publishing; submitting your work to a school newspaper or magazine is another. Setting the Stage Before you use this section, it’s important that you understand four main points about the writing process. • Experience shapes writing. Each of

life’s experiences becomes part of what you know, what you think, and what you have to say. Your mind is a storehouse for these past experiences, as well as a creative processor for your thoughts of today and tomorrow. Writing is the process of capturing those thoughts and experiences on paper.

• Writing never follows a straight path. Writing is a backward as well as a forward activity, so don’t expect to move neatly and efficiently through the steps in the writing process. Mind travelling by its very nature includes detours, wrong turns, and repeat visits.

• Each assignment presents unique challenges. For one composition, you might search high and low for an interesting subject. For another composition, you might do a lot of collecting and reviewing before you find an interesting way to write about a subject. For still another, you might be ready to write your first draft almost immediately.

• Each writer works differently. Some writers work more in their heads, while

others work more on paper. Some writers need to talk about their writing early on, while others would rather keep their ideas to themselves. Your own writing personality will develop as you become more and more experienced.

INSIDE. All of guidelines and strategies included in this section won’t necessarily make you a better writer. Real improvement comes from writing regularly, experimenting with a number of different forms, and addressing a number of different audiences.

The process in Action The next two pages provide a basic look at the writing process in action. Use this information as a general guide whenever you write. Prewriting 1. Find an interesting idea to write about-one

that meets the requirements of the assignment and lends itself to worthwhile mind travelling.

2. Begin your subject search with free writing, clustering, or another selecting activity. (See 017-018)

3. Learn as much as you can about a potential subject. (See 021-022.)

4. Take a close look at your prewriting progress to see whether or not you have a solid interest in your subject. If one subject leads to a dead end, drop it and search for another one.

5. Once you have a topic, find an interesting way (a focus) to write about it. (See 024-025.)

6. Think about an overall plan or design for organizing your writing. This plan can be anything from a brief list to a detailed outline. (See 026.)

Writing the first Draft 1. Write the first draft while your prewriting

is still fresh in your mind. 2. Give your opening paragraph special

attention to set the right tone for your writing. (See 030.)

3. Refer to your plan or outline (if you have one) for the main part of your writing, but be flexible. A more interesting route may unfold as you write.

4. Keep writing until you come to a natural stopping point. Don’t worry about corrections at this point. Concentrate on developing your ideas.

W R I T E R S INC.

26

5. Remember that your first draft is your first look at a developing writing idea. (You may find it necessary to write more than one draft of an emerging writing idea.)

Revising 1. Review your first draft to make sure you

understand which parts work and which parts need to be changed.

2. Add, cut, reword, or rearrange the ideas in your writing. Your writing should answer many of the questions your readers may have about your subject. (See 036.)

3. Check your writing for opportunities you may have missed to make it as meaningful and lively as possible. (See 039.)

4. Review (or write) the opening and closing paragraphs. They should help tie everything together in your paper.

5. Refine the style of your writing. Your ideas should sound interesting, colourful, and natural. (See 041.)

6. Ask your classmates to react to your writing. (See 042.48.)

Editing and Proofreading 1. Reread your final draft aloud to test it for

sense and sound. Replace any words, phrases, or sentences that are awkward or confusing.

2. Then check for errors in usage, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and grammar.

3. Have a dictionary, thesaurus, and your Writers INC handbook close at hand as you work.

4. Ask a reliable editor –a fried, classmate, teacher, or parent- to check your writing for errors you may have missed.

5. Prepare (write, type, or keyboard) a neat final copy of your writing. Follow the guidelines for a final draft established by your teacher.

6. Proofread the final draft for errors before submitting it for publication.

Publishing 1. Share your finished product with your

writing group and teacher. (Have copies of your work available for group members.)

2. Listen carefully to their reactions to your work. Take brief notes so you can refer to their comments the next time you write.

3. Decide if you are going to include the writing in your portfolio. Follow the guidelines established by your teacher.

4. Consider submitting your work to a school, local, or national publication. Make sure to

follow the necessary requirements for submitting manuscripts. (See 058.)

Writing Basic Essays

The essay is the basic form of writing assigned in all academic areas. You write essays about important concepts covered in your reading and class discussions. You research related topics. You compose produce (how-to) papers. You take essay tests. Anytime you are asked to inform, explain, analyze, or write persuasively about a subject, you are developing an essay. Basic essays usually contain at least three to fire paragraphs. Building a Knowledge Base Begin the essay-writing process by selecting a subject that genuinely interests you (and meets he requirements of your assignment). Then learn as much as you can about this subject by collecting a wide variety of facts and details. Once you have a good knowledge base, you’re ready to develop your essay. Are you expected to inform your readers about your subject? Fine. Then present your findings as clearly and completely as you can. Are you expected to persuade your readers to accept your position on a subject? In that case, support your point of view using the facts and figures you have gathered. The key in either situation is to work with solid information. Always remember that effective essays begin and end with information. What’s ahead? The first part of this chapter discusses the main elements in the development of an essay: structure, organization, and support. On the pages that follow, you will find writing guidelines and a model for a basic expository essay and for a persuasive essay. Also included in this chapter are two interesting extras: a graphic organizer for planning (124) and tips for personalizing an essay (128-129). Note Refer to “academic Writing” (354-370) for more guidelines and models. The Importance of Structure The basic essay has a tight structure; that is, it contains an opening paragraph, several developmental paragraphs, and a closing paragraph.

27

Beginning Your opening paragraph should accomplish two things: It should gain your reader’s interest in your subject, and it should identify the focus or thesis that you will develop in the main part of your essay. Remember that the focus identifies the specific part of your subject that you will write about. (See 024-025 for more about your focus or thesis statement.) There are several ways to draw your reader’s attention to your subject. Five effective techniques are listed here. • Open with a series of questions about the

topic. • Provide an interesting story or anecdote

about the subject. • Present a startling or unusual fact or

figure. • Quote a well-known person or literary

work. • Define an important, subject-related term. Middle The developmental paragraphs are at the heart of the essay. They must clearly and logically support your thesis. If for instance, you are going to present information about paper recycling, each developmental paragraph in your essay should discuss an important element related to that subject. It’s important that these paragraphs are arranged in the best possible way –chronologically, by order of importance, or by an order of your own making. (See 112 for-methods of arrangement.) It’s also important that your paragraphs flow smoothly from one to the next. To achieve this flow, make sure that the first sentence in each new paragraph serves as an effective link to the preceding paragraph. Transitions like in addition, on the other hand, and as a result are often used for this purpose. (See 115.) Take note Start a new paragraph whenever there is a shift or change in the essay. This change is called a paragraph shift and can take place for any of four basic reasons: 1. a change in emphasis or ideas 2. a change in time 3. a change in speakers 4. a change in place or setting

Ending The closing or summary paragraph should tie all of the important points in the essay together and draw a final conclusion for the reader. It should leave the reader with a clear understanding of the essay topic.

The Importance of Organization

The Topic Outline A topic outline is a listing of the topics to be covered in a piece of writing; it contains no specific details. Topics are stated in words and phrases rather than complete sentences. This makes the topic outline useful for short essays. It is always a good idea to begin your outlining task by placing your thesis statement, or controlling idea, at the top of your paper. This will serve as a reminder of the specific topic you are going to be outlining and later writing about. Use the standard format shown in the example for labelling the lines of your outline. Do not attempt to outline your opening or closing paragraph unless specifically told to do so. Introduction I. Paper recycling big business A. Industry involved B. Recyclable paper plentiful C. Countries buy wastepaper II. Simple process A. Collect and sort paper B. Form a pulp C. Dry pulp to make paper D. New paper used in many ways III. Some papers not recyclable A. Glossy, envelopes, glued papers B. Must be sorted out C. New process coming for glossy paper Conclusion The Sentence Outline The sentence outline not only contains the major points to be covered but lists supporting details as well. It is used for longer, more formal writing assignments; each point should, therefore, be written as a complete sentence. Introduction I. Paper recycling is a booming business

today. A. Industry believes recycling paper

makes good sense.

28

B. A large supply of recyclable paper is thrown away by Americans.

C. Taiwan actually buys paper waste from the U.S.

II. Paper recycling is a simple process.

D. Paper is collected and sorted. E. Paper is mixed with water and

chemicals to form pulp. F. Pulp is dried and new paper is formed. G. The new paper is used for a Wide

range of products. III. Some types of paper cannot be recycled

presently. A. Equipment cannot handle glossy

paper, envelopes, glued papers, etc. B. These types must be sorted out. C. A new technology is being perfected

that will make glossy papers recyclable.

D. Conclusion

The importance of support

Believe it or not, writing is a privilege. But with this privilege comes the responsibility of supporting and developing your main points with facts, quotations, and examples. Without this kind of evidence, your readers will not take your writing seriously. Here’s how it’s done. Using facts In the model persuasive essay in this chapter, the writer asks if metal detectors are the answer to student safety. He makes this statement: “The answer to this question for Somerset High School is, I believe, ‘no’.” Here are two supporting facts he presents to get the reader to accept his opinion: 1. The only weapons found so far at SHS

have been knives. 2. We’ve had very few weapon-related

expulsions compared to other area campuses.

Using Quotations A quotation from an expert can go a long way toward lending support. For example, in a essay about sports and children, a writer made this claim: “Competitive sports can be harmful for preschoolers.” Later, he shared this supporting quotation to help convince the reader:

Dr. M. Jones recently reported, “The high stress of athletic training and conditioning in youngsters can damage their bone structure.” Using Examples Examples will strengthen your writing by making it more concrete. In the model expository essay in this chapter, the writer states, “Paper recycling has truly become part of the daily lives of many Americans.” Here are two of the examples the writer uses to prove his statement is true: 1. Recyclable paper is collected at home

(curbside) and at the office. 2. Americans recycled 20 millions tons of

paper last year.

Guidelines for writing an Expository Essay

Informing Your Readers Discussion: Write an expository essay presenting information about a subject of personal interest. Your goal will be to share facts, explaining them as necessary, and guiding your reader to a clear understanding of your subject. Gather facts by referring to at least two different sources-books or periodicals. Do your best to prepare an essay that reads smoothly from the opening paragraph to the closing thought. Refer to the model essay that follows and the guidelines below to help you with your writing. Searching and selecting 1. Searching. Think of a subject you would

like to know more about. Consider subjects related to your course work, as well as interests outside of school. Page through textbooks on newspapers, or brainstorm for ideas with other classmates. Make a list of possible subjects.

2. Selecting. Look over your list and focus your attention on interesting subjects that you know you can find plenty of facts about-either in a textbook, reference book, or magazine. Now choose your favorite.

Generating the Text 3. Collecting. Find at least two good sources

of information and begin reading. List important facts as you come across them. (Don’t worry about their order at this point.) To be certain you understand the

29

information you’re collecting, use your own words as much as possible.

4. Planning. Review your facts looking for a main idea or impression that could serve as the focus or thesis of your essay. Once you identify a possible focus, write it out in a sentence. Next, put a check mark by the facts and details that support this idea. Then plan and organize your writing accordingly. You may find it helpful at this point to prepare an outline. (See 118.)

Writing and Revising 5. Writing. Develop your first draft

according to your planning and organizing. Devote extra time to your opening paragraph, which should catch your reader’s attention and identify the focus of your writing.

6. Revising. Carefully review your first draft, making sure that the main idea you had intended to share has, in fact, been clearly put forth. Also make sure that you have effectively supported this idea and that your writing flows smoothly. (See topic 128 for more ideas.)

Evaluating Is the essay well organized? Do the facts effectively support the focus? Will readers appreciate the treatment of this subject?

Expository Essay

The purpose of an expository essay is to present important information about a specific subject. In the follow example, student writer Todd Michaels shares timely information about paper recycling. You will notice that his essay follows the traditional five-paragraph pattern (opening paragraph, three developmental paragraphs, and closing paragraph). Paper Recycling From large paper chutes at the office to home curbside collection, paper recycling has become an everyday thing. Americans have changed their throwaway attitude for a recycling consciousness, and they are recycling in record numbers. Last year 20 million tons of paper were recycled a substantial increase from the previous year. Paper recycling has truly become part of the daily lives of many Americans.

Paper recycling has indeed become a big deal, and a big business. Today, industry recycles paper not just because it makes good business sense. Since Americans throw away more paper than anything else, there is much to be gained by recycling paper. For example, Fort Howard Corporation of Green Bay, Wisconsin, produces bathroom tissue made entirely of recycled paper. The company recycles enough paper each year to cover 100 acres 18 feet deep (Grove 104). Foreign countries are even buying our paper waste. If you see a MADE IN TAIWAN tag on a manufactured paper product, in another life it was probably a newspaper in America. Taiwan buys all of its paper from the United States. The process of paper recycling is a simple one. First, paper is collected and sorted. Recyclable paper includes typing paper, newspaper, cardboard boxes, scrap paper, index cards, and computer printouts. This recyclable paper includes typing paper, newspaper, cardboard boxes, scrap paper, index cards, and computer printouts. This recyclable paper is dumped into a vat of water and chemicals. A large spinning blade mixes the paper to a pulp. This pulp is dried on screens, and the new paper is formed on cylinders. Items made from this new recycled paper include newspapers, cereal and shoe boxes, toilet tissue, paper towels, building insulation, egg cartons, and even livestock bedding. Not all types of paper can be recycled, however. Recycling equipment at this time cannot handle envelopes, carbon paper, glossy paper, photographs, or paper with scotch tape, glue, or staples attached. These types of paper must be sorted out. Advancements are being made, though, to accommodate these items. Recycling equipment currently is being perfected that will remove ink from glossy magazine and catalog paper, enabling it to be recycled. Although landfills are still filling up with over two-thirds of our recyclable waste, paper recycling has become a success story. While only 18 percent of metal cans and 2 percent of plastics are recycled, 40 percent of recyclable paper is, in fact, recycled. Five thousand community programs exist nationwide for the recycling of paper products, and big business has discovered the advantages of a product-material that can be reused up to eight times. Recycling fever

30

hasn’t been as high in the United States since World War II, when people in a wartime situation felt it was their duty to recycle. Perhaps people today have realized that the world is in a different kind of emergency situation, and that, world is in a different kind of emergency situation, and that, again, it is their duty to recycle.

A Survey of Writing Forms The chart that follows classifies the different forms of writing in one of six ways. (See 277-397 for guidelines and models.) Experiment with all forms of writing, moving freely between “categories”. An essay, for example, can (and should) be creative as well as informative. PERSONAL WRITING Remembering & Sharing Journals-Reminiscences-Logs-Diaries- Exploring, free flowing Personal Essays and Narratives-Listing- Promotes writing fluency Free Writing-Clustering-Brainstorming SUBJECT WRITING Searching & Reporting Descriptions-Profiles-Case Studies- Investigating Firsthand Experiences-Summary Reports- Broadens writing Eyewitness Accounts-Observation Reports Experiences Personal Research Reports –Interviews CREATIVE WRITING Inventing & Imitating Poems-Myths-Plays-Stories- Reshaping Ideas Anecdotes-Songs-Ads-Jokes- Encourages creativity Parodies-Character Sketches REFLECTIVE WRITING Reflecting & Speculating Essays of Illustration-Dialogues of Ideas- Searching for meaning Essays of Explanation-Essays of Reflection- In experiences Position Papers-Personal Commentaries- Reinforces complex Responses to Literature-Editorials- Thinking Essays of Opposing Ideas-Pet Peeves ACADEMIC WRITING Informing & Analyzing Essays of Information-Essays to Compare- Shaping Information Into Essays of Definition-Cause/Effect Essays

Clear essays Problem/Solution Essays-Summaries- Develops organizing skills Essays of Argumentation- Paragraphs/Essays BUSINESS WRITING Questioning & Answering Letters of Inquiry-Résumés-Memos- Writing to get a job done Letters of Application-Messages- Builds real-world writing Follow-Up Letters-Writing Instructions Writing about a Person Whenever possible, write about someone you know-or would like to know. Follow the steps in the writing process, using the suggested prewriting techniques to gather as much information and as many specific details as you can. The suggestions that follow will help you think about your tropic on a variety of levels. 1. Observe. Begin gathering details by

observing the person you are describing; notice in particular those details of personality and character that set your subject apart from other people.

2. Investigate. Talk to your subject (in person, by phone, or by letter). Have some specific questions ready ahead of time, but be prepared to add or follow up as you go along. What are your subject’s goals, dreams, attitudes, concerns, pet peeves, hobbies …? Quote your subject directly whenever possible (use a tape recorder). Read about your subject if she or he is well known and not available for an interview.

3. Define. Determine what type of person it is you are describing (child/adult, student/professional, shy/mischievous, friend/stranger) and how he or she is like other people of the same type.

4. Describe. List the important physical characteristics, mannerisms, and personality traits, especially those that make your subject unique or worth reading about. (Remember: Show, don’t tell. Include people and action in your writing and let them “show” the reader what your subject is like.)

5. Recall. Add details (anecdotes and stories) recounting things your subject has said and done in the past. Try to recall at least one specific incident that reveals the kind of person your subject really is.

6. Analyze. Ask others about your subject and notice how they react to your

31

questions. Their reactions can tell you (and your reader) about the kind of person your subject truly is. What are his or her strengths and weaknesses? How does he or she influence others?

7. Evaluate. Determine why this person is important to you, to others, to the community.

Possible topics I know a special person, a person who . . . is clever/funny is a living legend is stubborn is always happy is helpful/kind is a perfectionist is very talented is a complainer is phony is very patriotic is a little weird is afraid of nothing is always talking is always around is always in trouble

HOW TO TEACH ENGLISH

• Why teach writing? • What kind of writing should students do? • What do writing sequences look like? • How should teachers correct writing? • What can be done about handwriting? • How does writing fit into ESA? • More writing suggestions Why teach writing? The reasons for teaching writing to students of English as a foreign language include reinforcement, language development, learning style and, most importantly, writing as a skill in its own right. We will look at each of these in turn. Reinforcement: some students acquire languages in a purely oral/aural way, but most of us benefit greatly from seeing the language written down. The visual demonstration of language construction is invaluable for both our understanding of how it all fits together and as an aid to committing the new language to memory. Students often find it useful to write sentences using new language shortly after they have studied it. Language development: we can’t be sure, but is seems that the actual process of writing (rather like the process of speaking) helps us to learn as we go along. The mental activity we have to go through in order to construct proper written texts is all part of the ongoing learning experience.

Learning style: some students are fantastically quick at picking up language just by looking and listening. For the rest of us, it may take a little longer. For many learners, the time to think things through, to produce language in a slower way, is invaluable. Writing is appropriate for such learners. It can also be a quiet reflective activity instead of the rush and bother of interpersonal face-to-face communication. Writing as a skill: by far the most important reason for teaching writing, of course, is that it is a basic language skill, just as important as speaking, listening and reading. Students need to know how to write letters, how to put written reports together, how to reply to advertisements – and increasingly, how to write using electronic media. They need to know some of writing’s special conventions (punctuation, paragraph construction etc.) just as they need to know how to pronounce spoken English appropriately. Part of our job is to give then that skill. What kind of writing should students do? Like many other aspects of English language teaching, the type of writing we get students to do will depend on their age, interests and level. We can get beginners to write simple poems, but we probably won’t give them an extended report on town planning to do. When we set tasks for elementary students, we will make sure that the students have – or can get – enough language to complete the task. Such students can write a simple story but they are not equipped to create a complex narrative. It’s all a question of what language the students have at their command and what can be achieved with this language. As we shall see with the four examples in this chapter, the models we give students to imitate will be chosen according to their abilities. In general, however, we will try to get students writing in a number of common everyday styles. These will include writing postcards, letters of various kinds, filling in forms such as job applications, writing narrative compositions, reports, newspaper and magazine articles, etc. We may also want to have students write such text types as dialogues, playscripts, advertisements, or poems – if we think these will motivate them. Another factor which can determine our choice of writing task is the students’ interests. If everyone in the class works in a bank, we

32

might choose to get them writing bank reports. If they are all travel agents, your can imagine getting them to write alluring advertisements for special deals. But, of course, this should not preclude using other types of creative writing with such groups. When we have a mucho more mixed group – students, secretaries, doctors, teachers and police officers, for example – their interests won’t be so easy to pin down. At this point we will choose writing tasks which we think are generally useful but which, more importantly, they are likely to enjoy doing. Students may never have a need to write a scene from a soap opera, for example, but they might enjoy having a go, so it is worth doing. There is no limit to the kinds of text we can ask students to write. Our decisions, though, will be based on how much language the students know, what their interests are and what we think will not only be useful for them but also motivate them as well. What do writing sequences look like? The four examples of writing we are going to look at show a range of level and complexity. Example 1: postcards (elementary) In this example at the elementary level, students s Study a particular type of writing and then write something which is very similar in design and structure to what they have just been looking at. The teacher starts by having students look at this postcard.

The teacher checks that the students understand the information in the card and then she asks hem to identify four different patterns in it: the present continuous (‘we’re staying at a lovely hotel …’), the present

simple (‘we get up late every day …’), verbless sentences, postcard style (‘after lunch – siesta!’) and present continuous for future (‘Tomorrow we’re going …’). The students then discuss the fact that, in postcards, greeting (like ‘Dear Judy’) are not necessary. Signings –off are informal (‘Love Mary’). Now that students have examined the structure of the postcard, the teacher asks them to imagine that they too are on holiday. They must decide where. She tells them that they, too, must send a postcard to an English-speaking friend. Like the example postcard, they should say where they are, what they do every day, what they’re doing tomorrow/next week etc., and they should sign off informally. When the student have completed to task, the teacher can collect the postcards and correct them later (see below) or the students can read them out, or they can show their cards to other people. This postcard activity is an example of ‘parallel writing’ – where students stick closely to a model they have been given, and where the model guides their own efforts. It is especially useful for the kind of formulaic writing represented by postcards, certain kinds of letters, announcements and invitations, for example. Example 2: altering dictations (intermediate) In this activity, the teacher dictates statements which students have to alter to suit their own preferences and priorities. It is a writing activity which is especially useful during a lesson sequence which is designed to ask people to take positions on a certain subject – and can therefore be used as a prelude to a discussion, or a controversial reading, for example. The teacher tells students she is going to dictate a number of sentences. However, the students should change the sentences as she dictates them so that they reflect their own points of view. In other words, the sentence they write down will be an amended form of the sentence the teacher starts with. As an example the teacher reads this sentence. Human beings do not treat animals well. And tells students to re-write the sentence to suit their own feelings. She may read this original sentence more than once and she

33

then gives students time to complete their sentences. Here are examples of what students might write: Some people thing that human beings do not treat animals well, but I do not think this is very important. Human beings must treat animals better because they are living creatures too. The teacher then reads out more sentences, giving students adequate time to alter them, e.g. The way people treat animals tells you what kind of people they are. There is no difference between killing animals for food and killing people in war. If all the world was vegetarian, we’d all be a lot happier. The students them compare what they have written in pairs or groups before reading them out to the class. The teacher only corrects where there are glaring errors. Alternatively, pairs and groups could be asked to pool their sentences and come up with a new one which represents a fair compromise between the various points of view. The finished sentences either then lead into a reading or listening text about vegetarianism – or they may form the start of a discussion activity (see Chapter 9). Example 3: newspaper headlines/article (intermediate) In this sequence, the teacher introduces students to the way newspaper headlines are constructed and then gets students to write their own newspaper articles. The sequence starts when the teacher asks the students if they read newspapers, and what they read about. They have a short discussion. The teacher then gets students to match newspaper headlines with the stories they came from, as in the following example. 1. Match the newspaper headlines with the

stories they came from. • The teacher now elicits the facts that, for

example, headlines frequently use the present simple tense and invariably leave out articles and auxiliaries. She might point out that there is special vocabulary

for headlines (e.g. ‘slams’ for ‘complains about’, ‘quits’ instead of ‘leaves’).

• Students are then asked to choose one of the following topics: a disaster, a neighbourhood quarrel, a resignation/sudden departure of a public figure, a sports triumph, a scandal involving a public figure (actor, politician etc.). In pairs, they have to thing of a short story to go with the topic they have chosen.

• The pairs now write the headlines for their stories and write them up on the board for the rest of the class – who have to guess what the story is about. The teacher can suggest changes, corrections and amendments to the headlines during this stage of the lesson.

• The students then write articles to go with the headlines. While they are doing this, the teacher goes round the class offering them help when and if they need it.

• The teacher can stick the articles up on the class noticeboard or, if this is not possible, have students read their stories out to the rest of the class.

• Newspaper writing can be used in a number of different ways. In this example, for instance, when pairs have made up a headline they can give it to another pair who has to use it to invent a story of their own. Or perhaps all the headlines could be detached from their newspaper articles so that a new matching exercise could take place.

Example 4: report writing (advanced) In this example for an upper intermediate or advanced level class, the writing task forms part of a much longer project-like sequence. The teacher is going to get students to write a report about leisure activities. The teacher introduces the topic and asks students to give her any words they associate with leisure activities. She writes them on the board and adds any of her own that shi thinks the students need. She then asks students to design a questionnaire which will find out how people spend their leisure time (see pages 89-90 for the use of questionnaires as speaking activities). When they discuss how they are going to write the report. This is where the teacher will introduce some of the features of report writing that are necessary for the task, e.g. ‘in order to find out how people spend

34

their leisure time we …’ or ‘One surprising fact to emerge was that …’ and ‘The results of our survey suggest that …’ etc. As with many examples of writing style, the teacher can suggest ways in which the text should be constructed (what comes in the introduction. Middle paragraphs and conclusion) and offer language which the writing style uses (as in our report-writing example above). The students now draft their reports which the teacher collects to correct. When she hands them back, the students write them up in final form and show them to their colleagues to see if they all said more or less the same thing. How should teachers correct writing? Most students find it very dispiriting if they get a piece of written work back and it is covered in red ink, underlinings and crossings-out. It is a powerful visual statement of the fact that their written English is terrible. Of course, some pieces of written work are completely full of mistakes, but even in these cases, over-correction can have a very demotivating effect. As with all types of correction, the teacher has to achieve a balance between being accurate and truthful on the one hand and treating students sensitively and sympathetically on the other. One way of avoiding the ‘over-correction- problem is for teachers to tell their students that for a particular piece of work they are only going to correct mistakes of punctuation, or spelling, or grammar etc. This has two advantages: it makes students concentrate on that particular aspect, and it cuts down on the correction. Another technique which many teachers use is to agree on a list of written symbols (S = spelling, WO = word other, etc). When they come across a mistake they underline it discreetly and write the symbol in the margin. This makes correction look less damaging. However many mistakes you may want to identify, it is always worth writing a comment at the end of a piece of written work – anything from ‘Well done’ to ‘This is a good story, but you must look again at your use of past tenses – see X grammar book page 00’. Two last points: correcting is important, but it can be time-consuming and frustrating, especially when it is difficult to know what the

mistake is because it is unclear what the student is trying to say. Common sense and talking to students about it are the only solutions here. The other really important point is that correction is worthless if students just put their corrected writing away and never look at it again. Teachers have to ensure that they understand the problem and then redraft the passage correctly. What can be done about handwriting? Handwriting is a very personal matter. It is supposed to reflect character. Different nationalities certainly have recognisable handwriting traits. Some people have easily readable writing. Some produce written work which is indecipherable, whether beautiful or messy and ugly. Many nationalities do not use the same kind of script as English, so for students from those cultures writing in English is doubly difficult: they are fighting their expressive limitations as well as trying to work out a completely new writing system at the same time. And now that word processors are becoming more and more common, people have less motivation for good handwriting. Teachers are not in a position to ask students to change their handwriting style, but they can insist on neatness and legibility. Especially when students are heading towards and exam, such things are crucial. With students who are having problems with English script, special classes or group sessions may have to be arranged to help them. In these classes they can be shown many examples of certain letters, and the teacher can demonstrate the strokes necessary for making those shapes – and where the letter starts (writing from left to right is difficult for some students). They can be asked to write ‘in the air’ to give them confidence or they can be asked to imitate letters on lined paper which demonstrates the position and height of letters, e.g.

35

How does writing fit into ESA? The four writing examples in this approach the ESA procedure from a number of different angles. In the case of the postcard the teacher may first talk to students about postcards and/or holiday in such a way as to Engage them. They then Study the postcard looking for typical ‘postcard features’ and finally they Activate that knowledge by writing their own version. In the ‘altering dictations’ activity, the students are, hopefully, Engaged by the dictation and topic of the sentence they write down. When they alter the sentence they are Activating the knowledge of English which they have. After the discussion (Activate) which this will provoke, the teacher will give feedback on the language used, making corrections where appropriate (Study). A different kind of boomerang procedure is evident in the newspaper writing activity. Students are first Engaged with the topic of newspapers before doing the matching task (Activate). They then Study headlines before going on to a creative writing stage (Activate). In report writing, a number of stages are gone through, giving the whole sequence a patchwork feel. Students need to be Engaged with the topic, they need to Study the language which they will need, knowledge which is Activated in the collection of results before students come back to study the structure of reports in order to produce a final piece of work (Activation). More writing suggestions 1. Students write letters to a newspaper in

response to a controversial article. (intermediate/advanced)

2. Students expand a variety of headlines into newspaper articles

3. Students write/design their own menus. (beginner/lower/intermediate)

4. Students design posters for a party/play/concert etc. (beginner/lower/intermediate)

5. Students write a radio news bulletin. (elementary/intermediate)

6. Students write a letter of application for a job. (any level)

7. Students write the description of a room while listening to music. (intermediate)

8. Students send e-mail messages (real or simulated) to other English speakers around the world. (any level)

9. Students write invitations of various kinds. (elementary/intermediate)

Conclusions In this chapter we have: • Looked at the reasons for teaching

writing: reinforcement of learnt language, the development of the students’ language through the activity of writing, the appropriacy of the activity of writing for some styles of learning and the importance of writing as a skill in its own right.

• Said that what students write will depend on level and the motivational effect of the task. In general, students should practise writing postcards, letters, forms, narratives, reports and articles – as well as (perhaps) more frivolous tasks.

• Studied four writing sequences. • Tackled the difficult subject of correcting

writing, suggesting that over-correction should be avoided and that teachers should always strive to be encouraging.

• Pointed out that, while handwriting is a matter of style, teachers should expect students to write clearly and legibly, in some cases, students may need special help in the shaping of letters, for example.

Looking ahead • The next two chapters are about the

spoken word. They mirror many of the comments made about reading and writing.

• After that comes Chapter 11 on textbook use, a vital teacher skill, and then Chapter 12 on lesson planning.

36

How is writing like swimming? Give up? Answer: The psycholinguist Eric Lenneberg (1967) once noted, in a discussion of “species specific” human behaviour that human beings universally learn to walk and to talk but that swimming and writing are culturally specific, learned behaviours. We learn to swim if there is a body of water available and usually only if someone teaches us. We learn to write if we are members of a literate society and usually only if someone teaches us. Just as there are non-swimmers, poor swimmers, and excellent swimmers, so it is for writers. Why isn’t everyone an excellent writer? What is it about writing that blocks so many people, even in their own native language? Why don’t people learn to write “naturally”, as they learn to talk? How can we best teach second language learners of English how to write? What should we be trying to teach? Let’s look at these and many other related questions as we tackle the last of the “four skills”.

Research on Second Language Writing Trends in the teaching of writing in ESL and other foreign languages have, not surprisingly, coincided with those of teaching of other skills, especially listening and speaking. You will recall from earlier chapters that as communicative language teaching gathered momentum in the 1980s, teachers learned more and more about how to teach fluency, not just accuracy, how to use authentic texts and contexts in the classroom, how to focus on the purposes of linguistic communication, and how to capitalize on learners’ intrinsic motives to learn. Those same trends and the principles that under girded them also applied to advances in the teaching of writing in second language contexts. Three issues in the history will be highlighted for your consideration as you prepare to teach writing skills. 1. Process vs. product A few decades ago writing teachers were mostly concerned with the final product of writing: the essay, the report, the story, and what that product should “look” like. Compositions were supposed to (a) meet

certain standards of prescribed English rhetorical style, (b) reflect accurate grammar, and (c) be organized in conformity with what the audience would consider to be conventional. A good dead of attention was placed on “model” compositions that students would emulate and on how well a student’s final product measured up against a list of criteria that included content, organization, vocabulary use, grammatical use, and mechanical considerations such as spelling and punctuation. There is nothing inherently wrong with attention to any of the above criteria. They are still the concern of writing teachers. But in due course of time, we became better attuned to the advantage given to learners when they were seen as creators of language, when they were allowed to focus on content and message, and when their own individual intrinsic motives were put at the center of learning. We began to develop what is now termed the process approach to writing instruction. Process approaches do most of the following (adapted from Shih, 1986): (a) focus on the process of writing that leads

to the final written product; (b) help student writers to understand their

own composing process; (c) help them to build repertoires of strategies

for prewriting, drafting, and rewriting; (d) give students time to write and rewrite; (e) place central importance on the process of

revision; (f) let students discover what they want to

say as they write; (g) give students feedback throughout the

composing process (not just on the final product) to consider as they attempt to bring their expression closer and closer to intention;

(h) encourage feedback both from the instructor and peers;

(i) include individual conferences between teacher and student during the process of composition.

Perhaps you can personally appreciate what it means to be asked to write something – say, a letter to and editor, an article for a newsletter, a paper for a course you’re taking – and to allow the very process of putting ideas down on paper to transform thoughts into words, to sharpen your main ideas, to give them structure and coherent

CHAPTER 17 TEACHING WRITING SKILLS

37

organization. As your first draft goes through perhaps several steps of revision, your thesis and developing ideas more and more clearly resemble something that you would consider a final product. If you have done this, you have used your own process approach to writing. You may also know from firsthand knowledge what it is like to try to come up with a “perfect” final product without the above process. You may have experienced “writer’s cramp” (mental blocks) that severely hampered any progress. You may have felt a certain level of anxiety welling up within you as you felt the pressure to write an in-class essay that would be judged by the teacher, graded, and returned with no chance in the future to revise it in any way. The process approach is an attempt to take advantage of the nature of the written code (unlike conversation, it can be planned and given an unlimited number of revisions before its “release”) to give students a chance to think as they write. Another way of putting it is that writing is indeed a thinking process. Peter Elbow (1973: 14-16) expressed this concept eloquently in his essay of two decades ago (he was a person well before his time!): The common sense, conventional understanding of writing is as follows. Writing is a two-step process. First you figure out your meaning, then you put it into language: …figure out what you want to say; don’t start writing till you do; make a plan; use an outline; begin writing only afterward. Central to this model is the idea of keeping control, keeping things in hand. Don’t let things wander into a mess. …I contend that virtually all of us carry this model of the writing process around in our heads and that it sabotages our efforts to write. …This idea of writing is backwards. That’s why it causes so much trouble. Instead of a two-step transaction of meaning-into-language, think of writing as an organic, developmental process in which you start writing at the very beginning – before you know you meaning at all – and encourage your words gradually to change and evolve. Only at the end will you know what you want to say or the words you want to say it wit. You should expect yourself to end up somewhere different from where you started. Meaning is

not what you start out with but what your end up with. Control, coherence, and knowing your mind are not what you start out with but what you end up with. Think of writing, then, not as a way to transmit a message but as a way to grow and cook a message. Writing is a way to end up thinking something you couldn’t have started out thinking. Writing is, in fact, a transaction with words whereby you free yourself from what you presently think, feel, and perceive. You make available to yourself something better than what you’d be stuck with if you’d actually succeeded in making your meaning clear at the star. What looks inefficient – a rambling process with lots of writing and lots of throwing away – is really efficient since it’s the best way you can work up to what you really want to say and how to say it. The real inefficiency is to beat your head against the brick wall of trying to way what you mean or trying to way it well before you are ready. The new emphasis on process writing, however, must be seen in the perspective of a balance between process and product. As in most language teaching approaches, it is quite possible for you go to an extreme in emphasizing process to the extent that the final product diminishes in importance. Try not to let this happen! The product is, after all, the ultimate goal; it is the reason that we go through the process of prewriting, drafting, revising, and editing. Without that final product firmly in view, we could quite simply drown ourselves in a sea of revisions. Process is not the end; it is the means to the end. 2. Contrastive rhetoric In 1966 an article was printed by Robert Kaplan that has been the subject of great debate and discussion ever since. Kaplan’s thesis was that different languages (and their cultures) have different patterns of written discourse. English discourse, according to Kaplan (1966:14), was schematically described as proceeding in a straight line, Semitic writing in a zigzag formation, “Oriental” written discourse in a spiralling line, and so forth (see below). The point of his conclusions about how we write was, of course, that learners of English bring with them certain predispositions, which come from their native languages, about how

38

to organize their writing. If English Writers get “straight” to the point and Chinese writers “spiral” around the point, then a Chinese speaker who is learning English will encounter some difficulty in learning to write English discourse. There were serious problems with Kaplan’s study. His diagrams and conclusions were simplistic and overgeneralized. Simplistic, because he based his conclusions about English discourse on style manuals rather than using date from actual writing in English. Overgeneralized, because one cannot conclude that English writers consistently use a “straight-line” attack on a thesis and certainly cannot make any generalization that applies, for example, to all Oriental languages. Furthermore, without a native-speaking English control group, one cannot determine if the “difficulty” of his sample data is simply the difficulty any inexperienced writer might encounter in learning to write. Nevertheless, there was and still is a ring of truth to Kaplan’s claims. No one can deny the effect of one’s native culture, or one’s predispositions that are the product of perhaps years of schooling, reading, writing, thinking, asserting, arguing, and defending. In our current paradigm of attending carefully to schemata and scripts, native language patterns of thinking and writing simply cannot be ruled out. A balanced position on this issue, then, would uphold the importance of your carefully attending to the rhetorical first language interference that may be at play in your students’ writing. But rather than holding a dogmatic or predictive view (that certain writers will experience difficulty because of their native language), you would be more prudent to adopt a “weak” position (see PLLT, chapter 8) in which you would consider a student’s cultural/literary schemata as one possible source of difficulty. In recent years new research studies have appeared that tackle the issue of contrastive rhetoric (see Leki, 1991). One important conclusion from this renewed wave of research is the significance of valuing students’ native-language-related rhetorical traditions, and of guiding them through a process of understanding those schemata, but not attempting to eradicate them. That self-understanding on the part of students may then lend itself to a more effective

appreciation and use of English rhetorical conventions. 3. Authenticity A third issue in the teaching of writing surrounds the question of how much of our classroom writing is “real” writing. That is, how authentic are the classroom writing exercises that we ask students to perform? One could address this question by asking how much writing does the average, college-educated person in Western society do, and what kind of writing? I daresay very little, and that little amounts to filling out forms, writing telephone messages, and occasionally dashing off a letter or post card. In the era of electronic communication (video, phone, computer, etc.) we are less and less called upon to write. I was recently consulted by a friend of mine who is studying to be certified as a realtor. Part of his certification examination involved a simple one or two page written essay. The prospect frightened him! So, why do we want students to write? In English for Academic Purposes (EAP), across the age-levels from elementary school through university graduate courses, we write in order to succeed in mastering the subject matter, in school, writing is a way of life. Without some ability to express yourself in writing, you don’t pass the course. Academic writing ranges from short phrases (as in fill-in-the-blank tests), to brief paragraphs (as in “essay question” exercises and tests), to brief reports of many different kinds, to a full-length research paper. In vocational-technical English (where students are studying English in connection with a trade or occupation), students need to fill out forms, write simple messages, write certain conventional reports (for example, a bid on a contract, an inspection report), and at the most “creative” end of the continuum, write a brief business letter. In adult education and survival English classes, filling out simple forms and questionnaires may be as sophisticated as students’ needs get. This leaves EAP as the major consumer of writing techniques, especially writing techniques that concern themselves with process, development of ideas, argument, logic, cause and effect, etc. Another way to look at the authenticity issue in classroom writing is to distinguish between real writing and display writing. Real writing, as explained by Raimes (1991), is writing

39

when the reader doesn’t know the “answer” and genuinely wants information. In many academic/school contexts, however, if the instructor is the sole reader, writing is primarily for the “display” of a student’s knowledge. Written exercises, short answer essays, and other writing in test situations are instances of display writing. Should we as teachers incorporate more real writing in our classrooms? In some ways, yes. If ESL courses strive to be more content-based, theme-based, or task-based, students are more likely to be given the opportunity to convey genuine information on topics of intrinsic interest. But display writing is not totally unjustified by any means. Writing to display one’s knowledge is a fact of life in the classroom, and by getting your students to perform well in display writing exercises, they can learn skills that will help them to succeed in further academic pursuits. The bottom line for your teaching is that if you are to stay in line with the principles of learning and teaching already set forth in this book, and if you are to keep your teaching purposeful and intrinsically motivation, then you must discover why your students need to write, what form their writing will therefore take, and steer your techniques in the direction of those purposes and forms. Then, writing will be “real”, meaningful, and communicative in the best sense of the term.

Types of Written Language In the previous chapter, on pages 286-287, were thirty-some-odd types of written language “forms”. As you consider an ESL class that you might be teaching, how many of these types of writing will your students be likely to produce themselves? Those types that they will indeed need, either for further study of English or for their ultimate academic/vocational goals, should then become the prime focus of “real” writing in your classroom.

Characteristics of Written Language: A Writer’s View

Also in chapter 16, some characteristics of written language, from the perspective of a reader, were set forth. Let’s revisit those from a writer’s view-point.

1. Permanence Once something is written down and delivered in its final form to its intended audience, the writer abdicates a certain power: power to emend, to clarify, to withdraw. That prospect is the single most significant contributor to making writing a very scary operation! Student writers often feel that the act of releasing a written work to an instructor is not unlike putting yourself in front of a firing squad. Therefore, whatever you can do as a teacher and guide and facilitator to help your students to revise and refine their work before final submission will help to give them confidence in their work. 2. Production time The good news is that, given appropriate stretches of time, a writer can indeed become a “good” writer by developing efficient processes for achieving the final product. The bad news is that many educational contexts demand student writing within time limits, or “writing for display” as noted in the previous section (examination writing, for example). So, one of your goals, especially if you are teaching in an EAP context, would be to train your mean sacrificing some process time, but with sufficient training in process writing, combined with practice in display writing, you can help our students to deal with time limitations. 3. Distance One of the thorniest problems writers face is anticipating their audience. That anticipation ranges from general audience characteristics to how specific words and phrases and sentences and paragraphs are going to be interpreted. The distance factor requires what I have called cognitive empathy (see PLLT, Chapter 6), in that good writers can “read” their own writing from the perspective of the mind of the targeted audience. Writers need to be able to predict the audience’s general knowledge, cultural and literary schemata, specific subject-matter knowledge, and very importantly, how their choice of language will be interpreted. 4. Orthography Everything from simple greetings to extremely complex ideas are captured through the manipulation of a few dozen letters and other written symbols. Sometimes we take for granted the mastering of the mechanics of English writing by our students. If students are non-literate in the native language, you

40

must begin at the very beginning with fundamentals of reading and writing. For literate students, if their native language system is not alphabetic, new symbols have to be produced by hands that may have gotten too accustomed to another system. If the native language has a different phoneme-grapheme system (most do!), then some attention is due here. 5. Complexity In the previous chapter, the complexity of written – as opposed to spoken – language was illustrated. Writers must learn how to remove redundancy (which may not jibe with their first language rhetorical tradition), how to combine sentences, how to make references to other elements in a text, how to create syntactic and lexical variety, and mucho more. 6. Vocabulary As we noted in Chapter 16, writing places a heavier demand on vocabulary use than does speaking. Good writers will learn to take advantage of the richness of English vocabulary. 7. Formality Whether a student is filling out a questionnaire or writing a full-blown essay, the conventions of each form must be followed. For ESL students, the most difficult and complex conventions occur in academic writing where students have to learn how to describe, explain, compare, contrast, illustrate, defend, criticize, and argue.

Microskills for writing Following the format from the previous three chapters, microskills for writing production can be enumerated: 1. Produce graphemes and orthographic

patterns of English. 2. Produce writing at an efficient rate of

speed to suit the purpose. 3. Produce an acceptable core of words and

use appropriate word order patterns. 4. Use acceptable grammatical systems

(e.g., tense, agreement, pluralization), patterns, and rules.

5. Express a particular meaning in different grammatical forms.

6. Use cohesive devices in written discourse. 7. Use the rhetorical forms and conventions

of written discourse.

8. Appropriately accomplish the communicative functions of written texts according to form and purpose.

9. Convey links and connections between events and communicate such relations as main idea, supporting idea, new information, given information, generalization, and exemplification.

10. Distinguish between literal and implied meanings when writing.

11. Correctly convey culturally specific references in the context of the written text.

12. Develop and use a battery of writing strategies, such as accurately assessing the audience’s interpretation, using pre-writing devices, writing with fluency in the first drafts, using paraphrases and synonyms, soliciting peer and instructor feedback, and using feedback for revising and editing.

Types of Classroom Writing Performance While various genres of written texts abound, classroom writing performance is, by comparison, limited. Consider the following five major categories of classroom writing performance: 1. Imitative, or, writing down At the beginning level of learning to write, students will simply “write down” English letters, words, and possibly sentences in order to learn the conventions of the orthographic code. Some forms of dictation fall into this category although dictations can serve to teach and test higher order processing as well. Dictations typically involve the following steps: (1) Teacher reads a short paragraph once or

twice at normal speed. (2) Teacher reads the paragraph in short

phrase units of three or four words each, and each unit is followed by a pause.

(3) During the pause, students write exactly what they hear.

(4) Teacher then reads the whole paragraph once more at normal speed so students can check their writing.

(5) Scoring of students’ written work can utilize a number of rubrics for assigning points. Usually spelling and punctuation errors are not considered as severe as grammatical errors.

41

2. Intensive, or, controlled Writing is sometimes used as a production mode for learning, reinforcing, or testing grammatical concepts. This intensive writing typically appears in controlled, written grammar exercises, This type of writing would not allow much, if any, creativity on the part of the writer. A common form of controlled writing is to present a paragraph to students in which they have to alter a given structure throughout. So, for example, they may be asked to change all present tense verbs to past; in such a case, students may need to alter other time references in the paragraph. Guided writing loosens the teacher’s control but still offers a series of stimulators. For example, the teacher might get students to tell a story just viewed on a video tape by asking them a series of questions: Where does the story take place? Describe the principal character. What does he say to the woman in the car? ... Yet another form of controlled writing is a dicto-comp. Here, a paragraph is read at normal speed; the teacher puts key words from the paragraph, in sequence, on the blackboard and asks students to rewrite the paragraph from the best of their recollection of the reading, using the words on the board. 3. Self-writing A significant proportion of classroom writing may be devoted to self-writing, or writing with only the self in mind as an audience. The most salient instance of this category in classrooms is note taking, where students take notes during a lecture for the purpose of later recall. Other note taking may be done in the margins of books and on odd scraps of paper. Diary or journal writing also falls into this category. However, in recent years more and more dialogue journal writing takes pace, where students write thoughts, feelings, and reactions in a journal and an instructor reads and responds, in which case the journal and an instructor reads and responds, in which case the journal, while ostensibly written for oneself, has two audiences. Here is an entry from a journal written by an advanced ESL student from China. The teacher’s response follows (from Vanett and Jurich, 1985).

Journal Entry: Yesterday at about eight o’clock I was sitting in front of my table holding a fork and eating tasteless noodles which I usually really like to eat but I lost my taste yesterday because I didn’t feel well. I had a headache and a fever. My head seemed to be broken. I sometimes felt cold, sometimes hot. I didn’t feel comfortable standing up and I didn’t feel comfortable sitting down. I hated everything around me. It seemed to me that I got a great pressure from the atmosphere and I could not breath. I was so sleepy since I had taken some medicine which functioned as an antibiotic. The room was so quiet. I was there by myself and felt very solitary. This dinner reminded me of my mother. Whenever I was sick in China, my mother always took care of me and cooked rice gruel, which has to cook more than three hours and is very delicious, I think. I would be better very soon under the care of my mother. But yesterday, I had to cook by myself even though I was sick, the more I thought, the less I wanted to eat, half an hour passed. The noodles were cold, but I was still sitting there and thinking about my mother, finally I threw out the noodles and went to bed.

Ming Ling, PRC

Teacher’s Response: This is a powerful piece of writing because you really communicate what you were feeling. You used vivid details, like “…eating tasteless noodles…”, “my head seemed to be broken…” and “…rice gruel, which has to cook more than three hours and is very delicious.” These make it easy for the reader to picture exactly what you were going through. The other strong point about this piece is that you bring the reader full circle by beginning and ending with “the noodles.” Begin alone when you are sick is difficult. Now, I know why you were so quiet in class. If you want to do another entry related to this one, you could have a dialogue with your “sick” self. What would your “healthy” self say to the “sick” self? Is there some advice that could be exchanged about how to prevent illness or how to take care of yourself better when you do get sick? Start the dialogue with your “sick” self speaking first. 4. Display writing It was already noted earlier that writing within the school curricular context is a way of life.

42

For all language students, short answer exercises, essay examinations, and even research reports will involve an element of display. For academically bound ESL students, one of the academic skills that they need to master is a whole array of display writing techniques. 5. Real Writing While virtually every classroom writing task will have an element of display writing in it, nevertheless some classroom writing aims at the genuine communication of messages to an audience in need of those messages. The two categories of real and display writing are actually two ends of a continuum, and in between the two extremes lie some practical instances of a combination of display writing and real. Three subcategories illustrate how reality can be injected: (a) Academic. The Language experience Approach gives groups of students opportunities to convey genuine information to each other. Content-based instruction encourages the exchange of useful information, and some of this learning uses the written word. Group problem-solving tasks, especially those that relate to current issues and other personally relevant topics, may have a writing component in which information is genuinely sought and conveyed. Peer-editing work adds to what would otherwise be an audience of one (the instructor) and provides real writing opportunity. In certain ESP and EAP courses, students may exchange new information with each other and with the instructor. (b) Vocational/technical. Quite a variety of real writing can take place in classes of students studying English for advancement in their occupation, Real letters can be written; genuine directions for some operation or assembly might be given; and actual forms can be filled out. These possibilities are even greater in what has come to be called “English in the Workplace” where ESL is offered within companies and corporations. (c) Personal. In virtually any ESL class, diaries, letters, post cards, notes, personal messages, and other informal writing can take place, especially within the context of an interactive classroom. While certain tasks may be somewhat contrived, nevertheless the genuine exchange of information can happen.

Principles for Designing Writing Techniques

Out of all of these characteristics of the written word, along with micro skills and research issue, a number of specific principles for designing whiting techniques emerge. 1. Incorporate practices of “good”

writers This first guideline is sweeping. But as you contemplate devising a technique that has a writing goal in it, consider the various things that efficient writers do, and see if your technique includes some of these practices. For example, good writers: • focus on a goal or main idea in writing • perceptively gauge their audience • spend some time (but not too much!)

planning to write • easily let their first ideas flow onto the

paper • follow a general organizational plan as

they write • solicit and utilize feedback on their writing • are not wedded to certain surface

structures • revise their work willingly and efficiently • patiently make as many revisions as

needed 2. Balance process and product In the first section of this chapter, a good deal was said about the process approach. Make sure that the application of the process principle does not detract from a careful focus on the product as well. 3. Account for cultural/literary

backgrounds Make sure that your techniques do not assume that your students know English rhetorical conventions. If there are some apparent contrasts between student’s native traditions and those that you are trying to teach, try to help students to understand what it is, exactly, that they area accustomed to and then by degrees perhaps, bring them to the use of acceptable English rhetoric. 4. Connect reading and writing Clearly, students learn to write in part by carefully observing what is already written. That is, they learn by observing, or reading, the written word. By reading and studying a variety of relevant types of text, students can gain important insights both about how they

43

should write and about subject matter that may become the topic of their writing. 5. Provide as much authentic writing as

possible Whether writing is real writing or for display, it can still be authentic in that the purposes for writing are clear to the students, the audience is specified overtly, and that there is at least some intent to convey meaning. Writing that is shared with other students in the class is one way to add authenticity. Publishing a class newsletter, writing letters to people outside of class, writing a script for a skit or dramatic presentation, writing a resume, writing advertisements-all these can be seen as authentic writing. 6. Frame your techniques in terms of

prewriting, drafting, and revising stages

Process writing approaches tend to be framed in three stages of writing. The prewriting stage encourages the generation of ideas, which can happen in numerous ways: • reading (extensively) a passage • skimming and/or scanning a passage • conducting some outside research • brainstorming (see below) • listing (in writing-individually) • clustering (begin with a keyword, then add

other words, using free association) • discussing a topic or question • instructor-initiated questions and probes • freewriting (see below) Examples of brainstorming and freewriting, from Brown, Cohen, and O’Day’s (1991) Challenges: a Process Approach to Academic English, are given on pages 333 and 334

Generating Ideas • Brainstorming Let’s think about the future for a moment. Let’s focus our attention on how it might affect your present or future job. Have you thought about the changes that might occur in your field? To help you think about this question, you are going to make two lists of ideas concerning changes in your field or in the field you plan to enter. DIRECTIONS: Use your knowledge and imagination to follow these steps.

1. Prepare two sheets of paper with the following: a. What changes have occurred in my

field in the last twenty years? Your field-today’s date

b. What changes do I expect to occur in my field in the next twenty years? Your field-the date twenty years from now

2. As quickly as possible, think of as many

ideas as you can to answer the question on sheet a. a. Take between five and ten minutes to

list every idea that comes to your mind.

b. Do not evaluate your ideas. That will come later.

3. When you have written down everything

you can think of, go over the list to evaluate what you have written. Cross out the ideas that don’t fit.

4. Repeat this process (steps 2 and 3) for

sheet b. This process, called brainstorming is a useful technique in writing because it permits you to approach a topic with an open mind. Because you do not judge your ideas as they emerge, you free yourself to come up with ideas that you might not even know you had. Brainstorming is one of several different ways to begin writing. In the following pages, we will introduce some other methods that will help you to explore ideas that you might want to write about. • Working in a Group In the preceding exercise you worked individually, using brainstorming to establish your own ideas, to follow your own train of thought. Another effective way to generate ideas is to work in a small group where you share your brainstormed ideas with the rest of the group members. By doing this, each of you will have an opportunity to further expand your own ideas. DIRECTIONS: Form a small group (three to five people). Use the following guidelines for your group discussion. 1. Take turns reading your list of changes in

your field to each other.

44

2. Compare your classmates’ lists to yours, looking for similarities and differences. a. Mark the changes on your list that are

similar. b. Add to your list new ideas of changes

that apply to your field. 3. As a group, select three changes that

applied to the fields of each group member. If you have time, you can discuss these three ideas.

4. Choose a reporter from your group to

share your three changes with the rest of the class.

Here is an example of what the compared lists of a group of three students might look like. (Notice that each list has some ideas that have been crossed out. These ideas had already been eliminated by the student in the last step of the brainstorming exercise because they did not fit.) The changes that were similar in each list have been labelled.

Teaching-Today Attitudes toward teachers (A) Information Explosion (B) Union activity More job security Better benefits (C) Use of textbooks Larger class size Computers as teaching tools Computers for record keeping (D) Competition for jobs Greater student maturity Higher diplomas

Sales-Today Computerized inventory (D) Customers’ bad attitudes (A) Distance from owners Pressure Meeting people Incentive pay Consumer action Need to know more about products (B) More responsibility More advancement changes Fewer personnel Time clocks Students increased knowledge Better benefits (C)

Health Care-Today Malpractice suits Less respect (A) Hours

Pay Educational demands Pressure Information increase (B) Consulting with others Competition for clients Advertising Computerized business (D) Computerized diagnosis Less pay greater benefits (C) • Free writing Your have just begun to explore the question of changes in your field. Some of your ideas will interest you more than others. Now you will have an opportunity to develop your thinking about one of these ideas. DIRECTIONS: Follow these steps to generate further ideas on this topic. 1. From your lists of changes, choose one

idea that interested you. 2. Write that idea at the top of a clean sheet

of paper. 3. For ten minutes, write about this topic

without stopping. This means that you should be writing something constantly. a. Write down everything that comes to

your mind. b. Do not judge your ideas. c. Do not worry about your spelling and

grammar. d. If you run out of things to say,

continue writing whatever comes to your mind.

This process is called freewriting. It is designed to help you free ideas that you might not realize that you have. An important aspect of freewriting is that you write without being concerned about spelling, punctuation, or grammar. Of course, these elements of writing are important, but students’ concern about them can sometimes inhibit the free flow of their ideas. Freewriting is a technique to generate ideas; it should be used as a beginning, as an initial exploration of the ideas that your have about a topic. Your can use your freewriting to help you get started with related tasks. In fact, you might want to refer to this freewriting when you are doing other writing tasks later in this unit. Therefore, you should put this and all other freewriting that you do into a notebook that you can refer to when you are generating ideas for future assignments.

45

The drafting and revising stages are the core of process writing. In traditional approaches to writing instruction, students either are given timed in class compositions to write from start to finish within a class hour, or they are given a homework writing assignment. The first option gives no opportunity to students for systematic drafting, and the second assumes that if students did any drafting at all they would simply have to learn the tricks of the trade on their own. In a process approach, drafting is viewed as an important and complex set of strategies, the mastery of which takes time, patience, and trained instruction. Several strategies and skills apply to the drafting/revising process in writing: • getting started (adapting the freewriting

technique) • “optimal” monitoring of one’s writing

(without premature editing and diverted attention to working, grammar, etc.)

• Peer-editing (accepting/using classmates’ comments)

• using the instructor’s feedback • “read aloud” technique (in small groups or

pairs, students read their almost-final drafts to each other for a final check on errors, flow of ideas, etc.)

• proofreading Beginning on page 336 is another sample from the student book of Challenges (1991:42-45), illustrating some of the above strategies, especially peer-editing, from the drafting and revising stages.

LESSON 3 COMPOSING ON YOUR OWN

In this unit you have read about the issues surrounding the predicted population explosion. You have also worked with important writing techniques such as showing and using facts and statistics. Let’s now try to apply what you have learned to the writing process.

The first draft Choosing a topic DIRECTIONS: Choose one of the following topics to write about in a paragraph. A. Explain the information introduced in the

following bar graph.

B. In the final paragraphs of the article “The World’s Urban Explosion,” the author raises the question of what the effects of the population explosion might be in the future. Imagine your city, town, or village in the year 2025. Imagine that the population predictions did, in fact, come true. Place yourself in the scene, and describe what you see.

Note: Notice how different these topics are from one another. The first topic asks you to write an explanation which analyses a graph. The second topic asks for description. Think about the possible purposes of each topic. How do you think these purposes will affect the tone of each piece?

Generating ideas First, we need to find ways to unlock the hidden ideas we have in our minds. In this unit you have learned to use brainstorming, freewriting, and looping. Try these techniques in any combination that works for you. Reading also helps to generate ideas. As you write, keep in mind the information you learned about this topic in the readings. Writing the First Draft After exploring your ideas, put them into paragraph form, keeping in mind how showing and using facts and statistics makes writing powerful and convincing. Our task here is to discover how we can best express out ideas in the clearest manner possible so that our readers will receive the same message, with the same impact, that we intended. Peerediting What follows in an element of the writing process that is especially important: sharing what we have written with others, our readers, to see if we have been successful in conveying our intended meaning. This step can be a fascinating adventure. We step out of our own selves, to see what we have created through the eyes of others, to discover the

46

impact of our words on the thoughts of our readers, so that we can then use the information to improve what we have written. We call this peerediting. Peerediting is a true sharing process. Not only do you get feedback from your classmates, but you also give feedback to them. It is a two-way street. You learn to be better writer and a better reader. In the following exercise you will work with several classmates, taking the roles of both reader and writer. DIRECTIONS: Work with a group of four other classmates who chose to write on the same topic as you did. 1. Discuss the idea-generating techniques

that you each used to write this composition.

2. Read each other’s papers silently, and

answer the following questions for each paper: a. What do you like the most about the

writing? b. What is the main idea? c. Who is the audience, and what is the

purpose? d. What convincing details does the

writer use? e. Where could the writer add details to

make the piece more convincing? f. What areas in the writing seem

unclear? g. How could the writer make the piece

clearer? 3. Now, for each paper, compare your notes

on the questions to help the writer think of ways to improve the piece.

Revising You have gotten feedback about your composition from several classmates. Now you can use what you learned about your writing to improve it, to make it clearer and more convincing. Writers call this step of the process revising. All good writers go through several steps of revision because they want to make their writing the best it can be. At this point they reconsider what they have written, get feedback from others, and then make changes. Review your notes from your peerediting session. Think about the comments made by your peerreaders; in particular, comments they agreed on. If you agree with them, you

can revise the piece. Remember, however, that you are the final judge as to what you want to include or eliminate in your writing. Make corrections directly on your first draft. Do not be afraid to mark up this paper. You can scratch out unnecessary or irrelevant information, squeeze ideas that you want to add into the margin, and even cut up and repaste your paper to change the order or make additions. You might be surprised to see the revising process of professional writers. Their drafts will often be illegible to anyone but themselves!

The Second Draft Writing the Second Draft and Proofreading Once you have made the necessary changes in your paper, you can rewrite it legibly. As you are rewriting, you may think of more changes that you would like to make. Do not hesitate to continue revising during this step. Writing takes time and a lot of thought, so take advantage of this stage to keep improving what you have already done. After you have rewritten your paper, go over it carefully to see if the language sounds correct and if your message seems complete and understandable. Finally, submit your paper to your teacher. Using Your Teacher’s Feedback When your paper is returned to you, spend time examining the comments your teacher made. This is a good time to compare your classmates’ responses to your teacher’s, taking into account the changes you made between the original draft and the revised paper. Did you improve on the parts of your original paper that your classmates encouraged you to work on? Did your teacher comment on aspects of your paper that your classmates did not comment on? Share this information with the classmates you did peerediting with. For each paper you looked at, compare the comments you made to the teacher’s comments. Keep in mind the ideas you and your teacher had in common about each paper. Also, notice comments that your teacher made that you missed. This is valuable information. You’ll use it the next time you write and the next time you do peerediting. Keeping a Journal In this unit we read about population growth, about changes that we expect to take place in

47

the future that will affect our lives. For a moment, reflect back in time. Try to visualize a place from your distant past, any place that sticks out in your mind. Now roll the clock back up to the present. If the place looks very different in the present, you’ve found your journal topic. If not, start again until you come up with a scene that has changed over a period of time. When you’ve found this place that has changed, write about it. You can choose to describe it as it was in the past, in the present, or you can do both. You might want to write about how the changes in the place have affected you. Whatever aspect of the place you choose to write about, make sure that you have a single purpose, a central focus, and try to include detail that helps to develop that main point only. Remember that when you choose to write about something that is familiar and important to you, the task of writing is easier and more pleasurable. 7. Techniques should be as interactive

as possible. It is no doubt already apparent that a process-oriented approach to writing instruction is, by definition, interactive (as students work in pairs and groups to generate ideas and to peer-edit), as well as learner centered (with ample opportunities given to students to initiate activity and exchange ideas). Writing techniques that focus on purposes other than compositions (such as letters, forms, memos, directions, short reports) are also subject to the principles of interactive classrooms. Group collaboration, brainstorming, and critiquing are as easily and successfully a part of many writing-focused techniques. Don’t buy into the myth that writing is solitary activity! Some of it is, to be sure, but a good deal of what makes a good writer can be most effectively learned within a community of learners. 8. Sensitively apply methods of

responding to and correcting your students’ writing.

In Chapter 15, some principles of errors correction were suggested for dealing with learners’ speech errors. In the case of writing, error correction must be approached in a different manner. Because writing, unlike speaking, often includes an extensive planning stage, error treatment can begin in the drafting and revising stages, during which time it is more appropriate to consider errors among several features of the whole process of responding to student writing. As a

student receives responses to written work, errors –just one of several possible things to respond to- are rarely changed outright by the instructor; rather, they are treated through self-correction, peer-correction, and instructor-initiated comments. As you respond to your students’ writing, remember that you are there as an ally, as a guide, as a facilitator. When the final work is “turned in,” you may indeed then have to assume the position of judge and evaluator (see below for some comments on evaluation), but until then, the role of consultant will be the most productive way to respond. Ideally, your responses –or at least some them- will be written and oral as you hold a conference, however short, with a student. Under less than ideal conditions, written comments may have to suffice. Here are some guidelines for responding to the first draft: (a) Resist the temptation to treat minor

(“local”) grammatical errors; major (“global”) errors within relevant paragraphs –see (e) below- can at this stage be indicated, either directly (say, by underlining) or quite indirectly (for example, by a check next to the line in which an error occurs).

(b) Generally resist the temptation to rewrite a student’s sentences.

(c) Comment wholistically, in terms of the clarity of the overall thesis and the general structural organization.

(d) Comment on the introductory paragraph. (e) Comment on features that appear to be

irrelevant to the topic. (f) Question clearly inadequate word choices

and awkward expression within those paragraphs/sentences that are relevant to the topic.

For the subsequent drafts, your responses can include all of the above except that (a) now may change its character some: (g) Minor (“local”) grammatical and

mechanical (spelling, punctuation) errors should be indicated, but not corrected for the student.

(h) Comment on the specific clarity and strength of all main ideas, supporting ideas, and on argument and logic.

(i) Comment on any further word choices and expressions that may not be “awkward” but are not as clear or direct as they could be.

48

(j) Check cohesive devices within and across paragraphs.

(k) In academic papers, comment on documentation, citing sources, evidence, and other support.

(l) Comment on the adequacy and strength of the conclusion.

9. Clearly instruct students on the

rhetorical, formal, conventions of writing.

Each type of writing has its formal properties. Don’t just assume that students will pick these up by absorption. Make them explicit. A reading approach to writing is very helpful here. For academic writing, for example, some of the features of English rhetorical discourse that writers use to explain, propose solutions, debate, and argue are as follows: • a clear statement of the thesis or topic or

purpose • use of main ideas to develop or clarify the

thesis • use of supporting ideas • supporting by “telling:” describing • supporting by “showing:” giving evidence,

facts, statistics, etc • supporting by linking cause and effect • supporting by using comparison and/or

contrast 10. Make your final evaluation of student

writing consistent with your overall approach.

The evaluation of writing, especially in a process-oriented classroom, is a thorny issue. If you are a guide and facilitator of students’ performance in the ongoing process of developing a piece of written work, how can you also be the judge? What do you judge? The answer to the first question –how can you be a judge and a guide at the same time- is one of the primary dilemmas of all teachers. Juggling this dual role requires wisdom and sensitivity. The key to being a judge is fairness and explicitness in what you take into account in your evaluation. Six general categories are often the basis for the evaluation of student writing (adapted from J.D. Brown, 1991): Content • thesis statement • related ideas • development of ideas through personal

experience, illustration, facts, opinions

• use of description, cause/effect, comparison/contrast

• consistent focus Organization • effectiveness of introduction • logical sequence of ideas • conclusion • appropriate length Discourse • topic sentences • paragraph unit • transitions • discourse markers • cohesion • rhetorical conventions • reference • fluency • economy • variation Syntax Vocabulary Mechanics • spelling • punctuation • citation of references (if applicable) • neatness and appearance You will find a bit of disagreement among the “experts” on the system of weighting each of the above categories, that is, which of the six is most important, next, and so on. However, the order in which the six are listed here at the very least emphasizes the importance of content over syntax and vocabulary, which traditionally might have had high priority. In your evaluation of student writing, the most instructive evaluative feedback you can give is your comments, both specific and summative, regarding the student’s work. The six-category list above can serve as the basis for such evaluations. If numerical scores are either pedagogically or administratively important to you, then you can establish a point scale (say, 0 to 5) for each of the above categories, and return papers with six different scores on them. By avoiding a single overall score you can help students to focus on aspects of writing to which they need to give special attention. If you still need to assign a single “grade” or score to each paper, then consider weighting the first few categories more heavily. You can thereby

49

emphasize the content-based flavour of your evaluation. Such a weighting scale might look like this:

Content: 0 – 24 Organization: 0 – 20 Discourse: 0 – 20 Syntax: 0 – 12 Vocabulary: 0 – 12 Mechanics: 0 – 12 TOTAL 100

A key, of course, to successful evaluation is to get your students to understand that your grades, scores, and other comments are varied forms of feedback from which they can all benefit. The final evaluation on one composition simply creates input to the learner for the next composition.

� � � Writing instruction in a communicative, interactive language course should be deeply rooted in the twelve principles of language learning and teaching that have formed a train of thought throughout this book. As you think about each principle, you can make the connections. Automaticity, for example, is gained as students develop fluency in writing, which can best be promoted through the multiple stages of a process writing approach. Meaningful learning is paramount as you try to get your students involved in topics of interest and significance for them and in authentic writing tasks. Perhaps you can continue down the list yourself. TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION, ACTION AND

RESEARCH

1. Explain how the process approach to teaching writing could become (or may have already become) yet another “bandwagon” that teachers blithely jump onto. How can you put the process approach into a perspective? What can be said for product oriented approaches?

2. If possible, read Kaplan (1966) in

preparation for this activity. In a group, review the comments on cross-cultural differences and contrastive rhetoric (p. 322). Then, discuss the validity of Kaplan’s diagrams. How do writing conventions differ between or among cultures that you are familiar with? In your group, pick one other culture to contrast English writing to, and sketch out salient differences between the two sets of rhetorical

conventions. What does this say about what to teach in an ESL writing class?

3. With a partner, pick an ESL audience.

Brainstorm reasons or purposes for that group to write. Talk about how you would teach toward those purposes by getting students to do as much “real” writing as possible?

4. In pairs, turn back to pages 286 and 287

and review the types of written language listed there. Pick several familiar audiences of contexts and decide which of the genres your students will actually need to produce. Prioritize them and share your conclusions with the rest of the class.

5. Rivers & Temperley (1978:265), listed 4

types or stages of classroom writing performance:

(a) Writing down (learning the

conventions of the code) (b) Writing the language (learning the

potential of the code) (c) Production (practicing the construction

of fluent expressive sentences and paragraphs)

(d) Expressive writing (using the code for purposeful communication)

Compare these four to the five types of written performance listed in this book (pp 327-330). Are they compatible? Combinable? Are there omissions in either list?

6. On page 331, things that “good” writers

do were listed. Do you agree with the list? Can you add to the list? In what way do the other suggestions that follow implement these behaviours? Discuss your opinions, additions, and classroom implications in a small group.

7. On page 335, some specific steps for

guiding students through stages of drafting and revising a composition are listed. Review those steps again. If possible, sit in on a teacher-student conference in which the student’s essay is being discussed. Notice the interaction between student and teacher. Was the session effective? Why?

8. Carefully look through the guidelines on

methods of responding to written work (pp

50

340-341). With a sample first draft (supplied by your instructor), try to provide some written responses that would stimulate the writer to make some appropriate revisions. Compare your responses with a partner discuss differences as a whole class.

9. There are many different scales and

inventories for rating/evaluating written work. The one presented here (pp. 342-343) is not exhaustive by any means. Can you think of things you would add to the inventory? Look at an actual student’s composition (supplied by your instructor) and try to rate the student’s performance on the basis of the taxonomy. To do so, you might want to experiment with assigning a numerical weighting scale (p. 343). Compare your “diagnosis” with a partner. How well did the scale serve its purpose?

10. If possible, observe an ESL writing class.

Use the list of then principles (pp. 331-342) for designing writing techniques to evaluate what you see. Discuss your observations in a small group.

FOR YOUR FURTHER READING

Zamel, Vivian. 1982 “Writing: The process of discovering meaning. TESOL Quarterly 16 (2) 195-209. This was one of the first comprehensive overviews of the process writing approach for second language learners. Written in the early 1980s, it still stands as an effective statement of the philosophy underlying an approach which has now been revised and refined into standard practice in many institutions. Raimes, Ann. 1991. “Out of the woods: Emerging traditions in the teaching of writing.” TESOL Quarterly 25 (3), 407-430. This is another in a series of comprehensive summaries carried in the twenty-fifth anniversary volume of the TESOL Quarterly. Raimes describes and comments on five “thorny” issues in the teaching of writing: topics for writing, “real” writing, writing in the academic arena, contrastive rhetoric, and responding to writing. Leki, Ilona, 1191. “Twenty-five years of contrastive rhetoric: Text analysis and writing

pedagogies.” TESOL Quarterly 25 (1), 123-143. The specific issue of contrastive rhetoric is addressed here and looked at from the historical perspective of some twenty-five years of concern over differences in the way various languages and cultures define effective writing. Kroll, Barbara (Ed.). 1990. Second Language Writing: Research Insights for the Classroom. Cambridge University Press. This anthology is a gold mine of references to the teaching of writing to second language learners. Summaries of research studies are offered, practical applications are clearly spelled out, and challenges for further research are offered.