a_f,' |l{'
Ei E,i --
.-'
-4 ',
-ti
E'
'j
E*J --
r:_ rHl
E E -I
rL-
E E fLrI
--i
Gaching WitingSldlls
E E E E E E E E E E -ar
-E
-H
rt}-
IL'T
H
--t
E E'
L-
u H
u --
E
u u u. Et
EI
rU
-I\
E --
.
NEW IDITION
Donn Byrne
l-_ a--t
l--
rg L, L. L"
tr: H g H f
. Longman Handbooks for Language Teachers
Donn Byrne
E
Teachlng Wrltlng Sldlls
t-
NewEdition
L. !-:
L:
L. l-. I
Il- -
r f--
E t-
li;
i-=
E t-
i-= -
i-
E 4-
4
>l>
Longmoni!! L o n d o na n d N e w Y o r k
ra [,ongmanGrouPUK Limited' Hotrsc'Burnt llttill, Harlotr' Lort-gntan 655.'1f.1/20 2JE. England i,ri ,.tttorioredCompanicsIhrottgltotrtlltc vorld'
.E
,OLongmanGrouPUK Limited 19E8 publication f,tt ,lioir,t resert'ed;no part o.fthis syslern' relrteral a in stored nnt"be reproduced' tttcut,ts, el.ectronic. b1'..artt' or an.v in .[ornt u,l'|,routrritted tter)t'tsc' or ot recordtng' photocopring' ntechanit'al, ,,ri,iri,t the'prior u'r'iircnperrnissiorto-[thc Ptrblisher's'
Ir
First published1988 Sixth impression1993 Data British Library Cataloguingin Publication Donn, 1929Bvme, -Teaching writing skiils'-Newed'handlooks for languageteachers)' fi""g*it i. Eriglishlanguage-Writing-Stud.v and teaching I. Title 808',.042',07 PE1404
rsBN 0-58e-?'1b51-5 Data Library of CongressCatalogingin Publication Bvrne.Donn. 1929Teachingwritrng skills' languageteachers) frong*i" handbooksfor and inclulesbibliographies index' , . and teaching-Foreign i. englittt language--Study c.-.Studvand tanguage-Rhetori Engiistr" t. ,p;;kd and exercises ;;;;hl;;. i. rnltitt' tanluale-c-omposition II' Title' I' --StuOy-unO teaching' !erle^s,^ 87-4238 808','042 pE1128.A28938 i988 l-5 (Pbk.) ISBN 0-582-7465 Pte Ltd Producedby Longman SingaporePublishers Printed in SingaPore
E
E b Il
E
tr t!
E tj
t
E t
E ! L
L
Acknowledgements to reproduce We are gratefulto the following for permission coplrighl illustrativematerial: the FoundationSeries' CassellPLC fbr page 39 (top) (TakenAom for page24 (Taken t4tririnsI by Louise wooitj;'iollins Publishers Cripweli; and gooi{' Foll t bv Vincent' r,rsiitn rt"^?nrh, wr.iting in (Taken from page 58 PubiishersLi-it.o io. Macmillan ';;;i;;i;t for pages Limited Sons and Ne6ol Thomas Anita Pincas; bv Reprinted page 94; i4rl Functr pruii.utlo"t Limited for ;;";;; 122' and pages 2l synalcate'Inc for oitrti*i"t oi unlt.oF.aiuie
E ! I
i :
I : t
T
a
I
I
I
f
r f
Contents
F
s f
H
Preface 1 The nature and purposeof writing 1.1 What is writing? 1.2 What do we write? 1.3 Speechandwriting 1.4 Why writing is difficult 1.5 Learningto write:mothertongueandforeignlanguage situations compared 1.6 Why teachwriting? Discussion/Exercises/References
L!---
l-_
I-L:
t--
tL:
l-_ l;
2
2.1 Understandinghow the written languagefunctions 2.2 The reseurces of the writtenlanguage Discussion/Exercises/References 3
4
f-.
U LL-
E L. l-r
L.
E L,
Writing in the early stages 4.1 Somebasicconsiderations 4.2 Copyingasa writing acrivity 4.3 Reinforcement activities 4.4 Sentence linkingactivities 4.5 Communication activities 4.6 Writingfor fun Discussion/Exercises/Refere nces
L. L: L: 5
Generalprinciplesfor teachingwriting 3.1 Approaches to teaching writing 3.2 The stateof the art 3.3 The role of guidance 3.4 The needsof the learners Discussion/Exercises/Refere nces
H
!-: f---
Learningto use the resourcesof the written language
5
D e v e l o p i n gs k i l l s 5.1 The importanceof demonstrating progress 5.2 Reinforcement activities 5.3 Sentence linkingandsequencing activities 5 . 4 R e p r o d u c t i oenx e r c i s e s 5.5 Communication activities 5.6 Writingfor fun Discussion/Exercises/References iii
6
C o ntextsfor wr iting: the use of texts 6 .1 The textascontext activities 6 .2 Com Pr ehension (r.3 Note- taking andsum m ar ising rences rcises/Refe DiscussioniExe
7
C o ntextsfor wr iting: the use of visualm ater ial 7 .1 Somegener alconsider ations 1 .2 The role of the teacher 7 .3 The useof visualm ater ial:som eexamples Discussion/Exercises/References In tegr atedskills of integratingskills 8 .1 The impor tance t ork 8 . 2 P r o j e cw 8 .3 Skillsequences asa frameworkfor rvritingactivities 8.4 Simulations Discussion/Exercises/References Writing at the post- inter mediatelevel 9 .1 Pr oblemar eas 9.2 Remedialwork: the valueof a functionalapproach procedures 9.3 Freewriting:somesuggested nces Discussion/Exercises/Refere
1 0 Correctingwritten work 10.L Errorsandmistakes 1,0.2Teacherand studentcorrection 10:3 CorrectionProcedures erences rcises/Ref D iscussion/Exe 1 1 Wr iting activitiesfor childr en wr iting for teaching 1 1.1 Reasons I 1 . 2 W r i t i n ga c t i v i t i e s Discussion/Exercises/References
E E E E E E E E E E E E E E E ts
E
E t
E
a I I
j
1 2 T e achingthe Englishscr iPt 1 2.1 The needsof the lear ner s 12.2 Letter shapes L2.3 Proceduresfor teachingscript Discussion/Exercises/References
devices Appendix:Cohesive
j t
i
T
I
BibliographY I
lndex lv
I
I
L
tr L' l-
H lLLJ
tr !--L!-
H
H LL-
t-_-. LLf-
H
L-
1-:
H H H H
rl_ H
l_
tr H tr l_
u r=<-
Preface The mainpurposeof thisbookin its revisededitionremainsunchanged: to various writing kindsof showhow activities, both guidedexercises to develop particularskillsandcommunication tasksinvolvingfreeexpression, canbe built up into a coherentwritingprogramme. Throughsucha programmeit is intendedthat the learnersshouldnot only makesystematic progress,through their growingmasteryof the writtenlanguage,but alsoseehow writing is used for the purposeof communication. The book hasbeenextensively revisedto ensurethat it reflectscurrent practice.Integrated methodological skills,highlightedevenin the firstedition, now havea chapterof theirown.The numberof examples hasbeenexpanded throughout,so that the book canbe usedfor resourcematerial.In particular, the activitiesin the Writingfor/un sectionsshouldprovea usefulandflexible additionfor any teachingsituation.Correctingwritten work and teaching handwritinghavenow beenexpanded into chapters,andthereis a completely new chapteron teachingchildren. The substance of thisbook is basedon.teacher-training courses, seminars and lecturesgivenoverthe lastfifteenyears.A seriesof seminars on teaching writing which I had to givein Latin Americain the earlyseventies setme thinkingaboutthe subject,whilethe interestand encouragement of the studentsof 'Course317'on 'Composition'whichI taughtat Concordia University,Montreal,in 1976,obligedme to givemy viewson teachingwriting a little more cohesionand coherence. However,a spellbackin the classroom, and children,mademe appreciateonceagainwhat every with adolescents teacherknows:that it is not enoughto do the'right' things.The 'writingfor fun' activitiescamedirectlyout of that experience.
I -^-J
L-
tr u
L=..
r
5 l-
Thenatureandpurposeof writing
I-
t-l--
t--
u -.-J
L T L H
t-: !---
l--
t-f
!-,
tr l_ 1-1
l__
rl_11
l_
E l--_ B--J
l_-
tr !-:
1.1 What is writing?
that is, lettersor combinations of Whenwe rvrite,we usegraphics1'rnbols: rve when we make speak. On one level, to the sounds then, letterswhichrelate writingcanbe saidto be the actof formingthesesymbols:makingmarkson a flat surfaceof somekind. But writingis clearlymuchmorethantheproduction of graphicsymbols,just asspeechis morethanthe productionof sounds.The to form words, to certainconventions, according symbolshaveto be arranged, we canbe although again to form sentences, andwordshaveto be arranged 'writing' of if we aremerelymakinglistsof words,asin inventories saidto be lists. itemssuchasshopping or evena numberof we do not writejustbnesentence As a rule,horvever, arrangedin a of sentences We produce a sequence unrelatedsentences. particularorderand linkedtogetlterin certainways.The sequencemay be very - but, because of theway the short- perhapsonly trvoor threesentences they form a coherent linked together, put in order and been have sentences whole.They form lvhatwe maycalla'text'. a text, Not a greatdealis knownaboutindividualmethodsof composing -.professional rvritersamongthem wouldagreethatit is but mostpeople writingcomes activitv.Sometimes usuallyneitheran easynor a spontaneous 'mood' needto perhaps pressing or havea clearand easily,if we arein the right mentaleffort:we but asa ruieit requiressomeconscious something, express 'think out' our sentences andconsidervariouswaysof combiningand arranging them.We rereadrvhatwe haverl rittenasa stimulusto furtherwriting.Other aremakingnotes,draftingandrevising.We mayevenrvrite commonpractices with the result.Noticc'for severalversionsof a textbefore\\'earesatisfied andmodifiedhis draftof the textt'rttpage2. example,how the rvritercorrected The reasonfor thisis thatwe are writingfor a reader.Writinginvolvesthe of somekind: that is, we translateour thoughtslnto encodingof a message of thismcssaqe. involves the decodingor interpretation Reading language. - lrtlr nhen rvearewritingfor ourselvs5 But. exceDton thoseoccitsions
GK I L L S T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
shoppinglist may h:tvebeenfor this purpose- the readeris someonewho ls present.This, after all. is why we normally choosethis particular not physicall.v channelof communicationrather than the more common one of speech.And becauseour readeris not present.and in somecitsesmay not even be known to u s , w e h a v et o ensurethat what we 4{2.rA write can be T-h.ere{6i€re ninety cases of polio occurri'ig / '-(rh,/ understoodwithout lf ' e{ v..ti}.tf,r* L^n"^ any further help from us. This is the ^49days@ reasonfor the care we have to take f+dtb€€tl hfilee'lre*c with writing. It is LE L^ by the organisation hie hei*c'mctc+ a n o t h e r personnecef of our sentences into a text, into a ad received the Cutter vaccine, coherentwhole which is as explicit as possibleand In seventy-one of these cases *,her completein itself, ;f that we are able (or Ci=essc t'hea+ c o n n e c t i o n c o u l d b e s h o w n hope to be able) to A communicate successfullywith tlrct with particular Iots of the vaccine6 our reader through the medium of M writing.
r: ttl!-
t. tllllF F
F
ts F EF E-
1.2 What do we write?
1.3 Spe e c ha n d writing 2
It is helpfulto keepin mind someof the manyuseswe are likely to makeof writing.For example,on a personallevel,mostof ususewritingto makea note (thingswe haveto do or wantothersto do, like our shoppinglist), of something and andto keeprecordsof thingswe wantto remember.We sendmessages write lettersto friends,anda few of uskeepdiaries.Most of ushaveto fill in - for example,for insurance applications formsfrom time to time (especially - or questionnaires) we writeformalletters(for example,if andoccasionally u'echangeour job). Apart from this,the amountof writingwe do regularlywill life. Somemightspenda gooddealof time writing relateto our professional reports.etc.For othersthiswill onlybe an occasional letters,instructions. activity. Few of us,on the otherhand,arelikelyto spendanytimewritingpoetry or fiction.And, outsidethe classroom, we neverwrite 'compositions'(My daily routine,My favouritepastime,etc.) of the kind that arestill a featureof many examinationsl A comparison betweenspeech some andwritingshouldhelpusto understand of the difficulties we experience whenwe write.The tableon the nextpage highlightsthe maindifferences. Note,however,thatit doesnot takeinto
E-
tE--l-
!F ,lt;; -Fr !!:f.-
I-
a-
1!
H
!--
U l-l-. r+
r--.J
!-:.-
H
!---
l-
l-1-:
H
1-.1-1L-
t-
t--
l-=.-
1-
tL LJ.
l-
l_
L V
L
l-t-
l-
LL-
T H EN A T U R EA N D P U R P O SO E FW R I T I N G
accountcertainsituationsin whichthe spokenlanguageis used,suchas telephoning and lecturing. Althoughwritingis clearlymuchmoredependenton how effectively we usethe linguisticresources of the language (see1.4.2),it wouldbe wroneto concludethat all the advantages areon the sideof speech.While it is tru! that in writingwe havethe taskof organising our sentences carefullyso asto make our meaningasexplicitaspossible withoutthe helpof feedbackfrom the reader,on the otherhandwe do not normallyhaveto write quickly:we can rewrite and reviseour sentences until we are satisfiedthat we haveexpressed 'our meaning.Equally,the readeris in a moreprivilegedpositionthanthe listenerto someextent:he canreadat his own paceand rereadasoften ashe likes.In thisway, then,someof the disadvantages of communicating through the writtenmediumareoffset.
SPEECH
WRITING
1 Takesplacein a context,which often makesreferencesclear(e.g. ' fhatth i ng over th ere'I
1 Createsits own contextand t h e r e f o r eh a st o b e f u l l y e x p l i c i t
2 S p e a k ea r n d l i s t e n e r ( si n) c o n t a c t I. n t e r a cat n d e x c h a n q e roles
2 R e a d e rn o t p r e s e n ta n d n o i n t e r a c t i o np o s s i b l e
3 U s u a l l yp e r s o na d d r e s s e d is soecific
3 Readernot necessarilyknown to writer
4 l m m e d i a t e f e e d b a cgki v e na n d expected ( a ) v e r b a l :q u e s t i o n sc, o m m e n t s . . . m u r m u r s g, r u n t s (b) non-verbal:facial expressions
4 N o i m m e d i a t ef e e d b a c kp o s s i b l e . Writer may try to anticipate r e a d e r ' sr e a c t i o n sa n d incorporatethem into text
5 S p e e c hi s t r a n s i t o r yI.n t e n d e dt o b e u n d e r s t o o di m m e d i a t e l vl .f not, listenerexpectedto interact
5 W r i t i n gi s p e r m a n e n tC . a nb e rereadas often as necessarvand at own soeed
S e n t e n c eo s f t e ni n c o m p l e t ea n d s o m e t i m e su n g r a m m a t i c a l . H e s i t a t i o nas n d p a u s e sc o m m o n a n d u s u a l l ys o m e r e d u n d a n c y and repetition
6 Sentencesexpectedto be c a r e f u l l yc o n s t r u c t e da,n d l i n k e d a n d o r g a n i s e dt o f o r m a t e x t
7 Rangeof devices(stress, i n t o n a t i o np, i t c h ,s p e e d ) t oh e l p c o n v e ym e a n i n g .F a c i a l expressions,body movements a n d g e s t u r e sa l s ou s e df o r t h i s pu rpose
D e v i c e st o h e l p c o n v e ym e a n i n g a r e p u n c t u a t i o nc, a p i t a l sa n d u n d e r l i n i n g( f o re m p h a s i s ) . S e n t e n c eb o u n d a r i e sc l e a r l y indicated
F
NIG SKILLS TEACHING \^JRiTI
1.4 WhYw r i t i n g i s difficult
1 . 4 .1 Psychological problems
F writing is a difficult activityfor most we can norvbegin to understandwhy F p e o p l e . b o t h i n t h e m o t h e r t o n g u e a n d i n a f o r e i g n l a n g u a g-e . W e s h a l l l o o k a t headings three under rvriti'g irr" irour"rns which are causedby F psychological'Iinguisticand.ognitiu.-althoughtheseinevitablyoverlapto F s o m ee x t e n t . F
Speechisthenaturalandnormalmediumofcommunicationforusinmost c i r c u m s t a n c e s a n d a c c u s t o m s u s b o t h t o h a v i n g S o m e o n e p h y s i c aon l l ythe present E feedbackof somekind. Writing, getting to and lunguug" use we when and the fact that we are required t<; F other hand. is essentiallya solitary activity or the benefit of interaction of possibility the without own, write on our feedback.initselfmakestheactofwritingdifficult.
E
1A1
Linguistic problems
F o.finteractionand' except a process. oral communicationis sustainedthrough t^heparticipantshelp to keep it in specialcircumstances.such as a lecture, we have little time to pay going. Becausespeechis normallyspontaneous' s t r u c t u r eo r t o c o n n e c t i n go u r a t t e n t i o ne i t h e rt o o r q a n i s i n go u r s e n t e n c e of the latter is maintainedthrough the process sentences:to some F "it.nt ald so on, dependingonhow interaction.We repeat.backtrack,expand p e o p l e r e a c t t o w h a t w e s a y ' I n c o m p l e t e a n d e v e n u n g r a m m a the t i c asample l u t t e r aof n c e s -F illustratedin are features these of Some usuallypassunnoticed. ts below: conversationu'hichhasbeen transcribed
E
-t
p i a n o 'l s t h a t h o w y o u P e t e y, o u c o m p o s e dt h i s p i e c ea t t h e work? normallY b e t h a t T i g f ' ] c h a n g et n A l w a y s ,U p t o t h i s p o i n t ,a l w a y s l' t m a y k n o w 'w o r k i n gf r o m t h e f u t u r e ,w h e n t f e l m o r ei n t o ,y o u I do write at the r.iurct.rwitfr syntn'uritttt,but at the moment u n t i lI ' ra r d l yr e a l i s e cl 'ld w r i t t e nt h i s p i a n p .A c t u a l l yr o i o n ; t . . - . h o f tlre o u t j u s td r o p p e d h a d! ( L a u g n s .Ot n eo i t h o s et h i n g st h a t skvI W e l l ,h o w d i d Y o us t a r t t, h e n ? m u s i c afl l a v o u rt h a t w e E r ,w e l l ,w e d e c i d e do n a , e r m ,a s o r to f a n d 'e r m ' j u s t ; ; ; ; i J ; ; " p t f o r ,t o t l t ' ' i t ' p a ' t i c u l anru m b e yr 'o u k n . o . wE'r ' w e ' ' ' f o l l o w e dw h e r em y f i n g e i st o o k m e ' .r e a l l y ' a n dd o o d l i n ga t t h e i , f n u O i n i n t r ol ' d l ' ' f i u u t ; u t tn o o d l i n g p i a n ow i t h t h i s ' ' ' l s o u n do f p i a n o l
E E
F F t
F -+ I
E L
at our disposal . rangeof devices As we haveseen,we alsohavea considerable to h e l p g e to u rmeaningacr oSS.Inwr iting,wehavetocom p.ex T :" -open I^" ::l :.! the chamelof communicati
Cognitive probierns
spendmuch of our i We growup learnrngto speakandin normalcircumstances t i m e d o i n g i t . W e a l s o a p p e a r t o s p e a k w i t h o u t m u c h c o n swhich c i o u are s e fof f o r t o! r to, aboutmatters want *. becau," talk we generally and thought :
A
t.
!
I--
T H EN A T U R EA N D P U R P O SO EF W R I T I N G
l_
E
interestor relevantto us sociallyor professionally. Writing,on the other hand is learnedthrougha processof instructiorz:we have to masterthe written form of the languageandto learncertainstructureswhich are lessusedin speech,or perhapsnot usedat all, but whichare importantfor effective.o.muni.ution in writing. We alsohaveto learnhow to organiseour ideasin sucha way that they can be understoodby a readerwho is not presentand perhapsby a readerwho is not known to us. Finally,writingis a taskwhichis often imposedon us, perhapsby circumstances. This not only hasa psychological effect;it may alsocausea problemin termsof content- what to say.Beingat a lossfor ideasis a familiar experienceto mostof us whenwe are obligedto write.
t-Lf !-
H
!--
t-L-
l-
t-L L: f L L 11
i: FL
t_
rff
tr
r
ll-
U I
tr I.L-J
l_
1.5 Learning to write: mother tongue and foreign language situations compared
So fa'rwe havelookedat writing in general,without drawingany distinction betweenwriting in the mothertongueand writing in a foreignlanguage. Clearly,however,thereare importantdifferences,particularlyin the learnine situation,andattentionis now drawnto these. Most childrenlearnto writein theirmothertongueat school,generally betweenthe agesof five and seven.By this time they havea well-developed commandof the spokenlanguage, adequate at leastto their socialneeds,but their experienceof the writtenlanguageis still very limited. Most childrenwill of coursehavebeenexposedto it to somedegreethroughbeingreadto aloud. writing itself,however,is a totallynew experiencefor mostof them. Most childrenacquirethis new skill fairly laboriously.On the other hand, they are requiredto makeregularuseof it, both in classes devotedto writing practiceand, astheir educationprogresses, in other lessons(history, geography,etc.) whichinvolvesomeform of relatedand purposefulwritten work. Certaintypesof writing,particularlythosewhichinvolveprojectioninto adult-typeroles,tendto causethem difficulty.Many children,in fact, simply do not enjoy writing,partlybecauseof the natureof the taskandpartly because,out of school,it haslittle valuefor them asa form of social interaction,althoughin mostculturesthe ability to write carriesprestige.Very few childrensucceedin becomingreallyproficientat writing and manyceaseto usethis skill oncetheyleaveschool,or useit only occasionally-for specialised purposes (e.g.fillingin forms). In the light of this,we should,asforeignlanguageteachers,be ableto makecertainassumptions, subjectof courseto culturalvariations,and to avoid makingothers.Most of our studentswill alreadybe familiarwith the processof writing, unlesstheyarevery young,in whichcasewriting will not - and should not - figurevery prominentlyin the foreignlanguageprogramme.Thev may haveto learna new scriptbut writing itselfwill not be a new experience for them. They are alsolikely to havehad a fairly wide experienceof written languagethroughreadingin their mothertongue.They may alsobe at an age when they canlearnthroughreadingand perhapsthe written languagehas cometo havesomepsychological valuefor them asa form of supportwhen learningsomething new. We shouldnot assume, however,that theyareproficientat writingin their mothertongue,or thattheyalreadypossess skills the necessary organisational for writingeffectively. Nor shouldwe assume that the abilityto writein the mothertonguecanbe transferred to the foreignlanguage, althoughsome _5
J
W R I T I N GS K I L L S TEACHING
J
global transfer,as with readingability, often seemsto take place(that is, their own languageeasilybecomeliterate in ieopte who are highly literatein to nnoiher;. It is alsopossiblethat the students'previousexperienceof learning write and of practisingwriting in their own languagewas frustratingor unrewarding.At for their attitudestowardslearningto write in a foreign may language.we are rarely in a positionto make any assumptionsat all: these ,un"g"fiom no interest at all to a firm belief in its value to them as learners. One very significantfactor which affectswriting in the foreign language time classroomis that. even if we delaythe introductionof writing for some disposal (see4.1), the amountof languagewhich the learnerswill have at their it io, *riting will be very limited - so limited that it might seemto make impossibleto introduce any meaningfulform of writing practice' At thesame time, the learners,being more mature than they were when they learned to write in their mother tongue, are consciousof the limitations which the foreign it languageimposeson the expressionof their ideas.To resolvethis problem going will be necessaryto strike some sort of balancewhich preventsthem from beyond their linguistic attainmentin the foreign languageand yet will still provide them u,ith writing activitieswhich satisfythem on an intellectuallevel.
l-
J
: : : : : : : : : : :
1.6 Why teach writ in g ?
withoutlearninghow to learnto speaka foreignlanguage Clearlyit is possible perhapseventhe majorityof them, to wriie in iiand for manyof our students, writing will be the skill in whichthey arenot only leastproficient,evenafter practice,but alsothe onefor whichtheywill havethe leastuse. considerable The situationis not sovery differentin the mothertongue,aSwe havealready capacity' Seen,exceptfor thoseof uswho usewritingin someprofessional Because,therefore,writingis a skillwhichis both limitedin valueand difficult to acquire,we shouldbe very clearaboutour purposein teachingit' of a courseorientedtowardsoral proficiency,writing tn ttreearly.stages purposes: servesa variety of,pedagoglcal (a) The introductionandpracticeof someform of writing enablesus to providefor differentliarning stylesandneeds.Somelearners,especially thor. who do not learneasilythroughoral practicealone,feel more secure if they are allowedto readandwrite in the language.For suchstudents, writing is likely to be an aid to retention,if only becausethey feel more at easeandrelaxed. (b) Written work servesto providethe learnerswith sometangibleevidence that they aremakingprogressin the language.It is not likely to be a true need' a psychological but onceagainit satisfies indexof their attainment, (c) Exposureto the foreignlanguagethroughmorethan one medium, especiallyif skillsareproperlyintegrated,appearsto be more effective than relyingon a singiemediumalone.Evenat an elementarylevelthere are manyopportunitiesfor activitiesthat effectivelyintegrateskills' activities,servingasa breakfrom (d) Writing providesvarietyin classroom orat*ori (andis thereforea quieterandmorerelaxedtime for both the amountof studentsandteacherl).At thesametime,it increases languagecontactthroughwork that canbe setout of class.
=
J
: I-a
-l
: =
.l I l-l
:
F.J
IJ -_J
F.r
F.J
_l
: >-J
IJ :-r -J F-J
:l -l t-J
F-r
_l l-r -l I-.
:l
F-r
I
L
T H EN A T U R EA N D P U R P O SO E FW R I T I N G
l-
tr
(e) Writingis oftenneededfor formaland informal.testing. Althoughin generaloral abilityshouldbe measured throughoral tests,in practicewe areoftenobligedby circumstances, suchasthe amountof time we haveat andthe numberof students our disposal thereare in the class,to usesome form of writtentest.In somecases,of course,a writtentestmay evenbe appropriate: for example,makingnoteswhilelistening.
!--
H
!---
Theseconsiderations stronglysuggestthat, while we shouldstill concentrateon we canmakegooduseof writing,aspart of aural-oralskillsin the earlystages, an integratedskillsapproachto languagelearning.Although at this stage writing activitieswill be largelya reinforcementof languagelearnedorally* , this neednot imply that writing hasto be an unsatisfying or evenrigidly controlled aclivity(see3.3).It canalsobe taughtin sucha way that it preparesthe learnersfor more realisticformsof writing at a later stage. As the learnersprogressto the intermediate stagesof languagelearning, factorswhichwe havenotedabovestill applybut, in addition, the pedagogical we canprovidefor writtenwork on a more extensivescaleand in particular integrateit more effectivelywith other skills(seeChapter8). At this level,the written languageitselfwill alsoprovidecontextsfor learning- through maybe relatedto these.At the sametime, reading- andwritingactivities writingmay becomea goalin both hereandat the post-intermediatelevel, itself. Althoughin languageprogrammeswhichdo not havea specific orientationwe are not in a positionto predictwhichstudentsare likely to have a needfor writing asone of the outcomesof their course,moststudentswill haveto do someform of writtenexaminationand this will increasetheir motivationto learnto write well. In addition,we canidentifyand concentrate on formsof writing whichhavea procticalvalue,the relevanceof whichshould be easilyapparentto the learners.Specificneedscanalsobe met because writing practicecanto someextentbe individualised. Clearly,however,thesituationis so complexthat thereis no onesetof althoughthisappliesto the teachingof otherskillstoo. But on answers, pedagogicalgrounds aloneit rvouldseemthat writingis a skillworth in the foreignlanguage. developing Our problemis how to do thisin sucha way that the learnersseethepurposeof writingand makemeasurable progress throughthe performance of realisticandrelevanttasks.
H
tr !--
H !--
H L' rF<
L-
H t-H l-_
L
!--
t-L!!-
D i s c u ssi o n
Whichof the differences betweenspeechandwriting,listedin the tableon page3, do you think areespecially importantwhenteachingwriting? From yourown experience of teaching(or learning)a foreignlanguage, do you agreethat writing is worth teachingon pedagogical groundsalone?
Exercises
It wassaidin 1.1thatrvedo not know muchaboutindividualmethodsof a text.Note dorvnsomeof the thingsyou do whenyou arewriting composing andcomparethemwith a friend.
l_ |,--_1
l_
tr l_ tr tr H
l_
tr tr I-
*This term is usedhere and elsewhereto refer to languagewhich is presentedand practisedorally ( f o r e x a m p l e .t h r o u g hd i a l o g u e sa n d r e l a t e da c t i v i t i e s )I.t d o e sn o t i m p l y t h a t t h e l e a r n e r sh a v en o t seenthe written [orm.
!a
SKILLS T E A C H I NW GR I T I N G
4
2 Weproduce a sequenceof sentences. . ' linked togetherin certairtways'
Reiead 1.1 and make a list of someof the linking devicesused. Make a list of the thingsyou usewriting for' Arrange them as follows:
ts _1
P _1
l= _1
PEIISONAL PftOFEs5IONAL
F -1
F i I
-1
lz
l _1
i
I
_1
F Compareyour list with a friend. betweenthe two speakersin 1.4.2in Write out a versionof theconversation normalwritten ProsestYle' References*
The correcteddraft on page2 comesfrom J BarzunandHF Gtaff' The (1970).The transcriptof spokenEnglishon page4 ModernResearcher Show(i985),in whichDavidFreeman comesfrom the DavidFreernan musicians' interviewsprofessional F Smith On writingseeJ Brittonin A Davies(1975):TeachingWriting; (1982),S i(rashen(198a)pages4-19 andY Zamel(1981and 1983). featuresseeD Abercrombiein J Laver and S Hutcheson bn paralinguistic (1,91 2): Paralanguage. organisethoughtpatternsin differentways bn tne waysin whichlanguages seeR B Kaplanin K Croft (1980):CulturalThoughtPatternsin InterCulturalEducation. valueof writingseeC Bratt Paulston(1972)pages33-6' On the pedagogical For a more extremeviewof the valueof teachingwritingseeM Sharwood6)pagesI'7-19. Smith(1,97
1
v _1
l<
!= _1
-1
v !F !<
F <
F 1
F 1
F 1
F _1
I
.1 14
1
!_1
!4
1
I
z
'All referencesare to booksand articleslistedin the Bibliographyon page153
ll-
v
t_
L
tr LH L
LLll-
Learning to usethe resources of the writtenlanguage
L.-
H
Lg
g r_H g g L: I
--.1
s-: g t-.-
E L: r E f--^
L-
tr f -1
!;
+f I.
l,:-
r -JJ
f
2.1 Understanding how the written language functions
One of our major tasksis to familiarise fhe learnerswith the devicesthat are neededfor effectivecommunication throughthe mediumof writing.In extent, this is not unlikethe taskwe havein teachingthe appropriateuseof stressand intonationfor oralcommunication. In both casesan awareness of how languagefunctionsasa communicationsystemcanonly be taughtthrough adequateexposureto the languageand throughactivitieswhich leadto an whichthe language of the devices understanding employs.Of the two, exposureis themoreimportant. For this reason,readingwill play an extremelyimportantpart in the development of writingabilitybecause, althoughin itselfit will not produce goodwriters.it appears to be an essential pre-condition. Readingmayof coursebe a goalin its own right and in any caseislikely to be a more important one thanwriting.But the two skillscanandshouldbe developed in close In anycase,trueunderstanding collaboration. of a text- anytypeof text rangingfrom an informalletterto the formalexpositionof somehighlyfactual topic- dependson an appreciation of the deviceswhichthe writer has employedin orderto conveyhismeaningthroughthe mediumof writing.This is an importantsteptorvards appreciation effectivewriting. it is not enoughto focusattentionon those To developthisunderstanding bitsof informationwhichthe readercaneasilyretrievefrom the text at a levelof understanding. Thistypeof activitymay be a useful superficial for certain kinds expedient of oraipractice, but it doesnot significantlv helpthe how the rvriteris gettinghismeaningacross,and learnersto understand therefore.in the longrun, doesnot contributegreatlyto readingefficiency. We needto getthemto examinethe textat a muchdeeperlevel.In time it is hoped that theyrvillbeginto do thismoreor iessintuitively. of horvtextscanbe dealtwith for thispurposeareqiven Two examples on the nextpage.
E
GK I L L S T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
_<
2.1.r Personal communicatiot-t
T h e f i r s te x a m p l eu ' e s h a l l e x a r n i nies a l e t t e r .T h e t e x t i s a p i e c eo f p e r s o n a l communication:the u'riter knou'Shis readerand u'e may assumethat he had to l-rimdirectly (for example, reasonsfor n,ritirtgto him. ratherthzrnspeaAirig on thephone).
!_1
!1
!. _1
!.
92 M ou.t'd Roa
NWIO 3YE Octobc,r /O /987 2c.an- /Vl ihe, Sor-ry I rtra-sn"t ab'lc
to .qct ttr qatr
Sa;,an7,{
at't
'^t-to.dg/[asf Foiy to c-o-t'vt( a't't'd' -j u.st o/ts;,'S tr Lco.r"o r+,'/t,cr.t I q"t &'p /'t.fiLe c/z/ /
firr',t cL fi-krccl . He h'a"rdlust -'a.-i\re.d rt"vr+r Tehrrvar"t'- {m h"5 - arvlo{ hl
tlr&4,/ to Ca'nncl'a
nrwtted
to i.pond. th,e e4re4l,{44g kiil+ vtLe rn'o'n'L.i/n'q. bofute lw lerft the' nni lu4.,LL,I cottTd'n't TefrLs4, ccL{.ho|"/? Cf 614nst I trL.e
x/fl,tr
rLL4,erL,b-e,rhrTLs %"gar/eo/',
AnoL'aften fhet I n a's b,ws4- nril'h' &'U etre+tizng. m4 'lfi4,ud h'o'ytc yot+'L/' w't't'd.e'7s'r'*"ToL. I ""Leec/e'd 7n! rc.r'gr-ol s futmu ryoLL , fu*,t /'h s&1-e. yaLt-'a/l"h'.*r/ q -A*-rte
vna/|-1/oLLm+s
lnot -/rt
the srz.rrte .
tot nt e
Y*-r,
Nae
!_1
!_1
P .-1
l-
!. !. F !. F F Fr
F lEEEz
-E!!.
+ <
l=-
!=
What,then,arethe kindsof thingwe cando in orderto getthe learnersto approachis A possible look at thisletterasa pieceof personalcommunication? outlinedhere.
F !. =
10
=l-
t: 7t_
I
tr 1-.H a_
r_ r
-
a: ll,-
I-l
E
H
+;
L= r_ r_-
LEABNING T O U S ET H ER E S O U R C EOSFT H EW R I T T E N LANGUAGE
(a) Whatis the writer'spurpose? That is, we wantthe students to decidewhy Nick is writingto Mike. If they canrecognise thatNick is apologising andgivinghis reasons(or excuses!) for not doingsomething, thentheyhaveidintinio ttreoverall communicative purposeof the letter.In thiscaseit is fairlyobvious,but in othercontextsit maybe harderto elucidate. The point or tne activityis to demonstrate thatunderstanding the writer'scommunicative purpos.i, un essential part of understanding the text. (b) How doesthe writerachievehispurpose? Here we getthestudents to considersomeof the waysin whichthe writer doesthis. For example,how doeshe apologi.se? How doeshe try to assure Mike that he intendedto cometo hispartyi Ho* doeshe assurehim that he tried to get in touchwith him? whar is the significanceof: well, I couldn't refuse,could I? andI know you needeimy record.s? why doeshe mentionthat he had sucha boringeveninghimself?It is throughquestions of this kind that w: canbeginto get the studentsto understandwhy the writerwrotecertainthingsandexpressed themin a certainway.
I{
--,
!-:
t=-
+=l_-,1
l-
f---a
L-4
l_
L= L:_ i: --J
IJ
L. L. -1
E t r-
l,_L-1
L---1
L-
r r = --i
T
(c) How doesthe writerestablishand maintaincontactwith hisreader? Herewe cangetthe students to look bothat the language in generalandat particularexpressions to draw their attentionto the waysin whichhe does this. In this letterit is donepartly throughthe informalstyle,which reflects certainfeaturesof conversational English(for example,the useof contractedformssuchaswasn't,couldn'tand ellipsis:sorry I wasn,t able) and partly throughappealingto his readerdirectly with: well, I couldn,t refuse,could I? andI hopeyou,ll understand.. (d) what typicalfeaturesof written English are therein the text? Herewe will getthe students to look at featuressuchaslinkingdevices, sentence structureandinter-sentence structure.while we wouldnot expectto find a greatmanvsamples withinthe contextof an informalletter suchasthis(thethird sentence provicles the bestexample.with cohesion throughthe useof the pronounhe andthe structureof the sentence itself), we want them to appreciatethatthisis not speechwrittend.own,horvever informalthe stylemay be and horvevermuchit reflectscertainfeatures of conversational English.To reinforcethispoint,we mightgetthemto transformthe letterinto a conversation, which,event[ough it is hypothetical, will underlinethe differences betweenthe two mediumsof communication. A conversation betweenNick andMike mighthavegone something like this: Nrcr: Look, Mike. I'm terriblvsorryI couldn'tgetto your party ... Irrrp: Yeah . . . why didn'tyou phone? N l c x : W e l l ,I d i d t r y . . . I j u s tc o u l d n 'gt e tt h r o u g h. . . Irrre: Sowhathappened, then? Nrcx: well, just at the lastminute. . . I rvasjust aboutto leavein fact . . . and the phonerangand.ri'ell.I've got thisfrienclin Teheran.vou see,and...(etc.l l1
GK I L L s T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
N
Finally, we might get the studentsto comparethis letter with a formal note of apology.suchas this:
F !!-
I re g re t th a t I was unable to attend the par ty to w h i ch yo u so kindly invited me, due to Flease ci rcu msta n ce s beyond-my contr ol. accept my sincere aPologies.
-!_I-
_=.
in whichsucha We mightalsoaskthemto considerthe circumstances notemighthavebeenwrittenandwhy. unlikeNick' the writerdoesnot go for hisnot goingto the party' into the reasons
l-
lf-
2.r.2 Non-personai communication
For our secondexample,u'e shalllook at a pieceof expositorywriting.* Unlike the text in7.1..i, it is not addressedto a personknown to the writer'
._f-
E l e c t r i c i tiys t h e m o s tu s e f u fl o r m o f e n e r g yt h e r ei s .l t i s e a s yt o p r o d u c e ; ' ci ta nb et r a n s m i t t eodv e rl o n gd i s t a n c e si t; i s c l e a nt o u s e . b o v ea l l ,i t i s c o n v e n i e n t ' a n d i t h a sn o s m e l l A p T h e e l e c t r i c i t y r o d u c e db y n a t u r e- l i g h t n i n g i s a d i f f e r e n t k i n do f e l e c t r i c i tfyr o m t h a tw h i c hf l o w st h r o u g ha n e l e c t r i cl i g h t b u l b .l t i s c a l l e ds t a t i ce l e c t r i c i t yb,e c a u s ei t e x e r t sa f o r c ew h i c h i s i ct t r a c t i o nR' u ba s t a t i o n a r yl.t i s e a s yt o d e m o n s t r a t e l e c t r o s t a t a j e r s e y . w i l l c h a r g et h e c o m bw i t h y o u r T h i s c o m b o n i h e s l e e v eo f p i e c e so f p a p e r . p i c k s m a l l u p s t a t i ce l e c t r i c i t ya,n d i t w i l l n o w i n o r d e rt o h a v ea n y f l o w t o T h e o t h e rk i n do f e l e c t r i c i tny e e d s w i l l e f f e c tT . h e e l e c t r i c i tiyn a b a t t e r yf,o r e x a m p l e , n o t m a k ea l i g h t b u l bg l o w u n t i lb u l ba n db a t t e r ya r el i n k e db y w i r e st h r o u g hw h i c h t h e e i e c t r i c i t cy a nf l o w .T h i sk i n do f e l e c t r i c i tiys o f t e nc a l l e dc u r r e n t e l e c t r i c i t yt H ; ew i r e ' c h a n n e l ' t h r o u gwhh i c hi t f l o w si s k n o w na s t h e c i r c ui t .
This kind of textis clearlyverydifferentfrom the onein2.1.1.As we have anyonein particular,at leastnot anyone noted,the writeris not addressing thathe hassomesorto.f However,we mustassume knownto him personally. readerinmind. andthatthisis relevantto thewayhe writes.We mightbegin. to identifywhatsortof personthisis. If therefore,by tryingto getthestudents somebasic we examinethe text.we findthatthewriteris presenting then, The readerhe is addressing, informationon rhesubjectof electricity. who knowslittle someone whomhe keepsin mindthroughout,is presumably goal,is to or nothingaboutthesubject.andhispurpose,hiscommunicative inform him of somebasicfacts. thewriter'sintention.we mightthengetthe students Havingestablished thesebasicfactsto the reader.We to considerhowhe goesaboutpresenting in a generalway,on the basisof their couldbeginby invitingthemto consider, whatwe normallydo in a situationlike thiswhenwe wantto get experience. * F r o m T h e S a m p s o nL o u ' G r e a tW o r l d E n c - v c l o p a e d(i1a9 7 5 ) '
t2
-< t-
!!I-
!}ll-.
F F-i
l-r
i
I-.
I I-a
I l-i
I
r-r
_J :J .l I-r _l -l-l l-l
I-t
I-t
l-r
I-r
-J r-r
-t
I-J
-l
l-r
L L l)-J-
U != LH U
1-. l-
LEARNING TO USETHERESOURCES OFTHEWRITTENLANGUAGE
acrosssomeinformationto a personwho is unfamiliarwith the subiect. wouldbe: to askthe students Someusefulquestions - How importantis it to sequence the variouspiecesof information?(What for example,if thevariouspiecesof informationarejumbledup?) happens, - How doesit helpto compareandcontraslcertainitems? -
What is the purposeof.giving examples?
-
How importantis it to definenew termsand how do we do it?
We canthen movefrom the generalexperienceof the studentsto an examinationof the text itself.At this stagesomeusefulquestionsto askwould be: - How hasthe writersequenced hisinformation? -
onepieceof informationfrom another?(How hashe Hai he separated doneit?)
L-
-
(How do thesehelpthe reader or contrasts? Hashe madeanycomparisons the subjectmatter?) to understand
-
Hashe definedanyterms?(Horvhashe doneit?)
L.
of the text alongtheselinesshouldhelpthe students Our examination to see,in that the structuring the paragraphs particular, of secondand third is quite deliberate:the writermighthavegoneaboutit in a differentway but whathe choseto do wasto dealfirstwith one type of electricityand then with another, the two kindsandsupporting eachwith examples. contrasting We candraw attentionto the overallstructureof the text throughsome analysis. For example: sort of diagrammatic
U
!--
l--
u L Ltr L la
U
L
f
f-"
tl_ l-
l_-
E L B
L
tr L Lr l_ -a
Paral: Introductorystatementaboutthe valueof electricity Supporting statements asexamples of its value Para2: First typeof electricitycontrastedwith the second Definitionof term Example Para3: Secondtypeof electricity Example Delinitionof terms not only to appreciate Evena simplebreakdownlike thisrvillhelpthe students structttrebut alsothat it is this structure, that the text hasan identifiable rvhichit is realised,that enablesthe writer with the language through together with hisreader. effectively to communicate to look at someof the linguisticdevices Finally.we cangetthe students whichthe ivriterhasused.Someof theseserveto unifythe text,whileothers structureoutlinedabove.Thesedevicesare realisethe organisational examinedin greaterdetailin2.2.2.Here,however,we mightnotethe variety to the reader. of waysin whichthe writer presentshis examples statements. Purul: He usesa seriesof supporting Paru2: He makesa directappealto the readerto carryout a simple experiment. Pura3: He providesa concreteexample. IJ
r Lnvt
_-E
rllru
_4
suchas Theotltar We shouldalsonotehorvireunifieshistextthroughdevices kind of . . . Thiskind of . . . andthroughthe useof the pronounform ir *'ith repetitionof the keylexicalttentelectricitt'. alternated
y
_1
+ __-1
F I. L,J
Pedagogical implications
2.2 The resourcesof the written language
-t+
of textsalongtheselinesrvillb,yitsef enable We cannotpretendthatanall,sis through Thiscanonlybe achieved the studentito learnto u,riteeffectively. practice' backedup by appropriate to thervrittenlanguage exposure adequate writing' of medium the oneselfthrough But, giventhe problemsof expressing through of howwe communicate it wouldseemthat someexplicitexamination to it serves part of theprogramme'In particular, writingis an indispensable makeihe studentsawarethatanypieceof writingis an attemptto communicate something:thatthewriter hasa goalor purposein mind; thathe hasto establislt and maintaincontactv,ith hisreader;thathe ltasto organisehismaterialand that devices. he doesthisthroughtheuseof certainlogicalandgramn"tatical We shallof coursehaveto examinea greatmanydifferentkindsof writing of textsalongtheselineswouldbe an that the analt,sis andit is assumed ongoingactivity.carriedout at differentlevelsof difficultyat differentstagesof we shallhaveto usethe students'mother In the earlystages the"pro"grarn.n.. theymaymissthe finerpointsof the tongu.ior thispurpose.otherrvise Lateron, we shallalsowantto refineour two typesof writingand analysis. differentkindsof letters"reports.narrativetextsandsoon' .rtublirh sub-types: in whichhasbeendrawn- betweenthosesituations But the basicdistinction he knowsandthosein whichhe is someone whichthe writeris addressing writing in somekind of institutionalcapacity- is a fundamentalone. Each writingskillsand type oTwritinghasits ownvalue,bothin termsof developing for the learnersPersonallY. this shouldnot be Whenwe speakof the u,rittenlanguageandits resources, takento imply that we candraw anysharpdividingline betweenthe language usedin writing.Rather,we havetwo usedin speechandthe language forms,embodied,at the levelof phonologyand but interrelated independent the writtenforms in two differentmediums.Both thespoken.and graphology. its grammarand of thelanguage, can drawon the samelinguisticresources lexis,but the extentto whichthey drawon Somelesourcesratherthan on othersrelateslargelyto the natureof the two channels:speechasthe languaee writingasthe wayof makingcontactat a of immediatecommunication; distance. clauses suchasnon-restrictive structure, Thus,certaintypesof sentence quite (for example:Thistypeof clause,whichis rarelyheardin speech,is commonin writing)aremoretypicalof the rvrittenlanguage,butthey may clauses, However,to takethe exampleof non-restrictive occurin speech. For example: constructions. speechhasits ownwavof handlingparenthetic quite commonin is ilrit ryp, of clause you don'toftenhearit in speech writing. logical andthoseusedto express devices Similarly,mostsentence-linking of nature of the but, because relationships alsooccurin thespokenlanguage thel' of interaction), of the listener,the possibility the channel(theimmediacy for the construction arelessfrequentthanin u,riting,wheretheyareessential
>1
_v
ts y 1
P
F P Fz .1
tz
E F.2
F) Fd
q -ltd
) -
-z
.Ei -)
Ei _/ >d -) t-r
I
fr,
E,
q 4
>l
4 .i .i
4l
l_ -]t-
LEARNING TO USETHERESOURCES OFTHEWRITTENLANGUAGE
tr r_f-
I
of a textwhichhasto be understood withoutfurtherhelpfrom thewriter. In general,therefore,it canbe saidthatour purposein selecting certain typesof sentencestructureratherthan othersund in makinggreateruse of linkingandotherdevices is determined by the needto makeihe meaningof the text asexplicitaspossible.Thusin speechan utterancesuchas: Johnmay go.
.1
L_-
r_r_-_ r_ -I
is clear.In writing, however,we may haveto usea differentkind of modal construction whichdoesnot dependon intonation.For example:
,.-
l--t-
Thereis a possibilitythat Johnwill go.
L_U
Similarly,in speech:
D.I
John didit.
+-; g I_.-
is clear,but in writingwe canhelpour readerby usingan alternative construction suchas: It wasJohnwho did it.
U L-
In the writtenform of the language, then,thereis greaterrelianceon the structuralelementsaloneandthis,togetherwith the time the writer hasfor organising histext,accounts for thehighi:rfrequencyof certainstructures.
r-{ I-{,
L:
u I--
f
tr L_ r=.-
L---f
tr u - -J
L_-
r ---
L-
tr L--
u r-_----
i: H
L-
tr l--
2.2.1 Graphological resources
Theseincludespelling,punctuationand other deviceswhich the written language makesuseof in orderto conveypatternsof meaning.Thissectionis not intendedto providea spellingor punctuationguidebut ratherto assess the valueof thesefeaturesaspart of the resources of the written form of the languageandthereforetheir relativeimportancein a writing programme. (a) Spelling Nlasteryof the writing systemincludesthe ability to spell.However, because in Englishthe relationship betweensoundandsymbolis a complexone,* spellingis a problemfor manyusersof the language, native and non-native speakers alike,andmostof usareoblieedto consulta dictionaryfrom time to time.while we do not wantto-encourase the learnersto be indifferenttowardsspelling,we shouldacknowledge that mis-spelling rarelyinterferes - in fact,English with communication spellingwasnot standardised until the eighteenth century- anymore than,on a phonemiclevel,mistakes of pronunciation greatlyafiect intelligibility. It is inappropriate, therefore.in a writingprogramme,to adopttoo prescriptive an attitudetowardsspelling.Thistendsto be encouraged by \ the factthatwritingis opento inspection andis usedin testsand examinations.Responsibility for ensuring an adequatemastervof spelling shouldbe dividedbetweenthe teacherandthe learner:it is the teacher's responsibility to provideguidance in key areas,throughrules,since Englishspellingis by no meansunsvstematic and muchhelpcanbe givenin *There are forty-four
phonemesin Englishand trventy-sixlettersof the alphabet. In the orthographics)'stt-m'lettc-rsare combineclto form different symbols(e.g. n and ng) while some s v m t r o l sc l od o u b l cd u r v ( c . g .- ] , r e p r e s c n b t so t h t h c r i l a n dl i l p h o n c m e s ) i
15
E
GK I L L S T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
-.d
this way, rvhileit is the learner'stask to consulta dictionarvfor guidancc' This habit rvill be greatlyencouragedbv dran'ingattentiorlto mistakes rather thancorrectirlgthem (seeChapter10). On the whole. however. spellingefficiencyand irnprovententis likely to relateto reading(i.e. the the importanceof readinc amount of exposure)and this againemphasises in developingwriting abilitY. (b\ Purtctuatiot"t
!z _-1 >.J ---1 j1 _1 _:4 __1
v
_-1
lr
Except in a few areas.the conventionsgoverningthe use of the visual devicesknown as punctuationare fairly well established,although P to the sameextent as spelling. punctuationhasneverbeen standardised ltz Attitudes, therefore,tend to be fairly prescriptive,extendingeven into the that is this of areaswhere variationin usageis tolerated.The result -ts learnersare inclinedto treat punctuationas somethingthat can be done 'extra' rather than as an essentialpart of the writing mechanicallyand as an -ts system. valueof punctuation needstobe demonstrated-!l.J The cornrnunicatit,e For example,it is preciselybecausethe readerexpectssentence -!'J boundariesto be marked (with a capitalletter at the start and a full stop, or Someequivalentdevice,at the close)and becausehe expectsquestionsto t-d symbol of this presence l the though even mark, question a with signalled be FJ igncired. be cannot conventions *uy b. redundantin most cases,that these Similarly,at a higherlevel, the readerexpectsto have paragraphsmarked FJ for him, normally by findingthe openingsentenceindentedand the rest of - ' I E the line after the last sentenceleft blank. These conventionstell him that other the i On together. taken to be sentences of this set the writer intends .J l-r great hand, with devicessuchaScommasand semi-colons,there is I variationboth in how they are usedand the extentto which they are used' ;r and this should be freely acknowledged.We should also admit that there J are areasof difficulty for most of us, such as the use of hyphensin Fcompoundnouns.where recourseto a dictionaryis the only solution' >-a In the areaof punctuation.then, we can besthelp the studentsif we provide them with guidancethat is not too rigidly prescriptive,and at the Sametime encouragethem to considerthe effect on the reader if, for : Likewise. >z example, sentenceand paragraphboundariesare not marked. I 'too long', we .) insteadof criticisinga sentenceor a paragraphfor being >.d might ask them to considerwhetherit placesa strainon the readerin any -) *uy. So-. punctuation devicesadmittedly call for a cautioususe (for >-r I is no there here and dashes) and marks exclamation of use the example, ) harmln telling our studentsto usethem sparingly.On the other hand, it = would be wrong to deny the learnersan expedientsuchas underlining equivalent the this is since emphasis, special for call that phrasis words or .) of italicisationin Print.
-J -,-J
Lu
Fl
(c) Other graphologicalresources Other graphologicalresourceswhich form part of the wide rangeof devices: availableto us in the writing systemincludethe useof headings,footnotes. = tablesof contentsand indexes.Thesewill not be relevantto all our >J students.but at leastthev shouldbe awarethat a headingenablesthe )
t6
=
T =
L
LEARNING T O U S ET H ER E S O U R C EOSFT H EW R I T T E N LANGUAGE
.-4tt'
l--
tr !--H
!---
Lt--H H H ILr--_-a
l_ r--<
H t-: H
!.: Lr--J
I-: t-..
t-. L:
t-L. LJ
l__
tr L.
writer to givehis readersomeadvancenoticeof what to expect,while a pieceof informationfrom footnoteenableshim to extracta supplementary the text andstillmakeit accessible to the reader.
2.2.2 Rhetorical resources
This term is usedto refer to all the deviceswhich are neededin writing in order to producea text in whichthe sentences are organisedinto a coherentwhole,in sucha way that they fulfil the writer'scommunicativepurpose.This sectionis intendedto providea brief surveyof theseresources.A more detailedlist, togetherwith examples,is givenin the Appendix. Rhetoricaldevicesare lookedat hereunderthree headingslogical, srammaticalandlexical. ( a ) Logical devices
Logicaldevicesarewordsor phraseswhich indicatemeaningrelationships Theseincludethoseof addition,comparison, betweenor withinsentences. and so on (someof thesewe havealready contrast,result,exemplification looked atin2.2.2). It is throughdevicessuchasthesethat the.writeris able to organisehis ideasand to help his readerfollow him from one sentenceto another. To expressaddition,we may, for example,usethe co-ordinatorand, but other devicesare availableto u's,suchas/urthermore,moreover, in addition(to . . .), whatis more,etc. The appropriateuseof one besides, are intendedto be taken of thesedevicestellsthe readerthat two sentences together.For example: The publiclibraryhas21,000bookswhichcanbe takenout on loan. In addition,thereis a referencesectionof over 6,000 volumes. Similarlywith the relationshipof contrast:this may be signalledthrough the co-ordinarorbut or by usinghowever,yet, while,on theotherhand, etc. above): For example(to continuethe sequence . . . In additionthereis a referencesectionof over 6,000volumes. Many of the booksin this section,however,are not kept on the shelvesand are only availableto the publicon request. Throughthe useof howeverthe writer hassignalleda differencebetween the part of the librarywhichcontainsthe booksthat canbe borrowed(and section,wheresomebooksarestored andthe reference areon the shelves) separately. We haveseenin 2.l.2how importantthesedevicesarein presenting ideasso that the text hasa clearstructure.This helpsthe readerto follow the writer'sthought.In certaintypesof text, it would be extremelydifficblt to organisethe contenteffectivelywithout the appropriateuseof devices for enumeration(first(ly), in thefirst place,second(ly). . . finally, lastof all, etc.) and for summarising(in short,on thewhole,etc.).
L.J
L.
tr l: LJ
L.
r
1-
( b ) Grammaticaldevices by of a text arethe linksestablished Equallyimportantfor the cohesion devices. suchasthose,for example,whichsignal certaingrammatical 17
l\J ll .G
(or anaphora). bv meansof.back referettce relationshipsbetrveensentences T h e r e a r e s e v e r a il n s t a n c eos f t h i st y p e o f l i n k i n gi n t h e t e x t i n 2 . I . 2 . F o r example:
-E=
.
-F
. tz
Elefiricitf is the mostusefulform of energvthereis.
F
can be transmittedover lone distances(etc.).
->
is establishedthrough the use of Here the link betweenthe sentences the pronominal form it. The examinationof almost any text will reveal that this is an extremely common way of binding sentencestogether and giving a text cohesion.It is not a device,however,whosevalue is immediately appreciatedby non-nativeusersof the language. Back referencebinding two sentencestogether may also be effected by means of.a deictic,suchas a demonstrativeadjectiveor pronoun or an article.For example,in (a) abovewe had: In addition, there is a referencesectionof over 6,000volumes.Many
of thebooksindfriE6ilon.however.. . .
v
v .-J
.
P
v F -
. v
In thetextin 2.7.2wehad:
. >
'willcharsethe comb
. >z
with staticelectricitv.
-1
one. Tftls links the secondsentencewith the whole of the preceding
F
Compare,for example:
.F
Go to the relerencesectlon. need.
I
is whereyou will find the booksyou
I Ld I
lz
the Here the link throughthists only with part of the precedingsentence: referencesection The text in 2.1.2alsoprovidesan exampleof the anaphoricuseof.the.
I )-z -1
v
-1 )1 -1
Rub with staticelectricity.
lJ -1 I.J
Here the use of.thesignalsto the readerthat the writer is referringto the combmentionedin theprevioussentence. arefrequentlylinkedthrougha Finally.we shouldnotethat sentences phrase for example, by placinga word or phrase word or order: changeof in the front positionin the sentence:
I ]-t I
F -1 La 1
Go to the referencelibrary.
youwill findthe booksyou need.
Johnworkedin the librarvbetween1970and 1975. library. . .
the
v
-1 )-l 1
Iu
-1 I-.
i8 l-.
I-.
L )-4
I:
LEARNING TO USETHERESOURCES OFTHEWRITTENLANGUAGE
1-
(c) Lexicaldevices
t_-_ H g l_ l_ l_ l_
Almostanytextdisplaysa greatdealof cohesionon a lexicallevel. To someextentthismightbe felt to be inevitable,but nevertheless thisis anothersignificantway in whichsentences are linked together. Key words,for example,areoften repeated:erectriii| occursten timesin the textinz.r.z althoughit is alsoreplacedby ir to give grammaticalcohesion.Key itemsare alsorepeatedin differentforms: thus,in the text in2.I.2 we havenot only electricitybut alsoelectricand electrostatic. Another commondeviceis the useof a synonymousword or phrase.For instance,in the firstexamplein (a) abovewe havebooks in the first sentenceand volumesin the second.
l,-----
L<
L<
tr l-Lr-
t--t-._ L_ -L: L_ L'
E f
L_ L-l
l_
r 4
L L kt
Ha
l_ L1
L
2.2.3 Pedagogical implications
The pedagogical problemswe arefacedwith in this areaare clearly considerable. For the mostpart, oral work will havefocusedmainiyon a masteryof sentence structure,whichin itselfis a formidablelearningtask,with little or no attentionbeingpaid to the way in whichsentences are linked or sequenced. In anycase,aswe haveseen,the natureof the mediumcallsfor a differentkind of organisation, muchmore rigorousthan in speech,so that, evenif the learnersarefamiliar with someof thesedevic"s,they will still have to learnhow to usethemin writing.The writingprogrammerequires, therefore,both an extensive understandihg oftheseresourcesand considerable practicein usingthem in appropriateformsof written expression. Analysisof textscancontributesignificantlyto the learners'understanding of thesedevices.In particular,we might note that manystudentsaresimply noT aware,for example,how the useof the pronominalforms and other substitution devices contributeto the cohesionof a text (in theirmothertongue the subjectpronominalformssuchashe,she, it,theymay evenbe optional elementsin sentencestructure).The useof adverbialwordsand phiasesin the front positionin the sentence(referredto on page1g)will probablyrequire specialteaching, sinceon the wholethis will havebeendiscourage dfoi orat production.In oralwork,it is oftena problemto get the learnersto use:There wasa book on thetable,whereas.. on thetabletherewasa book misht be the appropriate form in a writtensequence of sentences. The logicaldevicesmayalsopresentproblemson a conceptual level.The learnershaveto understandnot only the semanticdifferencesbetweenone typeof deviceandanother,but alsothe differentshadesof meaninsbetween one item andanother,sincetheyarenot allfreelyinterchangeable,-There is obviouslyconsiderable danger,therefore,in exposingthe stirdentsto too many of thesedevicesat onetime (for example,in the form of a list).Their introductioninto thewritingprogrammemustbe gradualandsystematic. At the sametime,however,sincea[ the devices - logical,grammatical and lexical- occursimultaneously in a text andsincesentenies intendedto be \ takentogethercommonlydisplaymorethanone linkingfeature,it doesnot seemfeasibleor evendesirableto try to dealwith thesedifferentkindsof linkingdevices separately. Thisprobremis rookedat asainin 3.3.
L-
rL. l-.-
r---!
L
tr
r9
E
GK I L L S T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
D is c us s i o n
1 Do you agreethat readingis an importantfitctor in leachingrvriting?
) Wtry is it important to trv to get studentsto understanda writer's
? communicativePurPose to pay atteutionto spellingand Do you agreethat it is necessar)I punctuation? do you i..o- your experienceof teaching(or learning)a foreign language. (e.g. from think that the rhetoricaldeviceslisted in2.2.2 could be picked up reading)or need to be taughts1'stematicalll'r
Exercises
RepeatExercise2 on page 8, which you first attempted after reading Chapter1. of a conversationbetweenNick and Ln2.L1 (d) you havethe beginning how it mightcontinue. Mike. Suggest Readthe followingtext carefullY: is a sourceof for somepe-rople. be a pleasure Srfoking$hiclmay S mo ki n g , f ort tot@fe IIows.lFurtFe medicaI authorit i es express seri ousdi scrc-m theirconcernaboutthe effectof smokingon the healthlnotonljlof those who mustinvoluntarilyinhalethe contribution who smokelU[falsolthose of the smokersto the atmosPhere. numberof our students As you are doubtlessaware,a considerable havejoined togetherin an effortto pelsuadethe universityto ban I believethey areentirelyright in their aim' smokingin the classrooms. However,I would hopethat it is possibleto achievethis by an appealto reasonandto concernfor othersratherthanby regulation' Smokingis prohibitedby City by-lawsin theatresandin hallsused wheretheremay be a fire for showingfilmsaswell aslaboratories hazard.Elsewhere,it is up to your own goodsense. 'No Smoking'in the I am thereforeaskingyou to maintain andseminarroomswhereyou teach.This proof of auditoria,classrooms your interestfor their healthandwell-beingis very importantto a large numberof our students. hasbeenindicatedby meansof a circle backreference In the firstparagraph, havebeenboxed.Mark the restof the andan u.ro*. Otherlinkingdevices text in the samewaY.
E.,1
EFz F F.' Fd .-' F.< '-'
F
_z
F
EF F -trt .)
-FJt )
-FJl _1
-Lrl
2
-F-r l .2
=
) E.< 2
^E2
F 2
v
2
.F References
of a text, seeA Daviesand 1 On the importanceof teachingcomprehension H G Widdowsonin J P B Allen andS Pit Corder(1974)Readingand Writing. 2 Ontp"lling, seeJ Pealcein P Doughty,J Pearceand G Thornton(1972) SpoienondWritt,z.For spellingrules,seeR A Close(1975)andE Abbott
( 1e7e).
seeR Quirk et al (1972)andR A Close(1975). 3 On punctuation, of the writtenlanguage,seeA Tadrosin 4 On ihe rhetoricalresources D L Bouchardand L J Spaventa(1980)andV Horn (1972).The divisioninto givenby Tadros. andlexicalis basedon the description logical,grammatical seeR Quirk (1912)Sentence of cohesion. treatments For moreextensive C o n n e cri oann dM A K HallidayandR Hasan( 1916) .
y E 2
^F F
/
y 2
H
2 = ) -
20
2
v
)
v
L ,-<
l__ r
L_
tr q ru l_4
L-
u rL_ u r L_
principles General for teachingwriting
l-=.-
I-<
-----
trg* f*"q, '{i,,t 3 &L'f$art^*i
I--{
L
g +1arf4"1,4!,0,atd :j uvt Io &*uP'
I;
rg LlL--
I
1['C,JHRE€. FOdR, OI(8, FNE, gt6HT,... 5lx, 5EVEH,
r r u ru r
L
@ 1986 Unrled Feature Syndrcate.tnc
,{l
tr u u tr U
\ 3.1 Approachesto teaching writing
r ---.-
r
XINEI{UNORED AXDNI}IEIY. Tr{,OuJ0R05T} 60 |
--I
L-rd
u II
.=L
atl
- 1. l .
I
Focuson accuracy
Attemptsto teachrvriting- sincethe time whenstudentsweremerelygivena topicof somekind and askedto producea 'composition' withoutfurtherhelp - haveusuallyfocusedon someparticularproblematical aspectof thervriting situation.Somekey approaches areexaminedbelow. Mistakesshowup in rvrittenrvork(especiallv sincethisis usualli,'subject to rigorous'correction') andnot unnaturally cometo be regardedasa major
21
.iE
GK I L L S T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
p r o b l e m .I t w a s a s s u m e dt h a t s t u d e n t sm a d em i s t a k e sb e c a u s et h c y w e r e approachcsherve allowedto rvriterl'hatr/ro,u'anted.and accuracy-oriented thereforestressedthe importanceof control in order to eliminatethem from w r i t t e n w o r k . S t u d e n t sa r e t a u g h th o w t o u ' r i t ea n d c o m b i n ev a r i o u ss e n t c n c e gil'e them thc like the one belorvarc usedtc-r typesand manipulationexercises experienceof u'riting connectedsentences. A ( 1 )m a n ( 2 ) w a l k e d( 3 )d o w nt h e s t r e e tA' ( 4 )g i r l ( 5 ) w a sw a i t i n gf o r sh , es m i l e d( 7 ) a n ds a i d ' h i m o u t s i d ea ( 6 )s h o p .A s h e a p p r o a c h e d ' H e l l oH . o wa r ey o u ? ' ( 1 ) t a l l ,y o u n g ,w e l l - d r e s s e d ( 2 ) w i t h a b e a r d i,n a b l a c kh a t ,w i t h s u n g l a s s e s ( 3 ) r a p i d l yh, u r r i e d l yi m , patiently ( 4 ) p r e t t y f, a i r - h a i r e dd,a r k - s k i n n e d ( 5 ) i n h i g h - l r e e l esdh o e sw , i t h a n u m b r e l l ai ,n a p i n kh a t g r o c e r ' s , (6) chemist's, bicYcle ( 7 ) p l e a s a n t l ya,t t r a c t i v e l yi n, a f r i e n d l ym a n n e r
areaskedtq Graduallythe amountof controlis reducedandthe students choice(in the exampleabovetheydo not haveto think meaningful exercise At a stilllaterstage.theyma1'begivena andtheycannotmakemistakes). andcontent.but allowedsome with larrguage gooddealof guidance for self-expression. 6pportunities wasverymucha productof the audioapproach Thiscontrolled-to-free learningandformal lingualperiod,with its emphisison step-by-step werecarefullythoughtout and.althoughno Many suchschemes correctness. theyproducedmanyusefulideason howto guidewriting. longerfashionable,
3.1.2 Focuson fluency
I
!z -z Ld _1 Id
--'
u J Ld
--
^v ._2 lr
fr !' --/ '= ts -, .y F
encollrages stlldentsto writeasmuchaspossibleand In contrast,thisapproach The asquicklyaspossible u'ithoutworryingaboutmakingmistakes. feel way students this importantthingis to getone'sideasdownon paper.ln 'exercises' of somekind; thev that theyareactuallywritirtg.not merelydoing writingis an enjoyable to writeandconsequently write what theywant
ts _ , P -, P
e.xperience
fr
AlthoughthisapproachdoesnotSolVeSon}eoftheprrrblemswhich Y (see4.1),it drau's studentshaveu,henthevcometo writein a foreignlanguage write badl'v' attentionto certainpointswe needto keepin mind.Many students i G because theydo not u'riteenoughandfor the samereasontheyfeelinhibited rvhentheirpick up a pen.Mostof uswritelesswell if we areobligettto write E a b o u tso me th i n s'Afluenc1' - appr oach.per hapschannelledintos om ethi ngl i P keepinga diary.canbe a usefulantidote.
3.1.3 Focuson text
E asthe basicunit of T-hisapproachstresses of the paragraph theimportance writtenexpression andis thereforemainlyconcernedtoteachstudentshow to F constructandorganiSeparagraphs.ItuSeSavarietyoftechniques,singly P combination. suih us' - formingparagraphs from jumbledsentences, F - writingparallelparagraphs; >a ---- developing (withor withoutcues) paragraphs from topicsentences *
22
H .J
E
L k-i
P R I N C I P L EFSO RT E A C H I N G GENEBAL WRITING
l-
l-
Onceagainthis approachidentifiesand triesto overcomeone of the central problemsin writing: gettingstudentsto expressthemselves effectivelyat a level beyondthe sentence.
l---
LH f
3.7.4 Focuson purpose
!-
IL: l--
ll-!-'
u L' L L t-<
E
1-J-, !--
LlL, l|_r
Er U =-
l-l =a'
l_
rl_ trL
l-..{
L
3.2 The state of the art
In real life, aswe haveseen,we normallyhavea reasonfor writing and we write to or for somebody . Thesearefactorswhich haveoften beenneglectedin teachingand practisingwriting. Yet it is easyto devisesituationswhich allow studentsto write purposefully:for example,they canwrite to one anotherin the classroomor usewriting in roleplaysituations. Although, like fluencywriting,this approachdoesnot solvespecific problemswhichstudentshavewhenhandlingthe rvrittenlanguage,it does motivatethem to write and showshow writins is a form of communication. Althoughsomewriting schemes andprogrammeshavetendedto rely largelyor exclusivelyon one or other of theseapproaches, in practicemost teachersand textbookwritershavedrawnon morethan one and havecombinedand modifiedthem to suit their purpose. In recentyearsclassroommethodologyhasbeenheavilyinfluencedby the communicative approach,with its emphasis on task-orientedactivitiesthat involve,wherepossible,the exchange information of and the free useof language,without undueconcernfor mistakes.Receptiveskillsare alsogiven more prominenceand studentsareexposedto a wide rangeof spokenand written language.A gooddealof recommended writing practicedirectly reflectsthe main concernsof this approach,althoughin practiceboth teachers and textbookwritersdealwith the classroomsituationpragmaticallyand thereforeretaina gooddealof controlledpractice.In general,however, attentionis paid to motivationand thereis usuallysomeroom for selfiven at the lowerlevels,asthe .*u*iI., on page24 show. expression, No lessinterestingand significantare someof the 'sideeffects'of the communicative approach.For example: - Students getmoreopportunities to read(andalsoto readmoreinteresting andnaturallywrittentexts)andthiskind of exposureto the written language is beneficialtowriting. - Both listeningandreadingmaterialhave relatedactivities(see6.3.1),many of whichleadto incidentalwritingof a naturalkind, suchasnote-taking. This in turn canleadon to furtherwriting, suchasusingthe notesto write a report.The factualnatureof muchreadingand listeningmaterialis also usefulfor relatedwritingactivities. - Learnersareencouraged to interactandthe activitiesrequiredfor thisoften involvewriting(e.g.questionnaires, quizzes, etc.).Many of theseactivities 'fun', involvean elementof sothatstudents oftenenjoywriting(without perhapsrealisingit). - Students areencouraged to work togetherin pairsandgroupsandto share writingtasks.Thisremovesthefeelingof isolationwhichbothersmany learners. In spiteof these.advances, however.rvritingskillsarestillrelativelyneglected in manycourses. Objectives arerarelyspeltout asclearlyastheyarefor oral LJ
_v r'-
GK I L L S T E A C H I NW GR I T I N S
I
tlf w o r k a n d t h e r ei s a n o v e r a l ll a c ko f g u i d a n c ef o r t h e s v s t e m a t i c l e v e l o p n l e n t for \ \ , r i r t e na b i l i t y .I t i s l i k e l l ' .t h e r e f o r e t. h a t n t a n yt e a c h e r s r v i rl l e e dt o l o o k w a v so f s u p p l e m e n t i n tgh ei r c o u r s c b o o k isf t h c t ' \ \ ' a n t h ei r s t u d e n t st o b c c o t ' n e p r ; f i c i c n t i J w r i t i n g .T h i s . i n a n v c a s e .r v i l l a l u ' a v sb e n e c e s s l l r va.s w i t h o r a l w o r k . w h e n t r y i n gt o m e e tt h e i n d i v i c i u anl e e d so f c e r t a i ng r o u p so f s t u d e n t s .
r.d
I
ts -lJ
v F F y -1
)1 irt lhis lt,l{t,r: lrt: \\ lto js jt Iirr, lt'llt,r-
--1 I-a
j L , J
II
dd
, Cal^
..
La o qood-
*ffiry*
*4,' ,:
]1 I-.
-.,--f.**. t*'"o
TtnTot*'r*
I
t,J
I-a L
t-/ l-. l r-/
(or H'i: ;l,j;ifi,r,Sunc.111p,i,,,
F
E.r F I
P
Read and write
24th rltLl
at
J R e a d S t e v e ' sc a r d t o h i s m o t h e r ; r l l r l; r n . u t ' r l h l q u e s l i o n s : I \\'hlt
Hfu M*!,,^ h u& stt/1, 't'^otriq ''t Jo"* ^ @J. a'*k Joo
is Steve doing'?
wr'l stus
r*ry
2 \\'hat is Jorrrrrloit.tg'/
?ffitnnuN
3 \\'hrrt tlo tht'r' do t'r't'rv dar"l
''*Xj,
* dll'reuu1 v' !?t.*^ t-.tpJs. 5P4t1^
wc q' " -
4 W h a t i . S r r n S e b r r s t i a nI i k e ?
A =
z
F
)a i
\\'rite votrr o*'n holrdal' postcard
^ *t ,t'ouattl Y ;"'' !)i,o,., ,,
wrALl T "a'{or}onh
Y!:,;:
lnnn Nitha lovet't1
=
Ms E Qtshtm 27 ftu*lMd Ren Hoilou Esso* CMtqUF bgbferm
l-
E1
l-
Fr
{; bpp/'h
Ir
5* JP's*, 5WL
. ; ' ,s: .
"
t 'i"""""
>z : , ' ,' ,
i|
IIr
^lA LA ]r
F-
j
L ---rt
GENERAP L R I N C I P L EFSO RT E A C H I N W G RITING
1=
t--
r
H
!---
u l_. r,---
l_ l_ r---
tr l_i U ---l
l-J
Ir .
Ii-
L: L:
tr
L-
H 1t--_ l-__ l-DJ
tr l_ g
l_
E l-
l_ l-_ E'
tr
3.3 The roleof g u i d a nce
with whichthe studentsarefacedin learning In viewof the manydifficulties principleof guidingthemin the fundamental how to write a foreignlanguage. variouswaystowardsa mastervof writingskills,andsometimes controlling we what theywrite, is not one canlightlydismiss,evenif the principlehasto (for example,in tryingto eliminatemistakes). someextentbeenmisapplied we consider more carefullywhat kind of guidancewe should Rather, should givethem,particularlyin relationto the variousproblemstheyhavewhen w r i t i n g( s e e1. 4 ) . On a linguisticlevel,sinceour aim is to developtheir abilityto writea text, andthereforeof providingguidance, one way of helpingthe students. is by practice, evenin the early stages.While usfngthetextasour basicformotfor practice,whichmay be necessary thisdoesnot rule out somesortof sentence for the mastervof certaintypesof compoundandcomplexsentence structure, bestpractisedthroughwritingbecausethey are mostcommonlyusedin writing (see4.4),we do not needto buildinto the writingprogrammea step-by-step practiceto approachwhichwill take the learnersin easystagesfrom sentence the productionof a text. With the text asour basicformat for practice,we can - logical,grammatical all the rhetoricaldevices teachwithinits framervork and lexical- whichthe learnersneedto master.While we mustbe carefulnot at anyonetime (see2.2.3),there to overwhelmthemwith too manydifficulties justification is no apparent for attemptirlgto separatefeaturesof the written whichgo naturallytogether. language By usingtexts(lettersandreports,for example- evendialogues in the asour basicpracticeformat,ratherthansomeotherunit suchas earlystages) we canmakewritingactivitiesmuchmore or eventhe paragraph, the sentence andtherebyincrease theirmotivationto writewell. meaningfulfor the students The text providesctsettirtgvvithinwhichtheycanpractise,for example,sentence combination. paragraphconstruction, etc.in relationto completion,sentence lo-ngerstretchesof discourse.In thisway they canseenot only why they are ryritingbut alsolvrite in a mannerappropriateto thecommttnicative goal of the text. This,then.is onewavof helpingthe learners:by makingwritingtasks purposeinsteadof askingthem by relatingpracticeto a specific morerealistic, to writesimplyfor the sakeof rvriting.In orderto find our contextsfor rvritten for integrating work, we shallalsoneedto exploreopportunities it effectively activities involvinqnot only readingbut alsospeakingand with otherclassroom to the levelof exercises partlvbecause listening.Writingtendsto getrelegated to the lessonratherthanasa rvorthwhile learning it is treatedasa compendium activityin itself.Whileit is convenient, (see1.6(d)), aswe haveacknowledged to be ableto setrvrittenrvorkashomeworkandwhilewritingmay not come very highon the listof priorities.thisdoesnot meanthat it cannottakeits place of learningactivities. aspartof a naturalsequence A lvritingactil'ity,for example.canderivein a naturalrvayfrom some prior activitysuchasil conversation or somethingread.As in reallife. it canbe of a certainsituation.We seean advertisement for a job, for the consequence We talk aboutit andperhapsphoneup about example,whichinvolvesrentlirtg. andlisrening. We thendecideto applyfor the job it. rvhichinvolves.speuking w h i c hi n v o l v e sw r i t i r t gA. l t h o u g hp. e r h a p sw, e c a n n o ct o m p l e t e liyn t e g r a t e (see rvithcrut rvithotheractivities r.vriting a raclical changein materialsclesign
25
JJ
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L 5
8.3), there is much \\1ecan do to relateit more effectivelyto other classrclom activities:for example.b1'extendingthe contextsu'hichwe have set up for oral work, through simplerole-playactivities,to provide a meaningfulsettingfor writing activitiesas u,ell.In this \\'aVwe can hope to overcomeSoffleof the difficultiesrvhichthe learnershaveu'ith role projectionfor writing tasks. So far we have looked at guidancein terms of u'hat kind of framework linguisticand contextual- \ /e can provide in order to make writing tasks more purposefulrather than in termsof the actualsupportwe can give the studentsin order to ensurethat thev completetheir taskswith reasonable success.Sincethe major part of this book is concernedwith an explorationof the varioustechniquesand procedureswe can use,at this stagewe shallonly stressthat we need a v,holerangeof techniques.each appropriate to specific goalsand needs.Variety is important,as in oral work. This is essentialfor the sakeof interest:the learnersget bored if they are constantlyaskedto perform the sametype of task. But anothersignificantfactor is that certaintechniques are effectivefor developingparticularwritin-eskiils.For example.texts (read or heard) provide the right sort of contextfor note-taking:they nct only lead on to meaningfulwriting tasksbut alsoprovide a model for the kind of writing expected.Visual material.on the other hand. properly used (seeChapter 7) providesa more open-endedframeworkfor writing activitiesof different kinds at different levels,but it is lesssuitedfor elementarywriting activitiesthan is often assumed.Particularkinds of visualmaterial.suchas diagramsand tables, are valuablefor developingorganisationalskills.Clearly, then, our approach shouldbe as eclecticas possible,usingthoseforms of guidancervhichare appropriate to different kinds of writing at different levelsof attainment. One thing that needsspecialemphasis,however,is that guidanceneed not - indeedshouldnot - imply tight control over what the learnerswrite. If . for example,we acceptthat errorsin speechare not only inevitablebut are also a natural part of learninga language,then we shouldacceptthat they will occur, and to some extent shouldbe allowedto occur,in writing too. Unlessthe learnersare giveri opportunitiesto write what theywant to write, they will never learn this skill. As in speech,when we provide opportunitiesfor free expression,errorswill occur,but this is a situationwhich we must accept. Perhapsit is largely out attitudetowards theseerrors that is wrong: because they occur in writing, we feel that they must be corrected,whereasin speech, perhapsbecauseit is more transient,we are inclinedto be more tolerant. This is far from suggestingthat free expressionis the solution to learning to write: on the contrary,the learnershave needof guidance,as they do with oral work. They must alsobe encouragedto look criticallyat what they write and taught to draft, corlect and rewrite. But sinceno approachto teaching writing hasyet been devisedwhich will take them smoothlyfrom writing under control to free expression.it seemsreasonableto provide someopportunities for writing freely, even in the early stages,as we do for oral work. This will not only enableus to seewhetherthe studentsare making any real progress;it will also ensurethat thev become learnersrather lhan leaners.
: : : : : : : :
IEl 2 tr
:l : : :
: t-a
-J
-I-/l
'
Ei J :
I :
ts F
2
_/ l-/
'
F l-r z E-r 4
I-r
ts t-/ f-.
26
l-r
I-r
L t:
>- ad:
H
!---
I-
tr H H L f-
H f-
t-, H !--
1--
H l-f l--
f L!--
LL r---d
l_
E l-g
t_
r
u V
L-
r^ l-: tI
GENERALPRINCIPLES FORTEACHING WRITING
3.4 The needsof the learners
In this sectionsomeof the mainissuesof Chapters1-3are reviewed.They are now presentedin the form of guidelinesfor a writing programme. (a) Teachthe learnershow to write. The ability to write is all too often assumed,especiallyif the learnersare mature,canwrite reasonably well in their mothertongueand havealso acquiredsomeproficiencyin the spokenlanguage.But oral skills- both listeningand speaking- haveto be taught,throughappropriate techniquesand throughappropriateformsof practice.Sincethe spoken and written formsof the languageare not the sameand sincewriting is a different way of communicatingfrom speech,it follows that writing skills requirespecialteachingtoo. (b) Provideadequateand relevantexperienceof the writtenlanguage. We work on the principlethat oral ability requiresa firm foundationin listeningand that the lattermustbe on a broaderbasisthan speaking. Similarly,writing hasto be precededand accompanied by wide exposure to appropriatemodelsof writtenlanguage.If the learnershaveonly seen dialoguesin their textbooksand narrativeprosein their readers,they cannotbe expectedto produceother varietiesof the written language appropriate,for example,to letters,orreports. (c) Showthe learnershow thewrittenlanguagefunctions as a systemof communication. ExposuretoJhe writtenform of the languageby itselfis not sufficient.The learnersalsohaveto be madeawareof how we communicatethroughthe written mediumand how thisdiffersfrom speech.In particular,they need to be shownthat anypieceof writing, whetheror not it is addressed to a specificreader,hasa communicative purpose.They needto understand, therefore,how the resources of the written languageare usedto fulfil this purpose,by establishing andmaintainingcontactwith the readerin order to getone's'message' across. (d) Teachthe learnershow to writetexts. ' ''' W. havealreadyseenthat writing, at leastin any significantform, involves the ability to organisesentences into a coherentwholeor text. Most writing practiceshouldfrom the startaim to teachthosedevicesof the written language(asidentifiedin2.2.2)which are neededto write various typesof text. The practiceof thesedevicesshould,whereverpossible,be goal,so within the frameworkof a text whichhasa definitecommunicative that the learnersseethepurposeof what they are writing. The learners must alsobe givenopportunitiesto practiseorganisingtheir ideasto paragraphs. form acceptable (e) Teachthelearnershow to writedifferentkinds of texts. The learnerscannotbe expectedto masterall the differentvarietiesof the written form of the language.Many of them, in any case,would not be relevantto theirneeds,to theextentthat thesecanbe identifiedin a writingprogramme.At thesametime,it is not enoughto try to teachthem a kind of 'neutral'generalpurposeform of writtenexpression. As in
27
E
T E A C H I N GW H I I I N ( j b K I L L S
-1
speech,theyhaveto someextentat leastto be ableto selectan approprlate on *'hat theyarewritingaboutand siyle,formalor informal,depending andto be ableto presentthisto the readerin an rvhomtheyareaddressing. form. suchasa letteror a report.Althoughit cannotbe said appropriate rvhichthe learnershavein thisarea ttratttrisis easy.manvof the difficulties of the natureof thewritingtasks:for example,simplybeing arisebecause out of context.Also, thiskind of taskdoesnot askedto write a paragraph Likewise,it might themto thinkof rvritingascommunication. encourage be noted,our goalshouldnot be to teachdifferentkindsof writing(suchas andsoon) but ratherto seethat these expository narrative,descriptive, withinthewidercontextof a text.For example,a lettermay arepractised whi l ea theletterin2.I.1) or ' descr iption" i n vo l veso me 'nar r ation' ( see writing. reportmightprovidethesettingfor someexpository (f) Make writing tasksrealisticand relevant. All too oftenwritingtaskslackrealityfor the learnersbecausethey do not They are givethemthe feelingthattheyarewritingto or for somebody. for the benefitof the teacher,who reacts donesolelyasa form of exercise to themmorelike a judgethana genuinereader!The useof textsasthe basicformatfor practice(see(d)) is onlypartof the solution.We mustalso attemptto identifythoseformsof writingwhicharemostlikely to be needs,suchasvarioustypesof personal relevantto the learnerS' (formal communication (notes,letters)and'institutional' communication them (as contextsfor practising classroom letters,reports)andto establish in 4.5 and5.5).This does in 3.3.Thisaspectis furtherdeveloped suggested noi rule out the possibilityof otherkindsof writing (for example,creative writing, suchasstories,althoughof courseat a fairly low level),provided the motivationfor thiskind of work canbe established' (g) Integratewriting with other skilk. 'Cinderella'of the four skills(at leastat the lower Writing tendsto be the to the endof the teachingunit andused levels)andis oftenrelegated mainlyfor homework.Thisis unlikelyto makethe learnerswantto write. that leadnaturally we shouldintroducewritingactivities Wherepossible, onto or from the useof otherskills,sothatthe learnersseewritingasa real activity.
Fz 1
ts -.1
F,<
,<
ts -1
Fz -1
u
z -4
1 I.d _1
I'z I
_1
-1
U -1
I_1 I4
<
I-
-< < I-
II
J1 I -1
I
andpracticeformats(h) Usea varietyof techniques the learnersgetboredwith the sametypeof Thisis importantbecause and activity(howeverworthyl).Also, aswe haveSeen,sometechniques formatsare appropriateto certainlevels.For example,letterwriting is especiallysuitablefor usein the earlystagesbecauseit permitsthe learners to makesomeuseof the spokenformsof the languagewithin a new writing that,in termsof developing framework.We mustalsorecognise is. technique any single skills,we cannotbe surehow effective (i) ProvideapproPriatesuPPort' of guidanceandhow, We havealreadynoted(in 3.3)the importance in the writingprogrammein a varietyof broadly,it canbe interpreted
JJ
I
I-
f< 1 )1 -1 fI
f< I f,z z
v y
28
J/
L --t
GENEBAL P R I N C I P L EFSO RT E A C H I N W G RITING
l--
r
ways.It hasbeenarguedthatguidance shouldbe temperedwith opportunities for freeexpression. we shouldremember,however,that writing tasksaregenerallyimposedand that the learnersmay not have eitherthe relevantideas,whenthisinvolvessomecontributionon their part, or be sufficientlystimulatedby the tasksto think of them. The problemis furthercompoundedby their havingto work on their own. Clearlythereare manysolutionsto this problemand they needto be exploredin a ffexibleway. In particular,however,the useof techniques and procedureswhichhaveprovedvaluablefor oral work, suchaspair and group work, needto be examinedwithin the contextof the writing programme.Thereseemsno reasonwhy, in the classroomat least,writing needbe a solitaryactivitv.
rJl
L
rL-LLl-{
r r---
r-
tr u
(j) Be sympathetic! we haveconsideredat lengththe manyproblemsinvolvedin writing and theseare freelyacknowledged to prevailwhen we write in our mother tongue,not only in a foreignlanguage.Exceptin specialised programmes, heavilyweightedin favourof readingand writing skills,we cannotexpect too high a levelof proficiency.with the help of a programmewhich takes the learners'problems into account,we canhopeto makewritinga more rewardingactivityfor them,both in termsof attainmentand satisfaction. But we needto surrender our role as'judges',exceptwhenwritingis being testedor examined,andviewwhat the learnerswrite asattempts,however inadequate,to communicate. Thereis alwaysa greattemptation,perhaps a naturalinclination,to concentrate on what is wrongin a pieceof writing, mainlybecause,aswe havealreadynoted,it is therefor us to readand reread.But if we are to be truly readersratherthan judges,we should perhapslook not so muchat what the learnershave failed to achievebut ratherat what they haveactuallysucceeded in doing.
L_ Lr--{
tr F l-:
r f
t-:
tr
Discussion
!!-
whv?
L. .---1
l: lL-l
H -1
l-i .-1
l_
r
l_|1
l-l LI
L-l
q
1 which of the approaches described in 3.1do you think is mostimportant?
I
Q What reasonsaregivenfor takingthe text asthe basicformat for practice? . Do you agreewith thisproposal? 3 From your own experience of teaching(or learning)the written form of a foreignlanguage, do you agreethatfreeexpression, aswell aswritingunder control,shouldbe a featureof thewritingprogramme,evenin the early stages? 4 In the guidelines for a writingprogrammein 3.4why arethe followingpoints emphasised? (a) The learnershaveto be exposedto differentvarietiesof the written form of the language. (b) The learnershaveto be setrealistictasks. (c) The learners'efforts needto be viewedsympathetically. Do you agreewith theseviewpoints?
29
J
i
F.d
Exercises
Examineanytextbookof your ownchoosing to seewhatkindsof guided writingexercises areprovided.In particular,considerwhetherthe textbook F.< writertendsto relyon a limitedrangeof exercise typesandwhetherhe gives - ' ll the learnersanyopportunities for freeexpression. EH Rewritethe exercise in 3.1.1sothat a meaninsfulchoicehasto be made F.< from the itemsprovided.
References
For surveysof teachingwriting,andin particularthe useof guidedwriting, seeC Bratt Paulston(1912).Also A RaimesandM SharwoodSmithin D L BouchardandL J Spaventa(1980)andW Slagerin TheArt of TESOL (1982).Other accounts of teachingwritingmaybe foundin G Broughtonet al (1978)andA Raimes(1983).For a descriptionof the 'fluency'approach seeBriere(1966). The controlledwritingexerciseon page22 comesfrom DH SpencerGuided (Longman1967). CompositionExercises Not all the exercises in this book are manipulative. For the purposeof writingthischapter,the followingcoursesweresurveyed for writing activities:B Abbs andI FreebairnStrategies (variouslevels) , (Longman);S AxbeyJourneys(Longman);J BlundellVisa(OUP); D Bolton and L PetersonBreakaway(Nelson);J CarmichaelWayAhead (Penguin);M Ellis andP Elhs Counterpoint (Nelson);J HarmerMeridian (Longman);B HartleyandP Viney Streamline English(OUP); R O'Neill Kernel(Longman);MPalmerandD Byrne Track(Longman);M Swanand C Walters TheCambridgeEnglishCourse(CUP); M Vincent et al Timefor English(Collins)andN WhitneyCheckpoint English(OUP). The illustrativematerialon page24comesfrom M vincent et al Timefor English(CollinsELT 1984)top; M PalmerandD Byrne Track(Longman 1982)centreleft;J CarmichaelWay Ahead(Penguin1985)centreright, and J HarmerMeridian(Longman1985)bottom.
I
F.' -
ts .: _-z
r.< .1 I-i _1
---4
._z
.F -1
* _1
!_<
-r.< __<
t-€ _<
:_< 11 -1
ts ,1
-1
=_1
F _z
_-4
,,-1
z lr
I
) ..J
30
_J
L-
-I ) v
L -.--
L-
tr q E g L_ ---L-
u rr-.-
Writingin the earlystages
--.l
f
tr E u --{
L_
q r,--
f
q L-' L--f L--<
H
r -1
L:
u u
u H
-l--
u l; u L-u u
4.1 Some basic considerations
In the earlystagesof a languagecourse,* the principalfactorwhich affectsboth the quantityandthe kind of writing that canbe doneis the smallamountof languagethat the learnershaveat their disposal- languagewhich to a large extentthey haveacquiredorally and to a lesserdegreethroughreading. The weighting,in favourof dialogueor narrative/descriptive type texts, may vary from one coursebookto another,but by and largewe may assume that at this levelpatternstypicalof the spokenlanguagehavebeenselectedand that theseare presentedin contextsdesignedto promoteoral fluency.We shouldalsorememberthat the actualinput of languageis likely to be fairly slow: the studentsarelearninghow to understandand how to makethemselves understoodthroughthe spokenmedium.This is a situationwhichwe have alreadycontrastedwith the one in the mothertongueclassroom,when the learnersfirstgo to school(see1.5). One solutionto thisproblemwouldbe to delaythe introductionof writing, at leastin any significantform, until the learnershavea muchgreatercommand of the language,in the form of a plateauon whichwritten work couldbe much more easilybased.However,if we adoptedthis solution,we shouldfail to satisfyneedswhichthe learnershavein the earlystagesand whichcanbe met th;rcughwriting: reinforcementof materiallearnedorally,varietyof activityin the classroomand increasedcontactwith the languagethroughwork that can be doneout of class(seei .6). Theseare goodreasonsfor introducingwriting and it would be wrongto ignorethem. In any case,althoughwe haveto work mainly within the limitsof languagewhichhasbeenlearnedfor oral purposes, it is possibleto introducea smallnumberof itemsneededspecificallyfor
H
=-g
tr
*The first75-90 hoursor approximately the firstyearof a secondary schoolcourse.In some countriesit is commonfor schoolchildren to havehadsomeoreviousinstructionin the lansuage (e.g.at a middleschoollevel)wherethefocushasbeenmainlyon oralskills. J1
SJ
F'
-1
u
writtenwork. Thesewill enableusto makewritingactivities moreinteresting -J and alsopavethewayfor moreeffectivewritingpracticeat a laterstage. F
-,1
4.1.r The main features of the rvriting programme
!d
Althoughmostwritingat thisstagewill be undercontrol,we canandshould --1 avoidmanipulative procedures whichdo not encourage the learnersto think : aboutwhattheywriteandwhichin anycasedo not helpthemto understand -_1 * how the writtenlanguage functions.We mustalsointroduceactivities which, --.-a howeversimple,demonstrate thatwritingcanbe usedfor the purposeof Id communication. Our objectives at thisstage,however,mustnecessarily be --1 = modest. .1 The followinggoalsaresuggested: k (a) Writingactit'itiesshould satisfyimmediateneedsby providing the learners Ld with opportunities for handling,throughthemediumof writing, language whichtheyhavelearnedorally. f.r For thispurpose.it is suggested thatwe shouldusedialoguewritingasthe I main typeof activity.Thisis a typeof textwhichthe studentsarefamiliar with; it providesa contextfor reinforcingandpractisingsentencestructurek- - 1 andto someextentaliowsthemto be creative. ,1 -
(b) Writingactivitiesshouldalsobeforward-lookingb1,beginningto familiarise ..2 tul the learnerswithpatternsof languagetypicalof the writtenmedium:in particular,someof the devicesneededfor linking and sequencing sentences. 1 Ld For this purpose,letter-u,ritirzg offersa formatwhichhasmanyadvantages. _4 If the lettersareinformal,the languageusedcanto a largeextentbe based ffd on what the learnershavealreadylearnedorally,but at the sametime we _1 F canintroducea smallnumberof linkingandsequencing devices(see4.4). ,_1 For the mostpart,then,'exercises'to practise thesedeviceswill be LG embedded withinthe contextsof letters.An importantpoint to noteis that I the studentswill alsobe learningsomething --J newthroughwriting:for exampleitheIayoutof a letter,modesof address andcertainopeningand --1 = closingformulas. (c) Writingactivitiesshould alsogivethelearnersopportunitiesto communicatert throughwriting and, equallyimportant,simplyto enjoywriting. -a --we Although cannotaffordto neglectothertypesof writing activityin the classroom situation,in the endfor manystudents enjoymentmayproveto = be the mostmotivatingfactor. F You will needto getthe nght balancebetweenthesevarioustypesof activitySo - -: F asto meetthe needsof vourparticularstudents.
E 41'.''
The role of the teacher
After selectingthe appropriate writingactivity(see4.3for examples):
F
(a) Decidehow to presenttheactivityto the class. '-i For example,in the earlystages,it will help to do a certainamountof writing with thestudents,on the boardor overheadprojector.This is = especiallyusefulfor the typeof activitydescribedin 4.4, wherethe -= studentsare learningsomethingnew,suchasthe useof certainconnectiver--_ :
JL
-1 LJ '--
]-/
L ---t
l--
r r_ r-
E
WRITINGIN THEEARLYSTAGES
:
or the layoutof a letter(etc).In particular,it alsoprovidesan opportunity to discussalternativeanswers.reasonsfor certainchoicesand so on. On a simplelevelwe canthusbeginto demonstratethat writing is a thinking process.
r---r
(b) Preparethestudentsorally.
!--
This shouldbe regardedasa standardprocedurefor writing activitiesin the earlystages(andlaterwhenintroducingany new type of activity). Make sure,througha numberof workedexamples,that the studentsknow exactlywhat theyhaveto do. Do not, however,go throughthe wholetask orally becausethis will leavethe activitywithout any elementof challenge and reduceinterestin the actualwriting task.
l-
l_-:,-
H
tt-:
( c ) Decidehow thewritingtaskshouldbe carriedout. An activitymay be doneindividually,in pairsor in smallgroups. Collaborationon a task,for example,will help to reducethe feelingof isolationwhichwe notedin 1.4.1. Studentsalsotendto getmoreinvolved in an activityif they are allowedto talk aboutit togetherratherthansit in silence.Someactivitiesmay be begunin pairsor in groupsbut concluded on an individualbasis.In the earlystagesit would seemappropriateto allow manyof the tasksto be donecollaborativelyexceptwhen feedback on individualprogressis needed.
I-
l_I
!-L)--l-i l-.>--
(d) Decideon correctionprocedures.
It is not essentialor evendesirableto examineeverythingthe students write, althoughmanystudentswill want to havetheir work lookedat. However,theycanbe askedto exchangetheir completedwork and to evaluateone another'sefforts.This helpsto train them to look at written work ciitically,asreaders,andwill help them to view their own work in the sameway at a later stagein the course.Work canalsoof coursebe on a classbasisand the studentsaskedto maketheir own discussed corrections.
i i
L)--1
t-_ LLaa-1
r
+l-.---
L. ---1
H
u L. u g tr >=.-
LL--r
l-:
4.1.3 The organisation of written work
we shallbe askingthe studentsto carry In the courseof the writingpro_qramme will of coursehavemore of these of activities. Some various kinds out permanentvaluethanothers,providing,for example,an indexof the iearners' progress in thisskill,whileotherthingstheywrite maybe neededfor reference purposes(see,for example,4.2.I). The question,therefore,of how their arrangetheirwrittenwork in theirbooksis an importantone. In anycase,if on their the studentsareallowedto be casual,imposingno sortof organisation writtenwork, writingis boundto seemlesspurposeful. Ideally,perhaps,writtenwork shouldbe doneon looseleafsheetsand arrangedon a file,whichhasbeendividedinto appropriatesections. booksmay be usedfor thispurpose.For Alternatively,oneor moreexercise material example,onebook or onesectionof a book mightconsistof reference anothermightcontainwork whichhas whichcanbe usedfor oral activities; combination of sentence structure,sentence a mastery beendoneto develop for piecesof whilea third onemightbe reserved sequencing, and sentence (for example, value of writing the communicative demonstrate which writing JJ
-.F
4.2 Copyingasa writing activity
suggested in 4.5).In thisway,all the materialwhichthe copiesof the activities both for futureuseor reference. studentsproduceis accessible
-
becauseit is sometimes of the valueof copyingis necessary Somediscussion presentedasthe first stagein a writingprogramme.This of coursewill be the level(thatis, if they caseif the learnershaveproblemsat the graphological haveto learnnew graphicsymbolsor how to write from left to right). This aspectis dealtwith in Chapter12. it Equallycommonly,however,copyingis heldto be valuablebecause structure.For example,we helpsto teachspellingor to reinforcesentence write wordsandsentences on the boardand askour studentsto sometimes At the the course,suchan activitymay havea beginningof copythem down. certainnoveltyvalue,andcanof courseserveto introducethe learnersto the written form of what hasbeenlearnedorally.But the noveltywill soonwearoff routine.Besides, what andcopyingwill thenbecomejustonemoreclassroom the learnerscopytendsto getlostin a jumbleof notesmadein the sameway. One maywell wonderwhetherthis activity- like readingaloud- is not often just a wayof fillingin a littletime in the lesson. activity.Most of uswouldagree,on Yet copyingneednot be a pointless new,that copying of tryingto learnsomething the basisof our own experience is an aid to retention.Furthermore,in real life, we frequentlycopythingsdown the timesof in orderto havea recordof them:for example,we copyaddresses, trains,telephonenumbersaswell asotherbitsof usefulinformationor materialfor whichwe think we mayhavea futureuse.For example,we quite often makecopiesof songsandpoems.The studentscanbe askedto make their own copiesof thistypeof materialin a specialnotebook. Copying,then,canbepresentedto the learnersasa meaningfulactivity, particularlyif we cangetthemto seeit asa wayof makinga recordof somethingwhichis not otherwiseavailableto them (i.e. it doesnot appearin the textbook)or is not availableto them rntheform in whichthey havecopied it (i.e. they havebroughttogethercertaindatawhichis distributedin various to them, throughsome lessonsin their textbook).We mustalsodemonstrate activityeitherat the time or later,that they havedonethe copyingto some purpose.
!-
-
!=tI l4
-
!f-
f-
a1
4.2.1. An exampleof meaningful copying
Vocabularyis an areawhichgivesthe studentsvariouskindsof learning problems,includingspelling.It is alsoan areawhereit canbe usefulfor them to havereferencelists,in the form of lexicalsets,suchasclothes,furniture, food, etc.Let ustake one suchset- furniture- and seehow we canpresent the compilationof a list of itemsasa purposefulcopyingtask.The following stepsare suggested. (a) Ask the studentsto drawa planof a housewhichincludesthe following dining-room, bedroomandbathroom.Ask rooms:kitchen,sitting-room, of the rooms plan. in the names on their to write them (b) Ask them to dictateto you a list of items- furnitureand somesmaller objects(suchaslamps,telephone,vaseof flowers,etc.)- whichcouldbe found in anyof theserooms.Write theseon the board,askingthe students to tell you how to spellthem.
I-
rI<
f-
l-
I I-
l-
r-
34 f<
t-
L ---t
L-
WRITINGIN THEEARLYSTAGES
EJ
LL-
(c) Ask the studentsto usethe list on the boardto compilefive lists,one for eachroom of their house,on a roughpieceof pup"i. Each list should containitemswhichmight be foundin that .oom. An item may of course appearin morethanonelist (e.g.chair). (d) Ask the studentsto put the itemsin eachlist in alphabeticalbrder and to copy theselistsinto their exercisebooks.Each fisl shouldappearunder its appropriate heading(e.g.kitchen,sitting-room, etc.). (e) Ask the studentsto comparetheir listswith thoseof other studentsin the class.
-J
tr Lr
r_--
I --..-
kL: u
Thus,what the studentshavecompiledin their exercisebooksis a small referencesectionon furniture,whichthey shouldbe encouragedto keep up to date by addingnew itemsastheylearnthem. Although the aclivitywas primarily a copyingone- we may of coursealsoallow them to includeitems which were not on the board- it alsoinvolvedthinking:they had to divide up the list on the board,decidewhichitemsto includemoie than onceand also to put them into alphabetical order. Now that the studentshavemadetheir referencelist, which might be only one of manytopic areasdealtwith in the sameor in a similarway, they should alsobe givenan opportunityto useit: eitherin a writing activity,perhaps at somelater stage,or in an oral activityfor whichreferenceto suctralist might be calledfor. For example,listsof thiskind are usefulfor certaintypesof languagegamewhichinvolvevocabularyrepetition(suchasvariationson: ^I wentto themarketand I bought. . .).
r
u L--<
L_ --d
1-: lg L-44
4.2.2 Othercopying activities
Notice that someof the activitiesin 4.2.1mainlyinvolvecopying(e.g. (a)-(c)) sincethe studentsdo not actuallyhaveto contributeto the text. (a) Puttinga listof wordsin alphabericalorder
{
g
(b) Puttinga listof wordsin their coruectsequence
L--
(c) Putting words in categories
r1llH t; L
1-,
t-L-,--1J
l_r-J
L_
r
For example,daysof the week,months,numbers. For example,arranginga list of wordsunderheadinss:
(d) Doingpuzzles For example,hereare the n a m e so f 1 l c o u n t r i e s : Brazil, Egypt, England, France,Greece,India,Italy, Peru,Portugal,Spain, Turkey. Completethe crossword. Which countriesare not there?
35
SJ frG
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
>.4
(e) Playing Bingo
_1
This involvesselectivecopyingand is an excellentway of revising vocabularvsets(e.g. colours.occupations.clothes,etc.) through a game'
A's list
J
shlrf
tocks
1uercoa,t
l earr'
glpres
t,ueafer
pul,lover
shoes
hat
overcoA.t
tockS
Write,with the helPof suggestions from the class,12-16itemson the board(e.g.for clothes: iacket,hat, etc.).Ask the students shirt, socks, to copyanywordsfrom the list. Then readout the wordsfrom the list lrr anyorder.The first studentto hearall hiswordsreadout callsout BINGO!
it shouldbe clearthatcopyingneedneverbe a Fromthesesuggestions particularlydialogue boringactivity!Someof thefollowingactivities. do not actuallyhaveto writing,alsoinvolvecopyinglthestudents contributeto the text.
4.3.1 Dialoguewriting
14
B ' lil l s t t)
jacker
4. 3 Reinforcement activities
ts
Variouswaysof reinforcinglanguagelearnedorallyin the earlystagesare below:* suggested
--1
ts .1
_._1
+
__1
-
5!--_v = -
EI-
(a) Writingparalleldialogueswith thehelp of keywords Readthisdialogue: e: Giveme thatbook,Please. n: Whichone? a : T h e b i g b n e- on thetable. n: Here you are! a: ThanksverYmuch Now usethesekeywordsto writesimilardiaiogues: (a) umbrellaired/behind/armchair toP of/cuPboard (b) box/small/on etc. (c) hammer/heavylnearlwindow, (b) Completinga dialogue,choosing from a listof iumbledsentences whicharenot in thecorrectorder, to completethe UsetheseSentences, dialoguebelow: At Clarkson's I've neverseenyou there Do Youlike it? I usuallytakemYcar Mine'sJennie Bob. A : Mv n a me 's B:
*Theseand all other examplesin the book are intendedto illustratetypesof actit'iry.The actual Ianguage u s e di n t h e e x a m p l e sd o e sn o t r e l a t et o a n y p a r t i c u l a cr o u r s c '
I
I<
:I
v I
-k I
_f-
I
-r< _fI
L-
I _f-
36
F L
L )--a
l_
W R I T I N GI N T H EE A R L YS T A G E S
t-=
a: Wheredo you work? B:
!-_-
e: Really?I work theretoo.
l-"
B:
e: Well, it's a big placeandI onlystartedlastweek.
U H t-
B:
R: It's not bad.Besides,I cannow go to work by bus. B: ....
e: Do you?Well, perhapsyou cangiveme a lift! The students mayalsobe askedto write a continuationof the dialosue.
!-!-.-
(c) Puttingsentences in order to form a dialogue Insteadof providinga dialogueframe,asin (b), all the sentences are jumbledup. It helpsto numberthe firstitem, however,and alsoto limit the numberof itemsto (say)eight.
H
t-
(d) Providethestudentswith a dialogueframe, similar to (b), which theyhave to completewith ideasof their own.
H H L* L-
4.3.2 Parallelwriting
For this type of activitythe studentsare givena modeltext of somekind and are askedto writea similartextwith thehelpof cues.Thesemaybe verbalasin the first examplebelowor visualasin the second.The text may recycleitemsof spokenor writtenlanguageand canbe usedasan introductionto organising ideasin the form of a paragraph. (a)
t_
tr l_ )--1
Read and write 'lA Read this, then copy and complete the information.
)-1
L
P e t e rS m i r h i s t h i r t y - n i n ey e a r so l d . H e i s a t a l l m a n w i t h b r o w n e y e sa n d b r o w n h a i r .H e i s a b u s i n e s s m a n f r o m E n g l a n db u t h e l i v e si n A m e r i c a .
r l_ tr
5
r---J
Writea
----' /-^r. Lo/ou,
occu,arron
of eyes tddress J , r]--li^
cotour
or hair
:';,;,,* \-
rr;::""";:,our OccuPation
oru*::ry:'?i coro,rr Address
l.
/51
or hair/Ew-
e"nfu--
t21 Fraz9
L-: L-
37
t--2,
L--
I
' Height -.-za
? 7 Age-r-1
u L-
t-
6"To;
it-"
H
E
^fi";n",nn,{{{o.--
aboutJane Creen.
ll-
L L
Narne
I
,t-
i= T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
y
(b)
V
Readabout Sn'itzerland: llsc thcsentltcs: a) Nolv lvrite abotrt.^\trstriil'
SWITZERLAND
{tttro
l z e c h o s l o v a k/i ac a s t : n o r t h :G e r m a n yi t t r c C H u n g a r y/ s o u t i r :\ ' u g o s l a v i i ar n d I t a l y , / n ' e s t Srvitzerland / 7 nrillion ;' Certnan _4 V
b) Now write about Yotlr or\rncountr\'.
_4
u
ts ..1
is in Europe.It standsbetn'een Srvitzerland Germanyin the north, Austria in the east,ltall' in the south and Francein the rvest.About 5j million peoplelive in Switzerlandand thel' speal< French,German or Italian.
_-1
I
F -a a.J _1
4.3.3 Dictation as a reinforcement activity
4.4 S e n t e n c el i n k i n g activities
The purposeof this short sectionis to indicatewhere dictation belongsin a writing programme. Clearly it differsfrom the reinforcementactivities describedabove, becauseit involveslisteningand the ability to transform what is heard into its written form. However. sincea dictation should be basedon languagewith which the studentsare alreadyfamiliar through other contexts (that is, it is essentiallya re-presentationof known languageitems), it can be useful as an alternativereinforcementactivity. The difficultieswhich studentshavewith this type of exerciseshould not be underestimated.An alternativeapproachto the'conventional' dictation is to provide the studentswith an outline, in the form of an incompletetext, which they filIin from what they hear read aloud. This permits a more natural form of delivery, althoughlesswriting is involved. Texts ugedfor dictation may also be in the form of notesand short letters,thus adding to the realismof the activity. Our goal through this type of activity is to begin to familiarisethe studentswith the cohesivedeviceswhich are usedin composinga text. They can then begin to combine structureswhich they havelearnedorally to form an acceptable sequencein writing. For this purpose,in order to make any headway,it will be necessaryto introduce a selectednumber of linking devicesand to practise thesethrough writing. A basickil at this stagemight consistof the following:
v
1 I-
f<
I
< f-
<
:< k
4 a1
-1 ..G
14
f4
r< -rI f4
Co-ordinators and,but, or, so Conjunctions although,when,until, sothat (etc.) Sequencers then,afterthat,meanwhile,first,next,finally moreover,however,therefore,asa result,in fact,of Linkers course.on theotherhand.etc.
I f-
I
tI -f-_1
J6
fr z
v
I
-
g
WRITINGIN THEEARLYSTAGES
L--
+--_ H
some proceduresfor practisingtheseare suggested below.Although this shouldnormallybe donewithin the contextof a text, suchasa letter,this does not precludesomeinitial practicefor the purposeof familiarisingthe students with linkingsentences, asin the firstexamplebelow. (a)
L-LL_
TYyand join theseparrsof sentencescorrectly to make one sentenceeach trmeuse hneslike thrs:
l--
Mary lkes tennrs.
I g o o n h o h d a yr n w l n r e r
I work rn slunmer
I hke my lob
L--
F f=g g l-r--{
f---:
r
r
Tony hvesin London.
E
Shedoesn'thke lootba]l
I work rn a bank.
l-h;;;l t"-""*"1
He hkes brg crtres
The studentsthen haveto write four truesentences aboutthemselves. (b) Thestudentscompletea short text,rning suitablelinking wordsor phrases from a given list. For example:
L-
completetheletterbelow. usesuilablewordsor phrasesfrom this box:
l-, ll--l_ L.1
although and also because and but
--1
by the way however so
so that that that
G{
r--
Noticethat'exercises' like these,in the form of a compiete text, alsoserveto introducethe studentto suchpointsasthe layoutof a letter,different modesof addressand salutation,etc. Examplesof theseshouldbe written up on the boardand the students askedto copytheminto their notebooksfor reference.It is important,therefore,to incorporatea rangeof such featureswhichwill be usefulto the studentswhenthey themselves are askedto write letters(ascommunication tasks,for example). i
i= g g l_ rJ
l--
rl-- --j
r-J
t;
tr l_ r---
L-l
tr
/a+n sedwLq qcl.Lr/rr/ tpu addrtrs, ... qou aom"niia tdmz. Of coptrse
I .i. !rq, .,. ytu,^i// cot"z try
nit/< its souia. / Li*c m.ot'ruw house, . . . ;t Lsvery u.tisl/. ,. irt Lrruar a' marn rrrld . . , . ,-tno1 be/'rcon is a,t. tiu back of r thihoi'se,... ldan't h"earra,r1'4 vwise a.t ru46 trorvL is a't-thz frw,t .-.. sfu tet/' ... shz ca*it skep/". . . ,the send'sy-ttrlur best wisfus, Writzsswt. /aot: l,oTkkt4g fwAtr."d to hearing lron yil.Ati ittz best. yttyrs, Al.d*r
i 3v
=--
l-_'
Dea,rTom,
99NorthRaaA BLw4ey )ctobsr7 19..
.
E W R I T I N GS K I L L S TEACHING
-1
-
artdserttences (.) Thestudentscompletea text bt,insertingcluttses frorn u juntbled listof itents(see(b) page34) in the correctplaces. ' o u t l i n e ' f o rt h e s e c o n dp a r a g r a p hi n t h e l e t t e ra b o v e F o r e x a m p l e t, h e could be presentedas follows:
v J
Ir
.1
although .so.
However.
that..
because ...But
.....and
...Bvthewav.
-v = !-
Throughoutthis stage.while rvritingactivitiesare still to a largeextentserving 4.5 C o m m u n i c a t i o n to reinforceoral work and rvhilethe foundationfor writing skillsis still being importantto showthe students Iaid (asindicatedin 4.1.2), it is nevertheless activities that writing can be usedfor the purposeof communication.The activities simplein form and limited in which we set up for this purposeare necessarily towardslearninghow to the students motivate scopebut they will serveto expressthemselvesthroughu'riting.Someexamplesare givenbelow. (a) Thestudentswrite instmctionsv,hichother studentsin the class(or the teacher!)haveto carry out.
1
!F E -_1
v
--1
P -1
* -1
For example:
_-&
Ta'fre//ou/r e4z,rcisz batk ^" .rd Pt^f tt (rvLftP of th" c.tcpboa'rd.
-F )z
_!__.1
Go a4'rd. hn/d
6eorqe's harn"d. I
P 1
v
_1
y to be of instructions Theymayalsobe askedto u'ritea sequence carriedout. Thisis a usefuldevicefor practisingitemssuchasFirst. . . N e x t . . . A f t e r t h a t.,. . F o r e x a m p l e :
I
P _1
P ,1
P
F irrsrt qo to n^e {ra
blaekboad,. Aftur thh.t, clea/rtt1.14bLa,okOsa,Hr.
I
P I
k
v
-1
_1
-'_u
40 _k
)1
L -1
WRITINGIN THEEARLYSTAGES
L_ I..--{
LL_ rF-{
g r-.J
L-
Theseinstructions maybe givento anyonein the classto perform. Alternatively,theymaybe addressed to someoneby name,in the form of a noteor shortletter.For examole:
lted,tt,esd'ag
Dearr Anm,,
u
Drw,y .a plcfllyz oJ a Trroh,kq/l lf,i ti,ryi4.A tTL a bo'x. a,fl^d, ti's wmrri*Q a- b-{g /.ra,f: Yqwrt Ft,;d
L_ f
PS lt's a brg lrt ot+lrry!
--J
tr !--_ rL--
tr L_
Activitiesalongtheselinesare particularlyusefulfor practising structuresand itemsof vocabuiarywhichhaverecentlybeentaughtfor oral purposes.
r-{
L-
r
( b ) Thestudentswriteto one anotherto askfor information.
D-{
E
Wha'sycLWfr'uowrtfusmgetr?
L-
ru .--1
l,Yh;ro/+monfh
^K/rx r4orLborn in? J
rG{
g r-<
L-
g g lg 1; r---
The studentwho getsoneof theserequests cansimplywrite the informationon the samepieceof paper.This enablesthe activityto go at a muchfasterpace- whichis partof thefun! ( c ) Ask thestltdentsto writeshort messages to one anotherin theform of a note
or short letter.
For example:
----
l_ c-
L L: l_ >---
ll_ r--^
i:
Dra,r M*rq, qowr Taow cLress. W l+e,re I Lihe -tury
otid yow
.i! ?
Y'otrrs, Ayun I
41
-= T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
_1
-v 'messages'must be answeredby the studentsto whom they are These addressed.For examPle:
--1
F -r4 --J
Dearr A'ruc,
Tha,nA' UotLfn''futu Uu,ur n'ote. I bou"qh't
fhz d"'issd,t
Poppy.fry ffre
wao,l, I li,kl qsur' n"e'u/Sweatetr Hou, mirc/+ ohpf uf oas'L ? yourrs,
Ma.ry
F --1
F -1
= _4
---1
F -_1
F -1
roundthe This activitycanquicklygeneratea flow of correspondence class. to writeshortlettersto oneanotherwhichinvolvesome (d) Ask thestudents form of roleplay. For example,theymaysendoneanotherinvitationsto a party,together maybe written on with a requestto bringcertainitems.Relevantlanguage the boardasa guide.For example:Wouldyou like to . . .? Will youplecse b r i n g. . . ?
= =1
= 1
:-
._1 l_1
F =J
Deart' FreQ,
r-4
l,Yculd I4nI,LLi,kL to corrte to Ynq parrft/ aw'5a't
o'"o{-oc'h of "ryM lf taou,oan avvte, wW qau-p{"easz-
b-"tg s,i,x,p I'afus,' fu .unj l'a-sies
IJ _4 _f4
y
-4
11
_1
arn'd, Sovng v-&@T--oLs.
F
Eert wisl'tes, Yturrs,
:-
fiaa,ry
v _1
F _1
mustbe answered.The (c),theseinvitations As with the'messages'in canacceptthe invitationor declineto personto whomtheyareaddressed the invitation,he shouldsay If he accepts come,givinghisreasons. or only someof them.The whetherhe canbringall the itemsrequested activitymay be extendedto includegivingor askingfor directionsto get to house. somebody's
F z _k z lJ
-/
-J IJ
--)
A'
+L
-)L-
-l H
L )-t
WRITINGIN THEEARLYSTAGES
l-
l-ll_l_..t
L_
tr g 1l_l_r-{
4.6 Writing for fun
The activitiesin this sectionarenot intendedto help developthe learners' compositionskills- becauseasa rule theywill not be writing a text in a conventionalsense.For the mostpart theywill be writing thingsquestionnaires, puzzles,programmes, for example- which they cando somethingwith. Usuallytheywill be workingtogether,in pairsor smallgroups, and thiswill involvetalkingaswell aswriting. Studentsusuallyenjoy these activitiesbecausethey seethe point of doingthem, like thosein the previous section,and alsobecausein a smallway, evenat this elementarylevel,they get the opportunityto expressthemselves imaginatively. (a) Writing questionnaires The students,preferablyworkingin pairs,write questionnaires whichthey canuseto interviewone or moreother studentsin the class.Noticethe varioustypesof questionnaire.
E L
Hovegou got a- dog?
r----
l_ lf.-{
H L__ L H L_ H !--H LLL L L;
F/TVD 5O'IFOUE
WHO:
NAME
ca.*tplat/ thz guitar alutagr goes to btd early attd a pister has o ffiher likes qeng frT walhs it intereited
irL tcih4ce
l---
l_ l----
L
tr l_ E-J
L L l_ L'
I
canfocuson specifictopicsand evenparticularitemsof Questionnaires language.This neednot makethe activitylessenjoyable. ( b ) Writing quizzes Studentsenjoy writing questions.in the form of a shortquiz, on a text they havejust read(asan alternative to 'comprehension questions'inthe bookl).Theyshouldwork in smallgroupsfor thisand thenexchange their quizzeswith anothergroup. GROUPS
G R O U P SE X C H A N G E
GROUPS
WRITE
Q U I Z Z E SA N D W R I T EA N S \ \ ' E R S
CHECK
QUIZZES
ANSWERS
or whichinvolveremembering In the sameway theycanwritequizzes +J
I
-.]:-
*.b
TEACHINGWHI I IN(J>I\ILLD
F (a useful looking for informationgivenin previousunitsin the coursebook 'generalk n o i l l e d g e q ' uizzes. form of revision!)or
_r4
_u
Haa otd' r.sB/K'k7
y
2
Ca4L Pen ng sPea-/e SPa,rtisl't'?
F
2
W/nt does 5 05 rn-ean'?
1
{ frcmoe? 2 Whal, langu.agedo rhz! speak h+ ?r*zil I
Whal s fhe cafr'hl
?
-4 _v -1 _u
3 Ca4'Lbi'rcLs see c.o'/"or'*s?
_u
(.) WritingPuzzles or in pairs,writeoneor morepuzzles u,orkingindividually The students. to answer' like these.whichthel'giveto otherstudents
I
:
WHAT IS IT? It Li,vesi,/( thl sga . /f nn's te'rt,artns. /t loos not Laae alty bonzs. lf i,skaL efr'lh I
y
-4
I
= I
:
'secretmessages' for one anotherin In the Sameway, studeirtscanwrite somekind of code,whichother studentshaveto interpret.
y
-1
-1
F -1
ELEVENOClOCK rt4EAT CANTOUCOMEAN OSET
l4
!-
I
1 ].2
-1 -.J
-1 ..J
1
(d) Writing programmes The students,working in grouPs to sharetheir ideas,u'ritea TV/radio Programmeto cover a possibleevening'sentertainment' Each studentthen makeshis own copy of the Programme,which can be usedfor Pairwork activities,suchastellingYour partnerwhat Yousawor listened t o t h e P r e v i o u se v e n i n go r to agreeingu'hichProgrammes evening. watchor listento that
R 60
TV ChnnneL1 6.0 Ne.A/s SporlsReport
6.io Sci.ence: Tl+eSan 6.t5
7.ts
World.of Dre orfs
8.O
8.30QuLz
lrr f-
L-.
f-r
fr
r,< l-.
L
l-
44 fr
I
L a-1
W R I T I N GI N T H EE A R L YS T A G E S
!-
L-
L-!--LL-
tr u rL_ --1
l--
rr_r-_J
g L-<
l_ l_ )--1
-t-----t
l_ .--1
Lr-<
H
LL-_
g
tr l_ r----al
H
!:-l_ -,----
L
l-l_ )---
L L: l-
( e ) Writingjumbled texts
The studentswork in pairsor smallgroupsto write a dialogueor a four-to five-sentence storysequence, whichthey then cut up into separate sentences andgiveto anotherpair or groupto put together.
A/
,
-
I tr
I
,rrct5 eta.r-p-.
t vlr(.,/L c.ot
Afterthot he slept!
7r"u'*":*w'
(0 Writing role descriptions Normally,when we want studentsto do a roleplayactivity,we givethem a descriptionof the role we want them to play. However,evenat an elementarylevelthe studentscanwrite simplerole descriptions for one another.Incidentally,they involvelittle useof cohesivedevices. Give the studentspictures (maleor femalefaces)asa stimulusand a list of the itemsto be included(e.g. n a m e .a g e .n a t i o n a l i t yj o, b . Yowa'reMarytAomt"L&h. interests, etc.).Eachstudent Yw a,re/hh,t//- tlree. writesa role descriptionfor one other specificstudentin the class.This is important becauseit addsto the fun: Thsya,re all qr,r[s. the studentsusuallywrite in Yo;rrhutsba;d's rua,rnzLs someunusualfeaturesfor 8 ill a4rd fu i,s o tazL the partnertheyhavechosen dri4v,r. Yawr hobbizs are or beengiven! (g) Wririrtgmystervstories For thisactivitythe students aregivena seriesof questions w h i c ht h e ym u s ta n s w eirn order. For example:Who was theperson?Wherewasslhe? Whatwasslhedoing?Whatdid slhesay? Whatdid slhedo after that?Eachstudentthen takesit in turnsto answera question. When the first studenthas answered hisquestion,he folds the paperoverso that the next studentcannotseewhathe has written(andso on). Whenall
o!% A futrvtorvw'rfh,by \N0son \op of \he Ynourfra \n . #e u.a.s o{4t2//r'g his \
\
.
t
(( z
Y\O Sol,d" OotY\g vYv r-tlo-t
so
\')
Tlrrru fu unvfcthpd.
TV.
the questionshave been answered, the studentsunfold the sheetof paper and read their mvstervstorv
.15
,F= T E A C H I N GW H I l l N U > K l L L r
_v
v
(h) Writirtg imaginar,r-diaries
THE PRIME MINISTER'5PIARY
frouoi/l / a+nntt wetl todayl s/tlp wdd la,strualct, Wtrot about a b*nh, Tntpnv
_u
I had a. bad' &rza+n-
lrkemzl A?rdlao+t Ukz4EeeaVtzl Affi?riaa!_My ary-q @W
z _v
The studentsmay of coursebe askedto keep real diartes at this stageor perhapsslightlylater on in the course.but they will not want and should not Ueaskedto showtheseto one another.On the other hand, writing the imaginarVdiary for a famouspersonof their choiceor for a fictitious chaiacteris somethingthey will be willing to shareand will very likely The studentsshouldwork in pairsor groups stimulatetheir imaginations. (althoughthis is an activitythey could equallywell do on their own). They may like to continuewriting about their characterfrom time to time.
_v
This is an activitYesPeciallY intended to stimulatethe imagination and self expression.The studentswill need a picture showinga situationthat is likelY to suggestdifferent interpretations.Ask them to talk about their Pictureand to decidewhat the situationis about. Then get them to write down their ideas- without
4. 7 Writing in class
_v
Art
v v _v _v -
(i) Writing abourpictures
I want a-
y
H
fhzVedf{z frffi
I a,m,gst'/-19ttryl+
y
I
u 1
_u _1
F .t'r' l
L..*.
Theyshouldthencompare connection. worryingtoo muchaboutsentence their ideaswith thoseof anothergroup. Insteadof pictures,you canusespeechbubblesdrawnon the board.For example,aboutthisonethe studentsmightwrite:A boy is in a shop.He Hismotherbuysonebutit issmall.Sohe says:" . ......." wantsan icecream. areintendedto be donein class.Some The activitiesin the lasttwo sections Thisshouldrequireno justification time. couldeventakeup a fair amountof generallythe studentsarealsotalking.However,the importantthing because is that activitiesof thiskind changestudents'attitudestowardswriting:they throughwriting;how theycanuse cometo seehow theycancommunicate writingpurposefullyandhowit formsa naturalpart of certainactivities.In with additiontoihis, you canalsowork with thestudentseithercollaborating themon a taskor joiningin an activity(e.g.youshouldalsowriteto your studentsandgetthemto writeto you for the activitiesin 4.5;you canalsowrite
-_1
y
.1. )-1
v I
a-1
-v I
_u 1 ].1 I
-v -1
v v
.J
a-z
u -1 _k
46
-1
r-< .J
]-z
.
L at4A
WRITINGIN THEEARLYSTAGES
!-
l_ l_
questionnaires, quizzes, etc.).You will alsogetopportunities to checktheir work informallywhile the activityis still freshin their minds.This is very differentfrom the typicalteacherrole of correctinghomeworkl
r--l
tr l_-
Discussion
Reread4.1.1and4.I.2. What advicewouldyou givea fellowteacher(or intendingteacher)aboutsettingup writing activitiesin the earlystages? From your own experience,do you agreethat copyingis an aid to retention in languagelearning? From your own experience of learningto write in a foreignlanguage,do you think enoughattentionwaspaid to activities: (a) to practiselinking sentences and sequencing ideas; (b) to showhow you cancommunicate throughwriting; (c) to showhow writingcanbe enjoyable? What is your view of the valueof dictationasa writing activity?
Exercises
Fxamineany coursebookto seewhat provisionit makesfor the presentation and practiceof linkingdevicesin the earlystages. Examineanycoursebookto seewhat provisionit makesfor meaningful copying. Devisea parallelwriting activity,for usein the earlystages,similarto those in4.3.2. Devisean exercisein linkingsentences, for usein the earlystages,similarto t h e o n ei n 4 . 4( b ) . Suggesta writing activity, to be usedin the early stages,whichcouldbe H tq H S-TREET basedon thismao. -Tsil.l
l=<
l_
r f--
I--
tr
!---
tL. -.-_{ l--,-1
L:
tr
L-
___l
H Lr_ H
-t
.-1
--1
I .>
l_ L-
o R o A D
s1-
-rArroN
N
E R D
I
---4
-1J
Devisean activitywhichcouldbe usedin the earlystages to let the learners enjoywriting.
H
l-: l_.
References
._4
-1
tt; l--. H
l;-
t-
l_--lLJL4
q
On the importanceof gettingthe learnersto evaluateoneanother'swriting seeC Brumfitin S Holden(ed.)(1983). For writingin the earlystages, seeG Abbott and P Wingard(1981)Ch.6; J Harmer(1983)pages65-75 P Hubbardet al (1983)pages61-71and A P i n c a s( 1 9 8 2 ap) a g e s1 8 - 2 1a n d9 1 - 1 0 1 . For examples of writingactivities in the earlystagesseeT Hedge(1983a); A Pincas(1982b)andL Woods(1986). Examplesof writing activitiesin thischapterhavebeentakenfrom J Harmer:Meridian(Longman1985)(4.3.2(a));L Woods:WritingI (Casselli986)(1.4(a)) andM PalmerandD Byrne: Track(Longman1982) ( 1 . 2 . 2( d ) a n d4 . 3 . 2( b ) ) . 1'7
i
i ].
J )
F
./ = -J !z / !4
y _E
=
skills Developing
-4 -
y u
y _v v
5.1 The importance of demonstrating progress
to intermediatelevel,* it is essentialthat. At the post-elementary whatever the scopeof the writing programme,it shouldnot lose direction and momentum. This meansthat the writing programmemust be carefullyplanned to develop a masteryof new skills, which the learnerscan usefor a continually expandingrange of tasks.At the sametime, sincewriting will still be guided to a lirge extent, we need to make the activitiesas varied aspossible,avoiding a monolithic approachwhich relieson a limited rangeof exercisetypes.
v
y -r4 1
F
--1
5.1.1 The main features of the writing programme
(a) The writing programme should continue to provide opportunitiesfor reinforcing languagelearnedorally. At the ru-. ii-e, however,we may assumethat the learners'arebeing exposedto a greateramount of written languageeither through the type of texts in their coursebookor through supplementaryredding.At this stage, therefore, the amount of dialoguewriting shouldbe graduallyreduced, althoughit shouldnot be abandonedaltogether,partly becauseit is one way of getting the studentsto write material which they can use themselves - for oral work, for example- and partly becausedialoguewriting may be one of the requirementsof the examination.However, as the main format for reinforcementpracticeat this level, we can now begin to make greateruse of informal letter-writing,sincethis providesa convenientand appropriateway of re-presentingmaterial learnedorally and of courseby this stagethe learnersare alreadyfamiliar with this type of writing. (b) The writing programme should be designedto include a greaterrange of the resourcesof the written language. The basickit, suggestedin 4.4 shouldbe expandedto incorporate,for *90-225 hoursor approximatelvthe secondand third yearsofa secondaryschoolcourse.The in this ihapter mustbe readin conjunctionwith Chapters6 and 7 on the useof texts suggestions and visualmaterial.
y
v y y
1. -1.
.J
= -1
_v
. = _u -1 --1
2 = _u
48
-1 --1
L At4A
t-!L-
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
example,both a widerrangeof conjunctions usedin compoundand complexsentence structures andotherlinkingdevices.At the sametime, we mustincrease the learners'awareness of rhetoricaldevicessuchas comparison andcontrast,definition,exemplification, etc.(seethe procedures suggested in2.1.2)andtheirabilityto usethese.For this purpose,we shouldnow beginto introducea certainamountof institutional-type writing,suchasformal lettersand reports.As at the previousstageof the programme,when the studentswereintroducedto writing informalletters,thiscomponentwill teachthemsomethingnew throughwritingand willthereforeincreasetheir interestand motivation.
H
l_l-f-<
r r--J
f t--_ H tr__
(.) Theamountof control over whatthe learnerswriteshould be reduced. At thisstagetheyshouldlearnto respondto 'cues'whichstimulatetheir imaginationsbut leavethemrelativelyor completelyfree to decidewhat they actuallywrite and how theyorganisetheir ideas. (d) Therangeof communicationtasksshould be extended. Thus,alongsidethe guidedwriting activitiessuggested in 5.2-5.4, the learnersare alsogivenopportunitiesfor free expression. Thesewill to someextentinvolvegreaterrelianceon roleplaytechniques.
I -
l_ r--<
L_ ---1
L.
5.1.2 The role of the teacher
It hasbeenemphasised that thisis a delicateand crucialstageof the writing programme.It is especially important,therefore,to: (a) Get the right balanceof writing activities. For example,with regardto dialoguewriting, this shouldbe reduced considerablyunlessit is an examinationrequirement.At the sametime, it is importantto extendsystematically the sentencelinking and sequencing componentof the programmedescribedin 5.3. No real progresswill be madeunlessthis is done.
l_ J--1
l-, Ll_ a<
(b) Ensurethat thetypeof writing activiry* and theformats usedto practisethese are sfficiently variedso that thestudentsdo not get bored.
-
l_
tr
Practicematerialsmay haveto be selected and adaptedfrom a varietvof sources. (c) Gattgecarefullytheamottntof guidancerequired.
H
It is likelythat the amountof oralpreparationfor manywritingactivities cannow be reduced.The amountof individualwritingmay alsobe increased, especially whenthestudentsapproachthe time whentheywill haveto do a publicwrittenexamination. For certainactivities, however,it hasbeensuggested thatpair andgroupwork will stillbe extremely valuable.
tr l_ )_.1
l--1
l-
tr !-
H l_ l_ l_ l_ 4
)----Z
5.2 Reinforcement activities
The needto provideopportunitiesfor practisingwhat hasbeenlearnedorally continuesthroughoutthisstage.althoughthe increasing useof textsotherthan dialogues now makesit possible to introducewritingactivities whicharebased moredirectlyon a readingtext (seeChapter6). As we havenoted.dialogue writinghasalmostoutlivedits usefulness asa writingactivityand.if rve continueto useit, we mustlook for freshwaysof presenting it to the learners. 49
J
/
-
for reinforcementactivitiesqivenbelow are classified The suggestions accordingto the t1'peof n'ritinqinvolved.
t
F _r4
5.2.r Dialoguewriting
(a) Thestudentsare gittena ntodeldialogue,togetllerv'itlt cues.forv'ritirtg parallel versiorts. This task is much freer than the one in 4.3.1:it is guidedratherthan controlledand the studentscanselectfrom the cuesprovided.In the examplebelou'.whichfocuseson offeringadvice.the studentsalsohave to modify the form of the cues(for example,the.vmust usethe -lng form afterHow about . . .?)* Read this dialogue: e : W h a t ' su p . M i k e ? s: I don't know what to do this evening. a: Well, u'hy don't you go to the club, then? B : O h , t h a t ' sn o t m u c hf u n , i s i t ? e: Well. hou'aboutcomingto the cinemau'ith me? B: Hm, /ftcl soundslike a much betterideal Nov, chooseany of theseideas(or useonesof vour own) to v'ritesimilar dialosues: go for a walk go and see(Jane) sit and readthe paper help me cook the supper write someletters game cards of have a go and watchtelevision help me washthe car (b) The studentsare given an incompletedialogue, togetheru,ith instructionsfor completing it. Thesedo not specifythe actual words to be used. Completethis dialogue: . . . . . . . ( S u gg e s td o i n gs o m e t h i n g ) A: ... n: Oh, all right. If that'swhat you reallywant to do. . . . . . . . .... ( E n q u i r ea b o u t B ' s w i s h e s ) A: B: Don't know. Go to the cinema,perhaps. .. (Object to thisidea) A: B : O h , a l l r i g h t .t h e n .L e t ' s
J T4
-. .4
_E )4
H
_rl
u u
I
-r4
r-r I4
.-. rr.4 14
u -.
Now write (2) similar dialoguesof vour own. (c) The studentswrite the completedialogue.Theyaregiven an outline or'map' of the dialogue, but none of the actual words to be used. A G i v ey o u r p h o n en u m b e r . S a yw h o y o u a r e . A s kw h o i s s p e a k i n g . A s ka b o u tA ' s h e a l t h . T e l lB a b o u ty o u rh e a l t h .
u r.J -1 I
u IJ
P e r s u a dAe . C o n f i r ma r r a n g e m e n t s a n de n dc o n v e r s a t i o n . * A s f o r C h a p t e r4 , i t s h o u l db e k ep t i n m i n dt h a t t h e l a n g u a g ue s e di n t h e e x a m p l e d s o e sn o t r e l a t e t o a n v p a r t i c u l a cr o u r s e .
-u 4 r-J
_g
/ -IJ
50 -H
u
i
L ,_4
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
!--"
H !-_: H
Anotherpossibility is to givethe studentsa'scenario'. Mr A hasan appointmentwith Mr B in a big officeblock.when he entersthe building,he announces his arrivalto the receptionist, who speaksto Mr B on the phone.The receptionistthen tellsMr A how to get to Mr B's office.Mr A getsout of the lift on the wrong floor. He meetsan employee,who offersto takehim to Mr B's office. when he getsthere,Mr A, who is now ratherlate,makeshisexcuses and explainswhathappened.
!---!-:
H
l--l_-
It may be felt that thisis rathera long way round to get the studentsto write a dialoguebut rememberat this stagewe are lookingfor waysof providingguidancewithoutcontrol.Both the dialogue'maps'and 'scenarios'directthe studentstowardscertainusesof language,and thus preventthe productionof ramblingand often trivial dialogues,but at the sametime requirethem to think of the actualwordswhichwill fit the situation.when theytranslatethe scenarios into dialogueform, they can alsowrite somenarrativecommentaryin the form of stagedirections.It shouldbe notedthat bothdialogue'maps'and'scenarios' canbe usedat differentlevelsof languageattainmgnt,dependingon the sophistication of the taskinvolved.
-1
r Lr --<
l -
l--_<
L:
(d) Thestudentswritea dialoguefor w-hichthesettingis definedand some suggestions aregivenfor thelanguageto be used.
l_ -----
For example:
t--
r
You are in a restaurantwith a friend. You are looking at the menu, trying to decidewhatto have. write the conversationyou have. You may usethese phrases: Howabout...? That's(rather)... What shallwehaveto . . .? I wonderwhat . . . Haveyouever...? Whydon'twe... Thislooks... Let'sask...
1-1
Ll_ l_ a-l
lL'-
}JJ
For activities(b) to (d), it is suggested that the students shouldbe allowed to collaborate. eitherin pairsor in smallgroups,at leastfor the initialstage of the activity,whenvariouspossibleformsof expression canbe discussed. Thus,the students'talk over'the dialoguetogether,work out a rough versionand then.if theylvish,eachproducetheirown finalversion.
l-: LL=-L=1 =-1
lL'
l;
i: l-g
lL
r=--J
r
u
5.2.2 Writing notesand Ietters
By thisstagethe students arealreadl'familiar with writinginformalletters.but therearevariousthingswe cando to givethisactivitva newslant.For example,we canteachnewrvaysof beginningandendingletters.we canalso seethat the students aregivensystematic opportunities to practisewriting letterswhichhave.overall.a specific functionsuchasmakin_q an apology(a complaint,an excuse), sendingcongratulations, givingdirections,etc., andat the sametimeshowhorvsuchtasksrvillrequireverydifferentusesof language on differentoccasions andin particularhow thesedependon the relationship betweenthe *'riteranclthe personhe is acldressins. 51
I
I
F-J fTEACHINGWRII ING 5KILL5
l<
II
cuesfor v)rititl7parallel (a) Thestutlentsoregiverlo tnodeltext,togethet'h)ith versiotls. T h i s i s s i m i l a rt o 5 . 2 . 1( a ) . T h e c u e sm a v b e p h a s e do u t s o t h a t t h e s t u d e n t s producetheir ou'n versions.For example: Read thefollox'ing. It is an extractfrom a letter. l,
ld
I ld
-I -l
l
v I
nl,t
Uca/l'Jdn'rL,
-_rd 2
That rulnrllds mz- g/ot'LoLtkad' rrty a'drice a,bou,f
bryag a c.a/r.foirna1,gt f ! r* yy, l( got a'qfu. secan'd-/'ts4'Ld6rc .' Eut aoitt qo A; ont
gf"t/tose b{.q fir.t tE Tru to qst mr fi'orn i,/- fiarnrs"tD'sc// his-carrVrhmteh't, Mahz tLt/re tiwt {hures rffi'tunq wanq wfr,fl'Ltf,(f @//rs1l ln fi'{ yot'L Jh,i^/d gilt a rue.c}t6rrt'ic to l6dle ot'iifiyout
-
v y _rJ
-
(i) [Jsethesenotesto write a letterto a friend v,ho wantsadviceabout a holiday: ./do not stavin the town itself/finda quiet hotel just go to . outsidethe town/geta room with a good view/makea booking as early as possible. (ii) Usethesenotesto write a letterto a friend who wantsadviceabout how to find a newjob: try to get a job with a new firm/do not go to an agency/buya paper which has adsfor jobs/. (lli) Write a letterto a friend who wantsadviceabout how to learn (a foreign language). (b) The studentsare given an incompletetext, with suggestionsor instructions about how to completeit. This activity can be particularlyusefulfor practisingspecificitems of language,suchas the -ing form, as in the examplebelow. You are introducing yourself to a penfriend. Completethis letter with referenceto vour own likesand dislikes,etc-
ahowtrrlt/se/f. 0* nf ne lfuw /'d' ti'lto to tillqolt son^erhi*r'q ftu,vefine-!) k'..... - Thta/'sn thin^csI l;'hz d.oi'toq-tnost fufuen 'l vai tu4"d6/ . . .1. o a qwifetikl. . -.. 0t wel'L,alrlwgh lw ,*i ir^t qo-'solat it. Cn clizdrhorrLwnd', l'tttwf, ue'rl Lnt*esfzd' ov' . . . . . n'ordo / ,aAl,b L;fu . . - -. Atfu - - - - -) in ettli^ei I *hsclute/q h,s,tc//tl
' --frf
_f'-a
-u _u
v F F
v -k
'I )-1
I
.J -)r'J
-)r-J
52
-)L-
-l H
L --d
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
t-Ll-r----
rl_ L{
L-
r r-J
l_
q
(c) Thestudentscomplete
a text by expanding notes. The notesin this exampleare within the frameworkof a letter, the themeof whichis assumedto relateto a topic exploredthrougha lessonin the coursebook.
l-_----
LLl_ .---.J,
---J
1--LLLL_ l_ L_ =--LGd
}
L-a
-,-J
tlu ond q thz m.*tet. la.,ge fkt /f"r-l/rvbg
I
-rc'urn
boa"--ows f ov.e bq
/ ltt'kLe,n
e,k f ne,ot- (?h.be
hu4
It all ^rrTlu rut vezrywe{L.Arod
"f e'. cot ut (- tlwre'S 6fi2 qt1at. a.drn n faq
l--r--{
qol't' 6rxz and. l*ue tt A,L ur? At f,/pe '1rr4?r41'rri fh%ea'r-fou,, a/ t+: tlA.rug thu /&t, bat enzpar'torL is luuirtT a.b
a'rza,ttgerne.nls as fulows./ shprc alL exa'nf'k o"atns*//", Arl -^'4 f-od. /
1-: L-
Dea,rJarh, I hza'rqotuare oh,ort'4+n4aowr jab shorcty,'l lw,uea nryg-ain-/ W@ da,'t't
Completethis letter. Usethenotesto write thesecondand third paragraphs.
qan-ca'n & whaflfio Likz hgr<.,Let-wr'/a4aw afuat i't 6s sowt-a-tpoit;,U-e.
Yo*o, B"O
in (b) and (c) lend themselves Activitieslike thosesuggested well to within relatedwriting tasks the contextalreadyestablished. For example, the studentsmay be askedto write a shortreply to Bob's letter basedon cueslike the following: Writeback to saythatyott are interestedin Bob'sproposal but askfor more informationaboutthefollowing points: - how muchis the rent? - whatotherexpenses arethere? - what arrangements are therefor havingguests? - is it easyto find parkingnearthe flat? - who are the otherpeoplein the flat?
l-L--L. ---
(d) Thestudentswritethecompletetext. Theyaregivenguidancefor the content to be ttsed. but notfor thelanguage For example: You boughta bottleof perfumeor after-shavelotion afterseeingan advertisement for it. It gaveyou a skin complaint.Write a letterto thefirm which madetheprodttct,saying: - whatyou bought(inventa suitablename) - whereyou sawthe advertisement andwhat the advertisement claimed (e.g.goodfor the skin) - why you boughta verv largebottle - how it affectedyour skin - what the doctorsaid - why youwantyourmoneyback
L:
53
.--3
-t---J
1=-
L_ g
=-.-
l_>1
L>-1
l--
1fr TEACHINGWRII INU 5KILL5
l'I-
Writine short rpnr)l'tq
The studentsma)'alsobe givena guidedintroductionto writing reports.For this, guidanceshouldfocuschieflvon the organisationand orderlypresentation of ideas. (a) ,4s a prelininary step.thestudentscompletefornts similar to this one.
5 f-
t-
A penfriend a g e n c yh a ss e n t y o u t h i sf o r m . C o mp l e tei t w i th d e t a i l sa b o u t yo urse l f.
R e g .O f f i c e : 2 9 B o l s o v eSr t r e e t ,L o n d o nW ' 1.
l-
P l e a sw e r i t e l e g i b l y . l t e m s1 - 6s h o u l db e c o m p l e t e di n caoita letters.
l-
l-
l-
4
Nationality f-
5 Religion l-
7
Education l-
B H o w l o n g h a v e y o u b e e n l e a r n i n gE n g l i s h ? l-
9 Wheredid you learnit? l-
1 0 H a v ey o u e v e rv i s i t e dE n g l a n d ? 11 l { s o , g i v e d e t a i l s
12 fuief statementof interestsand hobbies
rl-
l-
} r w a n t i n ga p e n f r i e n d 1 3 R e a s o n { sf o
t-
1 4 D e t a i l so f t y p e o f p e n fr i e n dr e q u i r e d
'a-
f-
(b) The studentsaregivena model text,togetherwith cuesfor writingparallel versiotts. Read thisshort reportl Alan is very practical.but he is a/sorather untidy. For example,he is very good at repairingthings,suchasbikes,buthe neverputs his tools away afterwards. Now writesintilar reports,usingtheseadjectivesor othersof your own choice: careless clever
I-
t-
rI
hard working kind
lazY nice
rude sillY
The studentsmay alsobe given outlinesand askedto write reports on other studentsin the class.For example: . . . ( N a r r l ai )s v e r y . . . a n d a s a r u l e ( h e ) i s a l s o . ' . . F o r e x a m p l e ," . . On the other hand.(he) canbe . . . and sometimes(he) is also . . . . The informationfor reportsmay alsobe derivedfrom completed f o r m s ,s i m i l a rt o t h e o n e i n ( a ) .
rrr,l-
rt-
54
tt-
L ).4
ll_-
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
r--_-
tr r--
(c) Thestudentsaregivena modertextand, after
focusedpractice(e.g. identifiing advantages and disadvantages) are askedto write a parallel
one. Look at the detailsof thesetwo beaches. write a reportaboutwhichbeach would be suitablefor a newhotel. rJsealthoughandbecause.
-----
L'
A D V A N T A G E S DISADVANTAGES
LE
Sunset Beach
';:.;-:-.ti:-:
1l-_ f
2 i/..
--<
r-
-
, .,
''1-..)r1.rJf.i;r ';.ri,? .:'' -
Yz2;t '"i . ',,',,.;' ffi2,;',7:
lL-
rL-
' -'*.'-
5.3 Sentencelinking and sequencing activities
b e au t i f u l easy to get to
very rougn sea small beach
long sandy beach caimsea
ratherflat no main road
It hasbeensuggested that thiscomponentof the writing programmeshouldbe extendedand strengthened by varyingthe formatsfor prictice to include formal letters(for this the studentsmust be givenappropriatemodels)and reports,andby expanding the basickit of linkingdevices. Thismay be doneby drawingsystematically on theitemsin theAppendix.Suggestions ior activities aregivenbelow.
12
1: l_ LL_ l_ =--4
>--1 b-a
f--{t
L: LL---1
1-: l_ l_ .___1
+= .---J
);
l_ ._-Z
L
1=L
l_ l_ r_-,1
l-
(a) Thestudentscompletea short,r.r,ay usingsuitablelinking words or phrases. we canusethis typeof exercisefor variouspurposes.First,to familiarise the studentswith a wider rangeof linking devicisfrom the expandedbasic kit. After this, thevmav be askedto serect from a listwhichis more extensive thanthe numberof itemsomittedfrom the text. Finallv.thev may be askedto sttppl.vtheir ovvntinking devices.An examplerrom ttre secondstage(i.e.choosing from a moreextensive list) is givenbelow. usesuitablelinking devices from the box to completethe textbelow: also although and and because
but but also for for the moment however
incidentally in particular in thisway instead meanwhile
not only on the otherhand since therefore too
Janetwest'ssisteris an air hostess for a famousinternational airline, . . . Janetwantsto becomeone . . ., sheis stilltoo young:the minimumagefor an air hostess is twenty. . . . Janetis onty iuit over sixteen. . . . s h e h a s t a k e n a j o b ai nn o f f i c e . . . s h e .. . a t t e n d s e v e n i n g classes.. . ., shewantsto improveher FrenchandSpanish,. . . foreign languages arean essential qualification for an air hostess. . . ., Janetis gainingexperience throughher presentjob. . . . the officewheresheworksis atravelagency.. . . sheis learning.. . how to dealwith people. . . quitea lot aboutthe placessheonedavhopes to visit.
_l E
jI
ld
I
--z
I
j.a
SKILLS T E A C H I NW G RITING
lz
lnavbe askedto do thesetasksin pairsor in small Againthe students It shouldbe the variouspossibilities. they can discuss that groups.So What is importantis version. that thereneedbe no oneCorrect emphasised choosean item whichdid not appearin the original that. if the students ri'hetherthisaffectsthe meaningof the text version,they'shouldconsider and if so.in u'hatu'a,v. At this stage\\'emav alsouseincompletetextsto get the studentsto linksthroughgrammarandlexis.For example,the considerothersemantic with the following of the textabovemightbe presented firstparagraph itemsomitted. . . ., and for a famousinternational JanetWest'ssisteris an air hostess J a n e t w a n t s t bo e c o m e. . . t o o . A t t h em o m e n t . . . i s s t i l l t o oy o u n g :. . is twentvand . . . is onlyjust oversixteen. for an air hostess All the itemsomitted- airline,one,she,theminimumage,Janet' whichwouldappearaspartof a muchlongerlist,areoneswhich of the text. andlexicalcohesion contributeto the srammatical sequence. so thatThsyform an acceptable ( b ) Thestudentscombinesentences to be usedmay eitherbe providedor the studentsmay The linkingdevices be askedto supplytheirown.For example: Use so thattheyform a sequence. in anv,suitablet4)a)t Join thesesentences 'she'in placeof 'Janet'v,hereappropriate. throughher presentjob' 1 Janetis gainingexperience 2 Janetworksin a travelagency. 3 Janetis learninghow to dealwith people. 4 Janetis learningquitea lot aboutthe placessheone dayhopesto visit. \L/
Thestudentsrex'ritetextsv,ithintheframeworkof a relatedoutline' For example: Readthis text. Thencontpletethetextbelowso that thesameideasare in a differentw'a\': expressed Thereare two sidesto the work of stuntmen.They actuallydo mostof the thingsvou seeon the screen.For example,they jump from high buildings.However,theydo not fall onto hard groundbut onto empty cardboardboxescoveredwith a mattress. The work of stuntmen. . . to it. They actuallydo almost. . . whichyou see t h e m . . . , s u c ha s . . . . B u t i n s t e a d o.f . . , t h e y . . . o n t oc a r d b o a r d b o x e s w h i c h. . . .
( d ) Thestudents form textsfrom a listof jumbled sentences.
formeda dialoguein thisway, and4.6 See4.3.1(c),u'herethe students (e), wheretheywrotetheirown texts.Whilethe purposeof thisactivityis it mustnot become sequencing, to thinkaboutsentence to getthe students
-1
F -1
ts --1
-_1
ts -__4
-_11
ts __1
-1
-_4
---1
,'1
l-
tE-< 'b
1
-1
_1
1
-1
-.1
I
.1
-
56
I
I
v
j
L 1-" a)--
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
l_ L-
just a puzzle.Narrativetextsusuallvhavea fairlytransparent sequence and thereforeprovidea goodstartingpoint.You canprovidesome frameworkof reference. aswith the map in the activitybelow.As a final stage,useexpository textswith a clearopening'topic'sentence. otherwise the firstsentence shouldbe indicated.
r---
r
LLL_-
r---
r_-
Look at themap.John livesat 7, Elm Lane.He'shavinga party. What directionsmusthegive to hisfriends?Put theseinstructionsin theripht order. Number themI to 7.
r-_-
Walk alongunril 1'ouget to the library.
l_-
r
V/alk around the pond to Hazelbank Road.
rL-
l_-
rL_
I
I G c t o f f t h e b u s a r T h e G r e e nA l a n .
Turn right into Elm Lane .
r-_-{
I-
. l
t: H
I
T u r n r r s h r i n t o F i r t r e eL a n e .
Number 7 is on thelefr.
LLLLLLLLL-
Go over the bridge.
-,_1
r-d
L1
=-1
FINsTOCK
=--1
['l:i";.t
L1
=--4
la
tPl
.--1
I ol
zl (t
€lePhorB
.--1
:-
L
-----
l-: Ll_ -,--J
>--
=--1
L_
l
q H
I
1-, I t--a
I
-L
57
aF-
I
---4
__1
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
The studentscan be givena diagramwhich showshow the ideasin the text havebeenorganised.For the activitvbelow,the studentshavealreadv seena paralleltext.
_1
--1
_1
H e r e i s a p l a n o f t h e f i r s t p a r a g r a p hi n E x e r c i s el . U s e t h e s e s e n t e n c etso w r i t e a p a r a g r a p ha b o u t L o n d o n w i t h t h e s a m ep l a n '
1
1
Edinburgh
I
-
Fi, "".n.*.u"'*l *.* ro*'nl I oraro*n I
i-"'.r-;;l
I V
I 11 I
tz I l-
l-
b L
d e
f
s m a l ln a r r o ws t r e e t as n d T h e E a s t E n d h a sa l o t o f c h a r m , o l d g r e yb u i l d i n g s . L o n d o n i s E n g l a n d ' sc a p i t a lc i t Y . l a r g ee x p e n s i v e I r i s v e r y d i f f e r e n tf r o r nt h e W e s t E n d . p a r k s . s h o p sa n d l o v e l yg r e e n Its old name was Londiniunr. L o n d o n h a s m a n y s h o p s ,r e s t a u r a n tasn d t h e a l r e sa n d o f i e r sa lot to visirors. of the boldman. T h i s m e a n st h e
I
ff-
i
-1
1 fz
I a1
1
Sentencescan be broken dorvninto clausesto draw further attention to the logicalstructureof a text. For example: Usethesesentencesto write a paragraph about thepygmies. Changethe punctuation. order and add any necessar)' They can move easilf in the forest and they are not afraid of it The forest in the centreof Africa is a dangerousplace Pygmiesknou'the forestwell becausethey are verYsmall A big pygmy is onlYlm 40cmtall but the pygmiesare haPPYthere (e) The studentsdo exerciseswhich specificallydirect their attentiotl to the way ideasare organisedin a text. This may be done in a guidedform at the start, with the help of information presentedin tabularform, togetherwith examplesof the kind of text which the studentsare requiredto write. For example:
58
I V
I -fI f4
1 a1
-1 f-
1 f-4
-1
f-r -1 fl
I ft
-1 f,-
u
L ---J
!-_ !--_ L-_
r_-
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
Study the two texts, which are based on information given in the table. Then write similar textsof your own. to form part of a letter telling someone how to get to a place.
-1
Destination
l_-
tr g
alrport sportsground motor show theatre hospital port
L F l_ L-d
L-
=-1
L_ l_ l_ L-,-{ L_ L_ l-. ll-. ----a
taxi bus tube taxi on foot bus
Vzhour 10mins 5 mins 7+hour
Thereare two waysof gettingtd the sportsground:eitherby tube or by bus.By tube it only takesten minutes,while if you go by bus,on the other hand,it may takeyou over twentyminutes.My adviceto you, then,is to go by tube.
l_ .--1
coach tube taxi on foot bus boat
Timefor I
You cango to the airporteitherby coachor by taxi. If you go by coach,it takesat leasthalf an hour. By taxi,on the otherhand,it takes only ten minutes.For that reason,I suggestthe secondpossibility.
--{
r_
I
z
*Useanysuitableperiodof time
rr-!-
Alternatives
(0 Thestudentswritetextsbasedon a model that hasa clearlogical develooment. This may be shownthrougha diagram.For example: TOPIC
Flatsharing
=_-J
2
.-1
ADVANTACES
D I SADVANTAGES
1_ 2_
=-z ---J
CONCLUSION
=---1
Sharinga flat hascertainadvantages. For onething,you do not haveto do all the houseworkyourself. Besides, it is alsocheaper.On theother hand,you maynot havemuchprivacyand,moreover,it maybe noisy. All in all, it is probablybetterto liveon your own!
.-1
l-----
L" -,--l-. ----L" ----
L-
r=--.1
4
L" =-Z
U
arethengiventopicswhichcanbe writtenaboutwithina The students similarframework.For example: 1 2 3 4
Livingin a big city Owninga car Working in an office Beinsa housewife 59
.E _1
v v
--_1
TEACHINW G R I T I N GS K I L L S
---1
5.4 Reproduction exercises
haveto iistento a text whichis in that the students Theseresembledictations, readalourlto them.However.insteadof beingaskedto take thisdown they artificialexercise, segmentby segment.u,hichmakesdictationa someu'hat before more) or (usuall-v three listento the completetext a numberof times theyareaskedtou'rite.Thei'arethenrequiredto'reproduce'thetextthey but theymayfill in with their own words aspossible. haveheardasaccurately u,heretheir memorvof the originalfailsthem' Like dictation.thistypeof activityalsoinvolvescarefullisteningand the transformationof u'hatis heardinto its writtenform. However, it focusesmuch how one more on graspingthe overallmeaningof a text andin particular 'rules'for this activity. own our relatesto another.We canalsomake sentence For example.the studentsmaybe allowedto makebrief notesduringthe final reading.Alternatively,we maywrite key wordsandphraseson the board, to remind the studentsof someof the main ideas.In eithercase'we thusensure that the activitydoesnot becomejust a testof memorY.We may alsowrite a deviceson the board, so that in frameworkof linking wordsand sequencing aroundwhichthe text canbe effectwe givethe studentsa structural'skeleton' 'reproduced'.
F -1
-_-1
-_-1
v -1
: I
v v v I
-1
I
= .1
-.k I
v 1
activitiesshouldmatchthe At thisstage.it is importantthat communication 5.5 throughthe written form Commu n i c a t i o n growingu6itityof the Iearnersto expressthemselves 6t rir. tinguag..Theyshould.therefore,in the firstinstancebe on a much activities scale. moreextensive comparedwith the modest tasksof sendingmessages and notes(see4.5.This typeof activity,however, wherethe studentsu'riteto one anotherin the classcan still be usedprovidedthat cot44,e/ rfuose h44etm2,... . (+ they are askedto Produce ptue a,lrd t r'n<) Yaw ccr,rtt somethingmore TheYmust substantial.). trytLsstt, b44f/unratlu alsobe more challenging. (+e*act tot;a-"5. With thistypeof writing activity,the studentsmaY / rtfr;rg fhn4nrd toseelng Yo/+| of coursemakemistakes,as with freeoral expression. b u t t h e i m P o r t a ntth i n g . from the point of view of PSDoTitfo lotel motivation,is to demonstratethat writing is a purposefulactivitY.
tn ,. . (+d"!) tf y* *ry
-u I
v r<
!:. <
_r< I
k
I =.a
1 k
-1 ..I-1
v v I
L
..k L
You shouldalsoencourageand help the studentsto find penfriendsasa way of extendingcommunicationpractice.From time to time you can alsoconductall or part oith. lessonentirelythroughthe mediumof writingso that the students requests, whatis involvedin givingandreceivinginstructions. ."utty appreciate etc. in thisway.
60
r< 1l
lz
-1
-v -1 fr
I f-.
az
L ),-1
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
!--L l_-
In the activitiesbelow,moreuseis now madeof roleplay,althoughnot to the exclusionof other activitieswherethe studentswrite as themselves. The list of suggestions below,whichis intendedto indicatetypicalactivitiesratherthan to be exhaustive,frequentlyinvolvessomeform of collaborationin the writins task.
r---J
rL t
5.5.1 ( a ) TheEstateAgency Roleplayactivities Divide the classinto two. Sub-divideone half into threeor four groups,
l_-
q
dependingon the sizeof the class.Tell eachof thesegroupsthat they representan estateagency.They shouldalsofind a namefor their agency. Their immediatetaskis to devisea form on which they canrecord informationaboutthe housesor flatswhichtheir'clients'will givethem whentheycometo seethem. Tell the students in theotherhalf of the classthat they arepeoplewho wantto selltheirhousesandto buy another. Each of them shouldwrite somenotesdescribingthe housethey want to sell.It may be the housethey actuallylive in or an imaginaryone.They shouldalsohavesomeideaof the housethey would like to buy. The 'clients'then choosewhichagencythey want to go to. They are interviewedby a memberof the agencyand fill in the form, on the basisof which a final descriptionof their houseis worked out. Thesedescriptions are then written up and displayed,and canbe r'eadby thosewho want to buy a house. The activitymay be repeatedat a later stagewith the rolesreversed. Insteadof estateagencies, secondhand car firmscanbe usedasan alternativesetting.
1---
H
l_r--{
L
rl_I
r--
fl-: LLLl-
( b ) TheMagazineAdvice ColLtmn
r-J
'advicecolumns'on Write the namesof a numberof magazine the board. Theseshouldbe discussed rviththe classso that they know what kind of 'problems'eachone dealswith. Then askall the students in the classto write to one of the advice columns,askingfor helpwith a personalproblem.Theycando this anonymously if theyprefer. Dividethe classinto smallgroups,eachone representing the staffof an advicecolumn.Distributethe lettersamongthe groups,makingsure that no one getshisown letter.andaskthemto write repliesto these letters.Theserepliesshouldthenbe givento the studentswho wroteto the column. Alternatively,both the lettersandrepliesmay be writtenup asrvall sheets.so that the wholeclasscanreadthem.
f-.il
1-LL.---J
t)-..J
t-l-: L .--J
H
(c) TheNewsDesk
Ask eachstudentin the classto write two or threeitemsof news(realor imaginary).Eachitem shouldnot be morethanabout50-60 rvordslong andduplicatecopiesshouldbe madeof eachitem. D i v i d et h ec l a s si n t og r o u p se, a c hr e p r e s e n t i nag' N e w sD e s k ' . Distributethe itemsof nervsamongthe variousdesks(because the-va r ei n d u p l i c a t em. o r et h u no n e ' d e s k ' w i l l g etth es a m ei t e m )a n da s ke a c h
];
l_-,--J
!-
l_),-.J
L
61
-,--z
l_
tr
1-,
I
II -t
-)
I
fG
I
y
v
T E A C H I N GW H I I I N U s K I L L 5
group to edit their iternsso as to producea ne\\'sbulletin. which can then b e r e a da l o u dt o t h e c l a s s . (d) Joh vacaltcics
'job vacancies' in fiveor sixbig firmsand askeach Distributea list of for one of thesejobs (giving studentto write a letterof application p e r s o n adl e t a i l sr.e a lo r i m a g i n a r y ) . eachof thesefirms and ask Divide the classinto groupsrepresenting them to write their replies.In these,they shouldsuggesta dateand time for an interviewor saythat the vacancyhasalreadybeenfilled, etc.
--z _u -1
-4
_1
v
---z -4
-1
v
-1
( e ) Complaints
a varietyof adsfor well-knownproductsand paste Selectfrom magazines theseon to cards.Ask eachstudentin the classto chooseone of theseads and to write a letterof complaintabouteitherthe productor the ad to the firm concerned. a big firm responsible Divide the classinto groups.eachrepresenting the lettersto distribute Then products. these number of a for advertising their replies.These write and the appropriatefirmsandaskthemto discuss shouldbe sentto the personu'howrotethe letterof complaint. (f) Campaigns Dividethe classinto groupsandaskeachgroupto decideon someaction theywouldtaketo improvetheirtown:for example,by pullingdown a certainbuilding;by providinga facilityof somekind, suchasa new swimmingpool, or tenniscourts:by wideninga street,etc. Eachgroupshould then announce,in the form of a pressreport,what they proposeto do. Each studentin the classis then invitedto respondto one or more of theseproposals:for example,by writing to the press;by writing, in collaborationwith two or more other students,a publicprotestor a notice callingfor a meetingto protestagainstthe proposal.or by writing anonymouslettersto the personsconcernedwith the proposal' (g) Notices Divide the classinto groups.Ask eachto drawup a noticeon a giventopic: for example,startinga pop groupor club;startinga protestagainst. . ', raisingfundsfor . . .. etc.At leasttwo groupsshouldwork on the sametask so that they cancomparetheir notices.
v y
-_-1
_H _1
v
-1
v
_1
v
ts .< a4 4 _f1
_1
y -
v _1
-v I -'1
( h ) Rulesand regulations Divide the classinto groupsand askeachgroupto draw up a list of rules and regulationsto controla certainsituation:for example,safety precautions(fire, hygiene,etc.) for a holidaycamp.After eachgroup has finisheddrawingup its list of rulesand regulations,askthem to compare thesewith thoseof other groups.
1
-v 1
-v --1
-v .V
(i ) Market research Divide the classinto groups.Ask eachgroupto draw up a market research for a certainproduct.Eachstudentshouldthenuseone of questionnaire to interviewotherstudentsin the class' questionnaires these
1
v -1
-v -1
-v OL
I -H -4 La
L -t
f--_L_ L---.L_ r--
r L_ r --iJ
- _-al
I--l
---r
L_ L_ L_ G--
rt-_-
r r=-
a_r----L
r__-
---
r 1_r r --
rr{
--t
l-L_ r---t
L_ f--L_ --L_ -..{ f_---r--
r L_u u u r u --t -1
-4
-=--
--t
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
5.5.2 Reportwriting activities
(a) Ourtown Dividethe classinto groups.Giveeachgroupthe taskof describing one featureof theirtown. Foiexample: - placesof interest - sportsfacilities - goodplacesto eatat - localindustries, etc. - entertainment facilities Eachgroupshouldwritetheirdescription in sucha way that the featuredescribed soundsattractiveto someonevisitingthe town. Each studentshouldalsomakehisown copyof the description. Thenform newgroups.makingsurethat theycontainat leastone from eachof the originalgroups,and askthemto write a representative full reporton theirtorvnbasedon thesedescriptions. The reportmay be by a mapshorving accompanied the locationof variousplacesof interest, etc. (b\ Publicinterviews Ask a studentwho is rvillingto be interviewedto cometo the front of the class.Ask the otherstudents to questionhim aboutsomeexperience, pleasantor unpleasant whichhe hashad,and to makenotes. Dividethe students into groups,askthemto comparenotesandto compilean accountof whatrvassaidby combiningvariousideas.Whenthe groupshavefinishedwritingtheirversions. theseshouldbe readaloudand compared. (c) Privateinterviews Ask eachstudentin the classto interviervanotherstudentaboutsome whichhe hashad.andto makenotes.Eachstudentshouldthen experience write a rough versionfrom his notesand showthis to the personhe interviewed beforewritingup the finalversion. (d) Book reports Ask eachstudentto writea reporton a book he hasread.If thereis a class library,he shouldchoosea book from thisandplacethe reporthe has writteninsidethe bookfor theguidanceof prospective readers.If thereis no classlibrary,the book reportsmaybe circulatedamongthe students in the classin a folder.Similarly,the studentsmaybe askedto reporton new recordsor on filmsthevhaveseen. (e) l,/oticeboard Ask the students to writeadsor noticesfor thingsrvhichtheywouldlike to sellor to buy.Theseshouldbe pinnedon the classnoticeboard or circulatedround the classin a folder.The noticeboardmay alsobe usedas the locationfor someof the activities in 5.6,e.g. 'problems', suggested 'hello' graffiti.jokes,or simply messages to otherstudentsin the class. (f) References Ask eachstudentin the classto requestat leasttwo otherstudents to write him a character reference. The variousreferences be shouldthen rvithone another. cclmpared
- ---
- --t
L-r-{
U
g ---t
63
J ) >t
I
I
->r l
I
---J IJ
(g) C/cssu,allsheet - itemsof Ask eachstudentto writea contributionfor a classrvallsheet Dividethe classinto threeorfour classneu,s.itemsof generalinterest. groupsand askthemto edit the variouscontributions. They mustalso Theservallsheets. decidehou,theseu'illbe arrangedon the u'allsheet. for the cltherstudentsto read. whencompleted.shouldbe displayed
--/
I
-
5.6 Writingfor fun
for fun writingin Chapter suggested We cango on usingmanyof the activities to the studentshorv it demonstrates 4. In factit is importantto do thisbecause in the language muchmorethev cangetout of an activityastheir proficiency importantto go on it is especially increases. Amongstthe activities suggested. jumbledtexts,role descriptions (seealso(d) usingquestionnaires andquizzes, andu'ritingaboutpicturesand speechbubbles.For below),imaginarl'diaries writingaboutpicturesin particularwe canbeginto expectmorethanjust a few sentences and ideasiotteddou'n.
.z
-,-1
u
=1
(a) Posingproblems
-
The students.u'orkingin pairsor smallgroups,think up problemsituations suchas: Whatw,ould1'oudo if . . . . . (theschoolcaughtfire I vou becarnePrime Ministertomorrow'I you had to live withoutwaterfor a monthI . . . .)? somewa,rsof geningor ntaking Weneed(f 1,000)at once.tCanyou suggest money? Theythensendtheseproblemsto oneor more otherpairsor groupsfor solutions. their sussested
,1
rJ
L-a
}-r r.4
_1
:-
(b) Writing cluesfor crosswords
I ]-1
o
working For thisthe students, S c H o o L in pairsor smallgroups.are ,tn \:-/ z o o givena crosswordpuzzle (perhapsmadeup b,vanother O c I R c U S group)like the one here. P A R K They then haveto writethe t 3 l L I B R A R Y 'clues'(which vou rvould F A c T o R Y normalli'begivento comPlete the crossu'ordpuzzle).These G A R A G E canbe literal.e.g.for school: \:-/ H o T E L You go thereto study, or amusing,A place wheretheytry hard to teachyou things. Alternatively,the 'clues'canconsistof a seriesof sentenceS, €,9. It's a very unpleasantplace wheretheytry to teachyou things. It's like a kind of prison. 'free'whenyou are (sixteen). You go therewhent-ouare (six)andyou are After that, it is usuallvdifficult to geta job . . . . .
o
o
o
,-1
I -k I
F -1
F _1
I
_u I
v
-1 l1 -1
_u -1
_u
64
I
IJ
1
_z ]-1
a-
) E V E L O P I NS GK I L L S
r_{
lr={ I_ r__{
L_ f f--_-f I-
r-
r-{
U r-{
f L_ I--r
(c) Instructionsfor a game
For the simpleboardgamebelow,the students, workingin groups,can write theirown instructions for movingroundthe board.For example: A If you havesomething to eatin your bag,go back2 squares. B If you wentto bedbefore10o'clocklastnight,go forward3 squares. C Unlessyou know how to ride a bike, go backfive squares. To play this game,the studentstake it in turnsto throw a dice,movins round the boardfirstfrom left to right, then right to left (etc,followin! the arrows).when they landon a square,they look at the instructions(giien in alphabeticalorder)to find out abouttheir move.The firstplaverto reach'home'is the winner. For this activitythe students,therefore,haveto write instructionsfor each letterof the alphabeton the board.
I-
f U r--r_{
f L:
B
K
L
F
o
A
R
O
X
C
H
v L .P
Z. F
J
Z
Y
D
S
K
C
X
V
P
T
O
H
B
S TART
V V
A
N
o w
I
F
M
I-
T
V
t--{
L
HOM
--
LLl_r=-Lf f- --t
-J
r----f
( d ) Role descriptions
This is a more advancedversionof the activitydescribedin 4.6 (f). The studentshaveto producedescriptions whichcouldbe usedfor simple simulationsituations(basedperhapson charactersin the coursebook).The text involvesmoresentence linkingandsequencing thanthe earlier activity,but is still a relativelystraightforwardpieceof writing. once again,the role descriptionis intendedfor a specificpersonand shouldaim to be amusing.
r r''r=-
You.rna'me ls Ja
r
A goat noL (f* husba,nd.likesd,rA*;ng /. ..) ( ff" want to be a/Uz to shop A supet'n"a,,'-p4
L ---t
--{
r t -Ja
- -1
L
r
quiakhl /. ,...)
4 blgfctin' ,An;*, (/*,
Li*z.to tua.,ve a- M 4
L cwol.wr .d- /...,)
r--t
-.4
L-41 l-_
r r,---
65
kfG
( e ) Scenarios
-
The students,u'orkingin groups,rvrite'scenarios'like the onein 5.2.1(c) or shortstorieswhichthe1,giveto oneanotherto decidehow to actout. Noticethat the scenario for talk but doesnot giveany of hasopportunities the actualwords.Thuswe havean activitvwhichdevelopsasfollows:
4
-4
-1
-1
G R O U P SD I S C U S SA N D W R I T E S C E N A R I O S
e. t
-1
G R O U P SE X C H A N G ES C E N A R I O S
^1 k
GROUPSWORK OUT AND \\TRITE DIALOGUE. ETC.
_a
_-1
G R O U P SA C T O U T S C E N A R I O S
_1
a1
(f) ItnccurateaccoLttlts The students,workingin groups,write a description of a well-known person,placeor thingor an accountof an eventwhichcontainssome deliberatemistakesof fact.The groupsthenexchange whattheyhave writtenand try to detectthe inaccuracies.
1
<
F F
(g) Jumbledstories This is similarto 4.6 (e), exceptthat the students,workingin groups,have to write two shortstoriesof aboutfour to six sentences each.The stories canbe aboutthe samepersonor a similarevent.The storiesarethen cut up into separatesentences andgivento anothergroupto sortout into the two orisinalstories.
!4
tI
I
lJ -1
TWO TALL STORIES
Make two storieswith thesesentences: (a) The womanwho u'assittingbehindthe elephantcouldn'tsee. (b) "I'm not surprised."the elephantsaid."The coffee'snot verygood." (c) "He's readthe book." the mansaid."Now he wantsto seethe fiIm."
_1
1 fi 1
_l1
(d) A man oncetook his elephantfriendto the cinema.
-
(e) The waitergaveoneto him andthe elephantdrankit.
1
(0 One day an elephantwent into a caf6and askedfor a cup of coffee.
1
(g) "Why haveyou broughtthiselephantin here?"sheasked.
-
(h) "We don't seemanyelephants in here,"the waitersaid.
-
1
--a
--a
-
66
1
-1 l-
L
1,----1
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
l_-I
L: L:
l_l_-,--1
i= l_-,-1t
l-_-l_l_ -,-11
--1i
(h) Jigsawwriting Cut up anysuitablepicture:it shouldhavea clearoverallstructureand some,but not too much,detail.Give onesuchpictureto eachgroupand askthe studentsto work in pairsto work out a description of one or more pieces.Theyshouldnot look at oneanother'spieces.Whentheyhave writtenout theirdescriptions, theyshouldput awaytheirpiecesandtry to work out what the pictureasa wholelookslike from what they have written.Whentheyhavedescribed, orallyor in writing,the complete picture,theycancheckthisagainstthe visual. (i) Instructionsfor drawinga map or picture The students. workingin groups,haveto drawa simplemapor picturelike the onesbelow.Theythenwork out the stepby stepinstructions for drawingthese.For example.for the picture: 1 Draw two trees,oneon the left of the pictureandthe otheron the right.
L-
2 Thereis a rope betweenthe two trees.It is aboutfour feet from the ground.
L-
3 Draw a manon the rope.He is walkingfrom left to right.He is wearing a hat andhe hasa stickin his handand . . . . ., etc.
]---Ji
r-_J
l_r_J
L_ LL_ L.---J
--1
They mustdecidehow muchdetailfheywant to include(theycanof course changetheir pictureat thisstage)but they mustmakesurethat their instructionsare clear. The groupsthenexchange instructions and try to drawone another's pictures.As a finalstagetheychecktheirpicturesagainstthe originalones.
.--J
.-J,
l_ -,1
L.-1
1--LL-.L_ L_ -/-.J
--1
---J
l-
lL_
U) Headlines Give eachgrouponeor moreheadlines, like thoseshownon the nextpage. Thesecanbe inventedor takenfrom realnewspapers. to Ask the students discuss andwriteout the relatedstory.At thislevel(andfor the purposeof thisactivity)the students shouldnot be askedto try to writea newspaper accountof the story.The importantthingis for themto usetheir imagination. Ideasitremr)reimportantthanformallycorrectlanguaee. lf ,
L-
67
I--l
t; l_. u
).-1
---1
.---1
l-r--J
L _t-.--z
i= ,-1
Y Vl
]4
vou cilll cc)lllpare h o g , e y c r , t h e h e a d l i n c c 0 l 1 es f r r l t t t a r e a l l l e \ \ ' s p a p e r .
h e a d l i n e sy'o u t h c i r' e r s i r ) ' \ \ ' i t ht h e. r i g i . a l . l f a l l g r o u p sh a ' e t h e s a m e acrossthe clltss' crinalsoconlpareVersions
V
v. ..J
R e a l o rimaginarybook titlescanalsobe usedto stimulatea similar activity.For example:
1
.1 V
I j.
[4Rs J U ST
cnEr
-1
v
I
v.
FRIENDS
I V
(k) Graffiti liketo writeon wallsfromtimeto time:thisactivitymay Moststudents
1 ]-1
themto be morecreative! encourage graffiti.Iike those of imaginative Give the studentssomeexamples
I t
below.
}J
DIEHEALTHIIR JOO-AIVD rl
|/
tteogrqpn), ry,ififfiffi,f A,, Atcw is everyvvhere iurr,rs
._1
!_1
r-
il[r'ffi)k
1l fd
.il1
hand at writing Then askthem (individuallv,in pairsor groups)to try their or their own graffiti.It sometimeshelpsto suggestan event a location'
I f-
I-
,fl? I-
I
i
r-
Dis cu s s i o n
that: with the suggestion Saywhetheryou agreeor disagree (a) dialoguewritingshouldbe continued; iUi rorn. tormalletteru'ritingshouldbe introduced'
rr_
Give reasons.
r,_
68
l'_ i
il rr I
L -
---.Jt
L-
D E V E L O P I NSGK I L L S
r_J
!-:
In whatwaysdo manyof the writingtasksproposedin thischapterinvolvea muchcloserintegrationthanat earlierstages with otherlanguage activities in the classroom? Do vou agreewith thisdevelopment? Many of the activities proposed in thischapterwouldinvolvemoreclasstime beingspenton writing.Do you think that thiswouldnecessarily be a wrong way of usingclasstime?Givereasons. Many of the activities in 5.5and5.6arelikelyto resultin the students makingmistakes. Doesthisworryyou?
LLl_aa,-1
Lr_-,---1
-__-1
Exercises
l-LL_ -.---,1
r--J
t_ r--J
L, LLL_ LL--- ' LLL--- l_Ll-=-
Deviseotherexercises similarto thosein 5.2.I for practising dialoguewriting at the post-elementary level. Devisean exercise similarto the onein 5.2.2so that the cuesarephasedout and the studentsareaskedto writethe finaltext unaided. write an exercise, similarto the finalone in 5.3 (d). After you havejumbled up the items,givethe exerciseto a friend for checking. This is the completetextfor 5.3 (a): JanetWest'ssisteris an air hostess for a famousinternationalairlineand Janetwantsto becomeonetoo. However,sheis still too young:the minimum agefor an air hostess is twentyandJanetis only just over slrteen. For the momentshehastakena 16bin an office.But shealsoattends eveningclasses. In particular,shewantsto improveher Frenchand Spanishbecauseforeignlanguages are an importantqualificationfor an air hostess. MeanwhileJanetis gainingexperiencethroughher present job. For the officesheworksin is a travelagency.In this way sheis learning not only how to dealwith peoplebut alsoquite a lot aboutthe placessheone day hopesto visit.
I '
r__J
-.J
r---ill
--1
Now completethe exerciseat the end of 5.3 (a) to practisegrammaticaland lexicalcohesion. Devisea rewritingactivitv.basedon the text in 4 above,similarto one in 5 . 3( c ) . From vour own experience of teaching(or learning)a foreignlanguaee. suggest otheractivities similarto thoseproposedfor 5.5and5.6.
--
---/t
}J
---1
r---J
--_4
L,L-1
l-
r--1
)--z
ll_---1
.-1
L -,_-1
l-
r >--J
t-:
References
On guidedwritingseeA Pincas(1982a)pagesI0Z-9 andS Holden(ed) ( 1 9 8 3p ) a g e s4 9 - 5 7 . For the techniqueof interviewing the classseeN coe in S Holden(ed) (1983).Also L Wineron conducting a lessonthroughwriting. a J For writtencommunicative activities seeJ Harmer(1983)pages132-140. 4 For writingactivities at thislevelseeT Hedge(1983aand 1983b);T Juppand J M i l n e ( 1 9 8 0 ) ; AP i n c a (s1 9 8 2 ba n d 1 9 8 2 ca) n dL W o o d s( 1 9 8 6 ) . Examplesof writingactivities in thischapterhavebeentakenfrom: D Byrne FunctionalComprehen^slon (Longman1986newed.) 5.2.I(a);5.2.2(b)and ( c ) ; 5 . 3 ( a ) - ( ca) n d( e ) ; J H a r m e ri l t e r i d i a n( L o n g m a n1 9 8 55) . 2 . 3 ( c ) : T HedgePento Paper(Nelson1983)5.3(d)firstexample;M palmerand D Byrne TrackJ (Longman1983)5.6(b), (g) and (i) andA pincaswritingin English1 (ivlacmillan 1982)5.3(d)secondexample. 69
FJ f1
_--1
--1!
_-1
It
-1
I
I
-
Contextsfor writing: the useof texts
_1 L-
.-1
'-
w i-{ .)1
14 I f-
I I
6.1 The text as context
Texts- read or listenedto - offer a naturalcontextfor a wide rangeof writing activities.We often read or hear somethingand reactby making a note, for eximple. or writing a letter. However.our responsemight equallywell be oral and itrir t inO of linked reaction.with a variety of skills taking place, will be dealt with under Integratedskills in Chapter 8. This chapterwill be more narrowly concernedwith the important, though often neglected,skills of notetaking and summarising.First, however,we willlook briefly at various types of comprehensionactivity. sincethis can also be a useful and effectiveway of p r o r i d i n gw r i t i n gp r a c t i c e .
Comprehensioneierciseson a text are a weli-establishedway of providing 6.2 Co m p r e h e n s i o n writing practiceof various kinds, and it is not the purposeof this sectionto examini the wide range of possibilitiesin this area. Many such exercisescan be activities
done orally: for example.questionson a text, decidingwhetherstatementsare true or false, etc. It ma1'lseconveniertrto ask for theseto be done in writing but this is not intrinsicto the task. On the other hand, there are certainsituationsin rvhich it rs appropriateto chooseu'riting as the medium of response. This is particularly the caseu'hereexercisesrequire the studentsto examine the meaningof the text very carefully: for example,if they are asked to decideu,hetherthere is sufficientevidencein the text to support certain statementsor whether certain statementsareimplied by the text. In caseslike this the studentscannot be expectedto respondquickly becausethey are probably having to examinethe meaningof severalsentencesin order to find the answers. Getting the studentsto write out answersof this kind is also a way of encouragingthem to usewriting for activitieswhich require thought and precision- precisionwhich perhapscan only be attained after several attempts.Oral work is not of courseprecluded:the studentscan collaborateon thesetasksand there can be somewhole classfollow-up'
70
<
I-
rr< f-
14
l4
I -1
I f-
I-
f-
1 l<
f.-.
f,-
lr
f-
rt<
l-r
L --44
t-:
CONTEXTSFORWRtTtNG:THEUSEOF TEXTS
l_ l_
Sometypesof comprehension taskmay alsocallfor the productionof two or moresentences: that is. a shorttextof somekind. This,for e.xample, ,igh, be the typeof re-writingexercise suggested in 5.3 (c) or drscussron type questions whichcallfor the learner s' owt'tresponses to certainideasexpressed in the text.Exercises of the latterkind areespecially valuablebecause irr.v allowthe writtenmediumto be usedfor the .*pr.rrion of personal opinion within a contextprovidedby the text. Another typeof rewritingexercise frequentlyusedis the guidedsummary, illustratedin 6.2-1below.Thiscanbe a useiulpreparationfor summary writing basedon moreextensive texts(see6.3.Z).
rL--.J
r .--1
l_-
tr l_-,-1
Ll_l_ )-1
rLI
Lr__J
t-1!--
t-_ L L L-.J
r 1
t-H ll_ .4
q l;
l_ L >-1
tr u H-
L L f-
.
6'2'1 Guidedsummary writing:an example
Sometypesof guidedsummaryrvritingareverymuchmorecontrolled thanthe one below'For example,the siudentsaregiventhe actualsentences to be used in the summaryandmerelyhaveto link thlse with appropriateconnecting wordsand phrases,whichare alsoprovided.Althougirthis gives the students practicein continuous writing,it doesnot teachsummarising skills,rvhichmust involvesomeform of note-taking.Noticein the examplebeiowguidance fir the summaryis providedthroughquestionson the texi, to which it is suggested that the answersshouldbe in noteform. Today,air traveris far saferthan drivinga car on a busy motorway. But thereis a dangerthat growseveryyear.Airlinersget laigerand laiger. Somecancarr.y 300passengers. And the air itseribecori., nror. uiJ -over more crowded.If one giantairlinercrashedinto anotherin mid_air.600 livescould be lost. From the momentan airrinertakesoff to the momentit lands,every movementis watchedon radarscreens.Air trafficcontrollers tell the pil,ot exactlywhen to turn, whento climb and when to comedown. The air trafficcontrollersarounda busvairport like London-Heathrow may handle 2500planesa day.Not all of themactuallylandat the airport. Any prane that fliesnearthe airportcomesunderthe ordersof the controllersthere. Even a smallmistakeon theirpart couldcausea disaster. Recentlysucha disasteralmosthappened.Two largejets rvere flying towardsthe airport.one wascarrying69 puss.ngers and had comefrom Toronto. The.otherwascarrying176passlng..riro* chicago. An air trafficcontrollernoticedon his radaricreenihut the two planes weretoo closeto eachother.He orderedone to turn to the right andto climb.But he madea mistake.He orderecr the wrongpraneto Jo this.So,insteadof turningawayfrom the secondplane,tne nist planeturnecr torvardsit. Fifteenseconds laterit flewdirectryin front oi tt. secondplane.They avoidedeachotherby thesmallest partof a second.The distance between themwaslessthanthatof a larseswimmingpool.Thisis an exampleof the dangerthat growsevervyear. Describethe disa.ster thut olntosthoppened.write oneparagraphof abouteighty words. Answerthesequestiorts irtnotefonn to getyoLtrpomts; 1) What werethe tu'oplanesdoincat the time,/ 2) Wherehadthevcornefrom'l 3) What did an air trafticconrrollertlo anclrvhvJ 71
l-r \: -z
= ---1
r.d
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
J ld
-1) What was the result'l -5) What \\'asnarro\\'lvavoided'l This type of activitvis a usefulfirst stepin gettingstudentsto make notes ivhichthey will do somethingu'ith. lt doesnot. of course,shou'themhow to make notes.which is a problemrvervill now look at.
6.3 Note-takingand summarising
The relevanceof the skillsof note-takingand summarising*to writing tasksat this level shouldnou' be apparent:thel' are a commonfeatureof many writing activitiesu'hichrelatein somewav to what we haveread or heard.sincewe often make a note of certainideasand then re-presentthem in someother form. These.then. are importantskillsfor the learnersand it is essentialthat 'classroom' thev shoulclnot be left rviththe impressionthat they are artificial activities.which are of little practicalvalueexceptfor the purposeof passing examinations.and this too only if they are executedaccordingto certain formulas.This appliesparticularlvto summarising.Yet this is how thel'are commonlvpresentedand practised:the studentsare askedto take noteswith no specificpurposein mind and to u'ritesummariesin a wav u'hichinvolves both distortionand contortion.lt is not deniedthat there is an important in theseactivities, elementof control and discipline(or at leastself-discipline) activities meaningful bur the purposeof this can bestbe broughthome through rather than by proceduresmechanicallyapplied. It shouldalsobe clearthat theseare skillsthat cannotbe fully developed until the learnershave reacheda certainproficiencyin the language,althoughit will be arguedthat u'e can and shouldfirst presentthem on areceptivebasis. That is. the learners areshon,nwhat notesand summarieslook like in relation to an original text. There are alsosimple taskswhich the learnerscan be asked to perform before thev carrv out activitieson a more extensivescale. To appreciatejust hou,difficulttheseskillsare, evenfor the nativeuserof the language.u'e would do well to considerwhat is involvedin them. With note-taking.for example.we haveto be ableto identify key items in a text. which is in itself a searchingtest of comprehensionand clearl.vmuch more difficult if u,e are listeningrather than reading,when at leastwe have the opportunityto scrutinisethe text at leisure.We aisohaveto be able to reduce or compresstheseitems in a way that is at leastsufficientto allow us to retrieve The task of meaningfulabbreviationcallsfor a good their originalmeanin-q. knowledgeof how the languageworks. Likewisethe ability to re-presentthese key ideasin sucha wav that thev constitutean acceptabletext. with is much closerto advancedthan and sequencing. appropriatesentence-linking guidedwriting. While it mav be true that, when we are summarising'the text 'content' of what we write. in many respectsit is more provides us u'ith the Oifncultto operateu'ithin the constraintsof someoneelses thoughtsthan to produceour own.
(r.-. .\
li --.,-1
y
Id
1
!Il
l-1
F 1 l-
1 f-
1
:f-
f-
f-
U. 14 .1 ]1
ik _1
r<
L 1 7k
I-.
fI 1
r< *For convenience,note-takingis usedto refer to the activityboth of making noteson a text which has been read and of takingnoteson a text which hasbeenheard.It is acknou'ledgedthat notetaking is itsella form of suLmarising.Hou'ever,summarisingis usedhere to refer to the activitl' of ,e-priseuti,tgn ,ho.t.r versionof thCoriginaltext. althoughnot accordingto any set prcscription. such as usinea given number of q'ords.
f-
f-
f-
'72 r,<
Lr
L )_a
l_l_
CONTEXTSFORWRITING:THEUSEOFTEXTS
l -
L-{
tr_ l_ i: r_ l_ r_--1
---J
-,--1
--1
6.3.1 Note-taking
It hasbeensuggested that the initialphaseof note-taking*shouldconsist mainlyof showingthe learnerswhat noteslook like andof demonstrating that, althoughthereare no magicformulas.sincenote-taking is to someextenta personalactivity,therearea numberof wavsof reducinga text to notesso that ideasin it arenot lost.We shouldstart,therefore,by showing the fundamental how notesrelateto a text.For example,we canpresentboth a text and a setof notesandexaminehorvthe writerarnvedat his notes. JohnSmith,who wasbornon December6,1957,is a secondary school teacher.His wife'snameis Jovce.Thevhavethreechildren:onesonand two daughters.
I ril/./n-an, J Jh.ilh borrclgtl I Unchtrf worritd.,wi,th
-'1
l_ ---L
l_ -,-41
l-L--{ L--' l-. LL_ Ll_ .' L_ l_ ---z l_ l_ )-z l_ l-l_ l_-L l_l_ lL-
We may alsousefullycontrastone setof noteswith another.For example:
Ja* frurl4 Btrn : b.l2,t/ .fec.scho4 tqa'ohtr WLJA t)yu
t-
l-
---1 -,1
--1
-4
I son Z earyh,tuls
By comparingtwopossible setsof noteswe canaskthe studentsto identify rvhatinformationhasbeenpreserved in both andwhatotherinformationeach writer hasincludedor omitted.We canalsoexaminesomeof the deviceswhich havebeenused.For example.the examination of evenshortsetsof noteslike theserevealsthatwe canomit pronouns.auxiliaryverbs,articlesand connectives. and thatwe canalsousenumeralsandsymbols.We canalsobegin to look at the questionof abbreviations. of whichthereis only one examplein (sec. the notes for secondary) anddiscuss how thiswasmade(i.e. in thiscase, by takingthe firstsvllableof the rvord)andwhetherotheronesarepossible(for example.sclz.for school). It will alsohelpstudents to be shorvndifferentwaysof settingnotesout. F o r e x a m p l et,h em o d e l b e l o rdvo e sn o t c o m m i t h e mt o a n vp a r t i c u l aor r d e r . and.perhapsmoreimportant.allou'sadditionalrelatedinformationto be addedin at the rightpoint.especiallv if you arereadinga longtext.For w h e r e n ' a s example. J o h nS m i t h b o r n .t h e n a m eo f t h es c h o ohl e t e a c h eisn a n d t h e s u b i e c t se.t c .
---
econdaty
--4 -1
-,1
=-J
=--1
2 da.uqhters '*-fhis can [re hcgtrnat an cltrlic'rstagcilnd prlctisctl l r t r n tt i r n c t ( ) l i r n e r r sl p r c p l r r l t i ( ) ni { ) r I n ( ) r c c \ l ( ' n \ i \L 'r r ( ) l c - l i l k i n: rgc t i irt i c s .
-__1
.-J
---2
-,---J
!-,
-1
/ -',
l\. tl.J
u
-1
v.
--t I L A U H I N UW H I I I N U b K I L L 5
---1
rz
l n a d d i t i o nt o a s k i n gt h e s t u d e n t st o e x a m i n es e t so f n o t e sa l o n gt h e s e lines,we ma1,take a numberof textsand discusshow we might arrive at a set of notes:for example.\\'ecan underlinekev items.bracketwords or phrasesthat can be omitted. and considerpossiblecontractions.Finally.we can work out v'ith the studentsa possibleset of notes. Another usefulactir,itv.to be carriedout with fairly long texts.is to ask the studentsto identifl'the main ideasin a text. For example.as a first step.we can give them a list of the main ideas.presentedin random order, and ask them dealtwith in the text. Subsequently, to put thesein the order in u'hichthe1,'are they may be askedto identifl,themain ideasfor themselves. At this stage.too. u'hen*'e first askthe studentsto take notes,it is helpful, both in order to focustheir attentionon specificaspectsof the text and to ensurethat they keep their notesshort.to givethem somesort of framework u'ithin which to u'ork. in the form of a chartto be completed.The activitieson page75 show how it is possibleto focus the attentionof the studentson particularaspectsof a text (in this case.one for readingfollowed by a related one for listeningto). r.rhichare the pointsthey needto make a note of. Studentsenjov this kind of activitl,'becauseit is intrinsicallymore enjoyable than simplymaking a stringof notes.Equally important.however,the useof chartsobligesstudentsto be concise. Mani' gamesand gamelikeactivitiesinvolvekeepingnotes,and this is home to the studentstheir real importance.One anotherway of bringin-q activityin particularu,ill be found useful:this is a variationon Describeand draw. Instead of trying to drau' a picture which someonedescribesfor them without their being ableto seeit, the students make notesas they listen.They can then either compare notes and subsequentl,v. individually or in coliaboration.carry out one of the following tasks: - describethe picture orally; -
draw the picture;
-
write a descriptionof the picture
Usually the studentsfeel more comfortable making notesas a first stage(rather than being askedto try to draw the picture straightoff) and, of course,the activitv doesgive them an immediate use for the notesthey have made.
_1
v. 1,
-
U ,1
-u
y
-1
u lv
I f .
-1l. ) r-J
I --l
) IJ
-_z
u. ---1
u. -1 ).1. -1 )-2
B . c . D . . . l i s t e n ,a s kq u e s t i o n s a n d m a k en o t e s
L ).1 .1
a-a
B,c,D...comparenotes
I
r.< 1
Lz
B. c, D . . . usenotes:talk. drar.i' or write
-1
a-{ I a-J I ]1 I ].1 I )1 I .-z 1 f,.d
74
-1 f-d
z
- ]a-
L E
CONTEXTSFORWRITING:THEUSEoF TEXTS
l_ r__{
L r-J
1 Use information in the text to complete this table. If there is no information. put a questionmark.
l_
r r-_d
L-
tr l_
,#
overnight
-,1
l-l-_
LAN
),r
4
Bea
l_ )-4
l_ L-
Scotland is different. It's exciting. It's easy to get to. and it's cheap to travel around in. There are plenty of travel bargains.
meals 2 How would you travel if you wanted to do these things? ar watch a film on the journey b) take your car to Scotiand without driving it c) get to Scotland as quickly as possible
.--J
3 Listen and answer: NIr Smith wants to go to Scotland. so he goes to a travel agency. The travel agent tells him differenLways of travelling. Horv doesNIr Smith decide to go to Scotland? Why?
r-_J
l_ r-<
L_ l_ --4
BY CAB
4 Mr Smith wants to know to get to Scotland. What agent tell him? Listen to again and complete this
It only ta
.--1
l_ Ll_ aL---,J
BY COA
r-=-J
M L
How long?
coaches run every day from
fast and during the
J-1
other big cities.They are You q'Cnwatch films
irr you can sleepin overnight
L-
how long it takes does the travel the conversation table:
traln
se
plane
r---J
l_ .-4
t-: H 1l_ ._/ l_ r-J
coach a p l e a s u r ei n i t s e l f . T h e m o d e r n , h i g h speedtrains are quiet, comfortable and air-conditioned. You can enioy a good meal during your journey. Or you can travel overnight.Take your car on the train with you. Start your holiday f resh and relaxed.
5 Complete this table: WAYS OF TRAVELLING TO SCOTLAND (for one person) quickest
BYAIR The fastest way to travel. There are several flights from London every day, and regular services from many European citi€s.
cheapest
most comfortable
L . ,-1
l_ L,_, 't-1
1-: L H-
L L L-
L
75
Lr f-
v
-1
-v
..'
SKILLS T E A C H I NW G RITING
v
trainingaloncthcselinesu'ill ensurethat the studentsare Sy'stematic adequatelypreparedfornote-taking'At the sametime' we can also sure demonstrate thepracticalt'alueof note-takilg:for example.by making for that the studentsexercisethis skill when rvegivethem instructions date' In a later at out carrv to have they which activities.includinghomeu'ork. purposeful is a this way. it is hoped.thev u,ill be ableto seethat note-taking
--.1
v.
1
-v --1
v.
activity.
6.3.2 Summarising
76
read or SunmarisinC- producinCa shortenedversionof a text rvhichhas been of heard- is bestviewedas a skill which is realisedthroughdifferentkinds and of writing' Reportson speeches \\,riting,ratherthan as a special.fo,77? of svrtopses and articles of ntintttis of meetingsare summaries:so are obstracts at books.At one end of the scale,summariesmay be quite lengthydocuments: of the other. no more than a few iines.One factorrvhichdeterminesthe length summarised of the u'riter a summaryis the actualamountof spacervhichthe bv versionhasat his disposal.A report on a meeting.to be read and studied report on a thosewho were not present.ma\Ihaveno prescribedlength' u'hile a haveto be may ne\\'spaper in a meetingu,hichhasbeenu ritten to be published the which for fitted into half a column or less.Another factoris lhe purpose summarvhasbeenu,ritten:it may'be intendedto provide a record of some hand. event,in rvhichcasebrevitvwill not be the main concern'On the other guide for a is likely to be importantif it is intendedto serveas corrciseness wishesto find someonewho doesnot haveiime to read the originaltext or who out u'hetherit is worth reading' All this. of course.is a long u'avfrom summarisingasit is traditionally the practisedin the classroom.but therewoulclseemlittle point in practising those like activities realistic wa,v to ititt ut all unlesswe can relateit in some only make it describedabove.A more flexibleview of sunmary u'ritingwill not work with a more purposefulactiyityfor the students;it will alsoenableus to different differentkinds of material.both spokenand written. and of very a summarised in although lengths.It wiil fuither enableus to demonstratethat. - the main versionwe are alwa),sconcernedto preserveessentiaiinformation the summary ideas- how u,edo this is affectedboth by the purposein making and the amount of spaceat our disposal' Through note-takingwe have alreadyto a large extent laid the foundations the main for summarising;in particular, through activitiessuch as identifying rvith work to convenient points in a text ir.. 6.: . 1) . Becauseat the start tt is setting iairll,short texts(like the one in 6.2.1).we haveto be carefulto avoid of materialwhich is unrealistictaskswhich rl ould involvethe compression to give a already succinctlyexpressed.Hou'et'er, the studentsmaY be asked ratherthan a set ."ru*d, oral or written. in a givennumberof sentences the best useof the make to students the number of words.This encourages at their disposal' number of sentences kinds of As with note-taking.we must alsosftowthe studentswhat various of ways' summarisedversionsof a text look like. This can be done in a number (which is texts of study For example.we may reiatethis activityto the intensive the form of a o.o61*on activityaithis stage),bv settingthem a readinggoal in reflects summarv.which asksthem to decidewhetherthe summaryaccurately notes. of with examples the main icleasin the text. we ma1'alsocompare,as
- zl2 ' -1 u
---2
-
-1
v. I
u 1t
r.z I
rz 1 I -
-1 I
I<
I-1
_1 lz -1
tu
--t -.1 I
r-: 1 I
1 Lz
I
f-r -1 l'-a
1 I-.
-1 ]-1
-1
r-r ,1
f-r
I.J
-a-. -
L 4
Ll_
CONTEXTSFORWRITING:THEUSEoF TEXTS
r=_J
r l_ r Lr L--Z
f___{
L-1
!--
1-
L-i v-i
t-
i
L-i L-i L-1 L-i L-i L-l L-i l_i r-J
I
]1
|
.-4
i
.--4
|
L-a
I
._1
|
r=J
I
.-'l
L-i
r .-4
l=.l-l_ La,---J
.--J
H
l_ aaJ
l-' L 11
two or threesummaries of differentlengths,so that the students candecideto whatextentthe essential ideasof theoriginalhavebeenretainedin each.and how the lengthof the summarised versionsmayaffectboth whatis included and how it is expressed. However,the practicalvalueof summarising canonly be fully brought homeif we work with fairly'longtexts.How thisis donemustof course..lut. to the levelandinterests of the students. Theymay be askedto write abstracts of chaptersof bookstheyhaveread.For example.the communication taskin 5.5.2(d) mav be reformulated sothat theywrite 'blurbs'for the booksrvhich thevhaveread.In someclasses. it mav be moreusefulto work with textsrvhich areheardratherthanread.For example,somedialogues wherethe speakers aredealingwith a well-defined theme,suchasmakingplans,lendthemselves well to reportingactivities throu-sh rvhichsummarising canbe practised. Incjeed the taskof writinga notice.basedon whatthe speakers havesaid,is a form of summarv,with a specialcommunicative purpose.If listeningfacilitiesare available,the students, dividedinto two halves,may be askedto listento two reportson a townor on an accident, broadlythe samebut differingin details. They maythenbe askedto writesummarised versionsof whattheyhaveheard andsubsequently to comparetheseso asto identifythe similarities and differences. But to demonstrate fullv thepractical'application of summarising rveshall probablyhaveto relv mainlvon activities rvhichinvo.lve someform of roleplay. F o r e x a m p l et.h e ' e s t a t ea g e n c v ' a c t i v ist vu g g e s t ei nd 5 . 5 . 1( a ) i s w e l l s u i t e d to thispurpose.Eachstudentmavbe askedto rvritea comprehensive description of the propertyhe wishesto sell.rvhichis thensivento otherstudents. preferablyrvorkingin pairsor smallsroups,to 'edit' in sucha way that the description fitsinto a givenamountof spacefor the purposeof advertising. Similarlythe students mav be given,or askedto write. 'articles' of differentkindssuch asnewsreports,socialevents, book andfilm reviews.letters t o t h ee d i t o r .e t c . ,f o r w h i c ht h e lengthis not specified. A s e l e c t i oonf t h e s ei s g i v e nt o eachgroupof students, togetherwith the layoutfor the pageof a newspaper asshown in the diagram.Their taskis to f i t t h e s ep i e c e o s f w r i t i n go n t o the page.Thevhave,therefore. to considerbothwhereto place their articles,rvithinthe limits laid down,andto modifythem as necessary, whichmight i n v o l v ee i t h e re x p a n s i oonr reduction.
R4@
&e@sprnqNumber
t--Z
1-: L_ )--J
l-. L-
u =---a
77
It \i
,T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
Through actii,itiesalongtheselines(and aisowithin the broadercontextof simulations,see8.4). the skill of summarisingmay be practisedand developed in a realisticway. The requirementsof examinationsmay demandthat this skill shouldbe usedin a much more limitedway. suchas makingsummariesin the traditional sense,for rvhich thepurposemav not be at all apparent,but these need not be allowedto distortthe rvaywe teachand practisethis skillin the
__v 1
-
classroom. _v.
Discussion
1 Make a list of the thingsyou use note-takingand summarisingfor' Arrange theseunder two headings:frequent andoccasional.Compareyour list with a friend. 2 From your reading of.6.3.2.do you agreethat summarywriting is an important and valuableactivitY? 3 How effectivedo 1'outhink the final activity in 6.3.2 would be for teaching summary writing?
Exercises
1 Examineany textbookat an appropriatelevelto seewhat attemptis made to practisenote-takingand summarywriting. Are the activitieswellpresented? 2 Do the exercisein 6 .2.1. 3 M a k e n o t e so n t h e t e x t i n 6 . 2 . 1 ,u s i n gt h e d i a g r a mm o d e l s h o w ni n 6 . 3 . 1 .D o you think it is more suitablefor this type of text than conventionalforms of note-taking? 4 Find a suitablepicture and try out the Describeand note in 6.3.1 with some friends. What difficultiesdid you have?
References
1 The texr on pageTlcomes from R o'Neill: Flight (Longman 1973). 2 Onnote-taking seeJB Heaton in S Holden (ed) (1977)Keep it short and JB Heaton (I975) pages18-28. 3 On summarisingseeM Donley (1975). 4 The illustrative material on page75 comesfrom M Palmer and D Byrne Tracki (1983).
=1
_v -1
,-1
,1
_u
y
_1
_-1 f-f '7.
* r.: co -!.-fd
f.-
--1
-u -v -1
v
1
-rz 1
y
v
-r.J
_v ].1
--'..1 -1 _k tx
1 -.k -4 l,-t
L -'
r_:__J
LLLLr--{t
r---I
r.---a
r l_u r.__{
- --J
r-J
Contextsfor writing: the useof visualmaterial
--J
L--Lr-{
L-,----
U
u l -
r-_.-
L_ LLLLLLL-,LLl_ r-
7.1 Somegeneral considerations
framework an dttractiveandstimulating At firstglance,visualmateriaioffers is if someform of pictureSequence used,andfor for writingpractice.especially respondfavourablyto taskswhich thisreasonno doubtthe learnersgenerally the otherhand,if we considerthe relateto somekind of visualcontext.On kind of writing activitywhichoften resultsfrom the useof visualmaterial'composition'with no specificgoalin mind,except narrativeanddescriptive that narrativetaskscouldbe saidto take the form of tellinga story- it is clear that visualmaterialcaneasilylenditselfto the practiceof writingfor writing's valueandwhichwill not contribute sake.of a kind that hasno communicative of rvritingskills.Partof the problemat least to the development significantly visual materialis generallyused:for the most seemsto be the levelat which part,thisis at a fairlyearlystageof the course,when'picturecomposition' a specialplacein the programme.As writingin particulartendsto be accorded to usedin the earlystages, rvehaveseen.visualmaterialcanbeappropriately is otherformsof practice.but whatneedsparticularconsideration supplement than guidance rather need lel'el,wherethe Iearners its useat a moreadvanced controiandwherethe contextsit offerscanbe morefully exploited.The main concernof this chapterwill be to identifythe kindsof writing activitywhichcan levei. be derivedfrom differenttypesof visualmaterialat the post-elementary
7. T . T Typesof visual material
trvomaincategories: We maydividevisualmaterialinto (a) Pictorial:this categoryincludessinglepicturesandpicturesequences. (b) Plans,maps,diagrams:diagramsincludematerialsuchasgraphsand andperhapsa few items,suchasheadings, charts(i.e.theycontainTSgltres in words).
f,--rl
r,-..J
G.J
r-..J r-.Jt
-,---t
--<.
-----J
I.-J
l_----
l_ --J
l-.-' L L l_ l-=J
r-r
.--J
1-= l_
u .----J
By its vervnaturevisualmaterialprovidesa muchmoreopen-ended Lt.2 practicethantexts.The visualcontentdoesof course Theuseanclabuse framelvorkfor language o f v i s u a lm a t e r i a l
the rvhichcanbe used.particularly'in the language to somee.\tent cletermine 79
rl f-
-z -/ z
-/
l c x i c a la r e a .a l t h o u g he r e n h e r cu ' e r r r cn o t t i c d t o u n \ is t : to f i t e n t s .l n o t h e r rcspecls.horl'ever. \\e are frec ttl exploitthe matcrialaswe u'ish. I/ie special edt,ontugeo.[ thisi.sthatve con rtsethe sentepiecco.fmateriulat differentlevels and alsofor di.fferertt\ pes o.f x'ritirtg. On the other hand. the verv fact that visualmaterialis open-endedhasits dangers.There is the risk that the learnersu,ill interpretthe visualcontentin a the languagepermits.This u'avthan their proficiencl,'in more sophisticated mav involvesomeforn of mentaltranslation.lvhichin turn resultsin inappropriateand incorrectexpression.Even if errorsare not our main concern,it is undesirablethat they shouldresultfrom the learnersfailing to make full and proper useof the languagethet' haveacquired:both oral and u'rittenpracticemust. asone of its goals.aim to shorvthe learnershow the,vcan *'ithin the limits of the ianguagethey know. Writing tasks. expressthemselr.'es therefore.haveto be rerv carefulll'definedand the learnersgiven appropriate preparationfor thenl. I f v i s u a lm a t e r i a l i su s e da t t o o e l e m e n t a n ' al e v e l .i t a l s ot e n d st o encourageetform of u ritten expressionu'hichis remotefrom u'ritingin any real sense.At best.it might be describedas a kind of commentaryon rvhatcan be seenin the picture.Thus. for example.the learnersare invited to produce usingthe PresentContinuous.For example John is at the bus stop. sequences He is w,aiting.forrhe bus. The bus is corttingand John is gctingto get on it. Now he is gettingon the bns. etc. Although it might be arguedthat the learnerswill of this kind rather than producing from rvritingsequences get more satisfaction compositionskills.On the u'ill not benefit writing this tvpe of singlesentences. contrary,it might evento someextentbe harmfulbecauseit allowsthe learners to believethat thel'can u'riteu'ithoutthe useof appropriatelinking and sequencingdevices.It is. surelr'.much betterto usealternativeforms of in Chapter4) ratherthan to encouragethem to write in a practice(assuggested u'av which is inappropriateto the rvrittenform of the language.
ri
-/ -1
_u ---/ l-
-/ z
fr I.J l-
f-
f-
-. f-
f-
tr
r<
7.2 Theroleof the teacher
Visual material clearlv hasgreat potential as an 4jd to develgpingwriting skills and can provide both contextsand stimulationfor a variety of activitiesbut, used,it ma-vcreatemore problemsthan it solves.It is unlessit is properl-uessential,therefore.to do the following: an appropriate writing task which relatesto the theme of (a) Identify and de_fine the visualmaterial. The studentsmav of coursebe givena choiceor be askedto work on differentbut perhapscomplementaryactivities.It is unlikely that the writing task u'ill call for anv form of straightnarrationor description, which is an aspectu'hich may be exploredthrough oral preparation for writing. On the contrar!',the writing task shouldhavea clearlydefined form (a letter. a report. etc.),u'hichwiildeal with the themefrom a p a r t i c u l a ra n g l eo r r i e r v P o i n t .
l<
f-
I
r<
l-
l-
I-
lr
(b) Identify the lenguagewhich the learnerswill needin order to carrv out the task. As far as possible.languagedifficultiesshouldbe anticipatedat the oral
8t)
t-
rr
Lr
l-.
l_
r-.l_.r_ r_--a
CONTEXTF S o R W R I T I N GT: H EU S Eo F V I S U A LM A T E R I A L
I-_
preparationstageandfurtherexplored,if necessary, through supplementary exercises. In orderto do this,it will generallybe necessary actuallyto writeout a versionof the writingtaskto seewhatlanguage it entails.
r-_{r
--_I---
(c) Decidehow to preparethelearnersfor the writing task. The classroom preparation stageis a delicateone.As wasnotedin (b) above,we wantto ensurethatthe learnershavethe necessary language for the tasktheyareset.At the sametime, the writingactivitymustneve;be simplya replicaof the oralpreparation, otherwisethereis no challenge in the activitv.If the writingtaskinvolvesdealingwith the themepresented from a differentangleor viewpoint,the problemis largelyresolved, becausethe learnershaveto decidehow to restructureand selectfrom the language practised at theoral preparationstage.
l--{
r L_ u - __r-r-
f.--
l---
L_
r u ---L
---
r _{
f l_L_ -L---I
tt,4
7.3 The use of visual m a t e r i a l :s o m e examples
This sectioncontainssomeexamplesof how visualmaterialmay be exploitedat the post-elementary levelfor differentkindsof writing task.
?al
The followingactivityis basedon a simplemap like the oneshownbelow, which may be drawnon the boardor reproducedon a transparency for useon
/.J.1
Usinga map to practiseparagraph construction
bLUE. Rny
r -.4t
l_l_f--f l_l_--,.l_t]---
-1
H ARf3OU R
--1
-1
r-. ---J
---.4
l--,l-" -J
t-
=---
N
H A RB o u q
E
L E N
V R D
T R
FilG H
A L
STRT6T
R D
l_-
u u ---1
----t
r,-D_J
=---a
1_. ----J
81
q..J 4ra
-1 _u ) _u 1
the overheadprojector.It hasbeenfouncleffectivein gettingthe studentsto explorewaysin rvhicha paragraphcan be organised.In particulztr.they have to and of certainsentences and possiblesequencing considerboth the necessar)' differentwaysof linking thesesentences. Each student,or pair of students,if they are askedto work together,is given a card which containsa pieceof informationabout three of the places shownon the map. Trvo examplesof suchcardsare givenbelow.
_v _v
-1
_u
Thn fu,ul'dim'q
'/n
_u
Hwrbourr llcad
-u
t?o-dd. a4uL Ne++'
beh'v<-e.rt CLryttral
:
noa"d iS th.e rna/r/2,c,.t. Tlu Libra,ry t4/c7sbttik
L -1
i44 1935.
v.
Fred Ca;/t' Ls aLso tf fh.e Palarz Cune.m(z
-1
ta,4 =1 IJ
v ]1.
1, -,J
1
)-a
6fr ln, one rhw4 shou/ (//l
Pa/arce Ciz
1 -1
Thl marrkp't Ls aPen f^on'L tt 2 p.m on
Thc suaerm,ardesf
6f fu,e^,ce7/t
L 4.1
z
I a.t r"-
s e// s a//
-1
-1 a-4 -1 ta1
ki'ryut/s
_ftth
1 4,1 -1
rz I
a-z
-
-]1
The information written on the cardsis obtainedby breakingdowna of the paragraphdescribingeachof theseplaces.For example,the description as follows: market runs
\.-.J ;
lfl
,--t -
Lr
82
t-r -z L{
L )--.4
l_
u
CONTEXTSFORWRITING:THEUSEOFVISUALMATERIAL
a-
r---J
1-
r lr
r----{
l,---a
l_ ll_ lL--J
a--1
r--J
rl_ .-
The buildingin Harbour RoadbetweenCentralRoad and New Roadis the andfruit. It usedto market,whichwasbuilt in 1875.It sellsfish,vegetables The market is openfrom sellmeat,but that is now soldin the supermarket. andFridays,andfrom 8 a.m.to 5 Thursdays 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesdays, p.m. on Saturdays. The informationwhichappearson ten differentcardsis asfollows: 1 The buildingin HarbourRoadbetweenCentralRoad andNew Roadis the market. 2 The marketwasbuilt in 1875. 3 The marketsellsfish. 4 The marketsellsvegetables. 5 The marketsellsfruit. 6 The marketusedto sellmeat. 7 Meat is now soldin the supermarket. Thursdays,Fridaysand Saturdays. 8 The marketis openon Tuesdays, 9 The marketis openfrom 8 a.m.to 2 p.-. on weekdays' 10 The marketis openfrom 8 a.m.until5 p.m' on Saturdays.
r-<|
tL r-
r--Jl
l_ L L_ L L ll_ }:JT
ar--L
L,I
r--J L-J
L4
r r---J
l_ L l)----J
1_-J
The studentsare then invitedto identifya buildingwhich the teacherpointsto, suchasthe market.Only one studentis'ableto do this and he thereforeinforms the restof the class.This statementis clearlythe openingsentenceof the paragraph.Another pieceof informationwhichmight relateto this is then calledfor. Sincethe studentsdo not know what is on one another'scards, are likely to be madeuntil it is agreedthat the mostsuitable severalsuggestions pieceof informationis:Themarketwasbuilt in 1875. However,it cannot in the form in whichit appearson the cardand foilow on from the first sentence are invitedasto how it shouldbe linked to the precedingsentence. suggestions This may be either with which,asin the originalversion,or with lr (that is to say-.Thebuitding. . . is themarket.It wasbuilt in 1875).It shouldbe notedthat on the cardshaveto be modifiedin someway. most of the statements Noticethatwe are of theparagraphcontinues. And so the construction not concernedto reconstructthe originaltext in its exactform. On the contrary,it is far moreimportantto get thestudentsto consideracceptable alternatives.For example.the text might continue:Themarket sells fsh. It also also but not sells only market or even:The fruit and sells fish fruit anclvegetabies vegetables. The completeddescriptionof the firstplacemay be written up on the canbe askedto makenoteswhilethe activityis board.After that,the students afterwards.They will find this in progressand to write up the descriptions easierto do if theyareworkingin pairs.
r---J
1---.J,
l)J
t-
1l,_ 11_ )--J
.---J
)----J
t.---J
of the kind depictedon page84, wherethe dialogueis Visualsequences 7.3.2 There haveto be interpretedratherthandescribed. V i s u a l s e q u e n c e s implicitinthe situations, for the production aretwo mainwaysin whichthe dialogueelementmaybe'extracted': of dialogues 6J
J
lr{
) / -lr
W R I T I N GS K I L L S TEACHING
.J
( a ) 1 - h es t L l d e n tl st l i t r b e l i r s ta s k e ctlo s a \ u h i t l t h c Vt h i l l k t h e p i c t u r c sr t r c a b o u t .F o r e r a n r p l e i.n P i c t u r eA . t h e \ \ o n x l n .u ' h o mu ' e u ' i l l c a l lM r s B l r l l . wanrssomesusar.(lVlry'does sheneedit?) Sheasksher husbandto go and Perhapsat the starther husbandis get it. (What v'ordsdoessher.rse?) reluctantto go. (ll'ftr'?Vlhatis he doing?) So shehasto persuadehim' (What does.sl.te The studentsare then invitedto suggestvarious sa1,?)
1l
L
-z _E
-/
p o s s i b i l i t i ef so r ea c hl i n eo f d i a l o g u e .
_E
l-
lr
fr
f-
f-
t-
rrlr
fd
14
f-
f-
fi
_.1 f-
l,-r
r< -f,-
Ii.
fi
84
f--
fr
I I
L --1
L-,__{ L_ L_ L_ ---l_r,--{ r-_{
r
r,__Jl
Ll_L_ --1
-,1
r-_J
f-,---
l_ L_ -,--1
r-_I
---af
L_ L_ L_ L_ u --1
)-.2
-g
rt r-r-J
llg
Lt_ --
t-t_ !{
u-,---J
lj
.___Z
l-:-_ tt -L
lj€
U --.1
L-T )-<4
l_
u .----J
aL----/,
1l-:
CONTEXTF S O RW R I T I N GT: H EU S EO FV I S U A LM A T E R I A L
(b) Alternatively,the dialoguemaybe cuedby providingthe firstlineof the In the exampiebelorv,whichrelatesto PicturesA andB, the exchange. teachertakesthe partof Mrs Ball. and the studentsgiveher husband's responses. Will you go to the grocer'sandgetsomesugar,please? (But I'm watchinga footballmatchon TV') W e l l ,i f y o ud o n ' tg o ,I c a n ' tm a k ea c a k e ' ( O h , i n t h a tc a s eI' ' l l g o l ) N o w .I n e e d s o m e o t h ; r t h i n g s a s w.e. .l ls a l t c, o f f e e . .' H e r e ' s a l i s t ' ( I d o n ' tn e e da l i s t ! ) for both severalalternatives The studentsmaybe askedto suggest s p e a k e r sF.o r e x a m P l e : B: I needsomesugar.Canyou go andgetme some? MRS MRB: Now? I wasiustreadingthe paper'
r: s: r: s: r: s:
Or: B: Would,voumind goingto the grocer'sfor me? MRS IuRB: What do Youwant? B : W e l l ,l ' v e r u n o u t o f s u g a r' ' ' MRS B: I'll go thisafternoon.I've got to go into town' NtR B: Yes, but . . . IVIRS
theycanselect cometo writeup their dialogues, Thus,whenthe students that havebeengivenor producesimilarones from the differentsuggestions for themselves' The nextthreepicturesmaybe similarlyexploitedto produce,for aboutgardeningandthe weather(c)' Mr example,a shortconversation the Ball orderingthe thingshe rvantsfrom the grocer but forgetting F involves (E). Picture aboutthe news sugar(D) and a conversation importantpicturewhich an is therefore and asling'forand givingdirections we havethe in shouldbe explJitedlndepth(seebelow).Finally, G andH. betrveenN{isBall. rvhois angrybecauseher husbandhas conversation takensucha longtime.andher husband,who triesto makeexcuses only to find that he hasforgottenthe sugarl should that one or moremodeldialogues For PictureF, it is suggested to relevant language practise firstbe built up with the helpof the class,to very a For example,we mightstartwith askingfor andgivingdirections. simpledialogue: NIAN:Excuseme. Canyou tellme the way to the station? andthenturn s: Yes.Crossou.r th. road.go asfar asthe nervsagent's rvrR left. MAN: Is it a longwa,v? .rrcx: Oh, abouthalfa mile' is to it shouldbe emphasised, The purposeof producingthesedialogues, task' rvriting their willneedfor rvhichthe students rehearsethetariguage to theyshouldbe encouraged dialogues, their WhentheycomJto o'riteup p r o d u c ev e r vd i f f e r e nvt e r s i o n s ' maY picturesin the sequence $'rittenaboutinclividual The dialogues 85
*J
r)
v
-_-/ ---/ ILAUHIN(J
WI{I III\b
ts
SKILLJ
_/
be further elaboratedto form a shortplay, dividedinto scenesand with 'stagedirections'.This is bestdone asgroup work. The appropriate examplebelou'showsthat this can be done in fairly simplelanguage: SceneI Mrs Ball is cooking in the kitchen.She.findsthat she doesnot have any sugar. rrrnsn (calilngher husband): Jackt. Thereis no artsv'er.
rt
---/ .-1
_J
v -zl
-
M R SB : J A C K I
MRB (cominginto thekitchen):Yes. What is it? MRSB: Oh ! I'r'e run out of sucar.Could )'ou go to the shop and get me some? ( e t c .) M RB : B u t I u a n t e dt o
7. 3 . 3 Otherusesfor visualsequences
like the Whateverthe final outcomein rvriting,you can usevisualsequences one in I .3.2 andthe shorterone belowfor a rangeof oral activitiesboth to preparefor u,rittenu'ork and to involvethe studentsin the material(u'hichwe must never assumetobe intrinsicallymotivating,however attractiveit may appearto be). For example: - speculation:Get the studentsto give their own ideasabout the people and t h e s e t t i n g( w h o t h e y a r e ; w h e r et h e ya r e ,e t c . ) .S e e4 . 6 ( i ) . -
-
roleplal,and dramatisation'.Get the studentsto work out how they would presentpeople shown in the picturesand how they would act out some or all of the sequence. (Seebelow for relatedwriting activities.) discussion:N{ostpicture setswill stimulatesome kind of discussion.For example. husband-wiferelationshipsfor 7 .3.2 and monstersfor the set below.
k I
zl
v -1
..r 1 b
1 fd
4
!l-
t<
F td
1
*\'? -;z'((').$i
a, k
1 14
Somekey writing activitieswill be: - notes:The studentsshould make a note of anv important ideaswhich come up during oralu'ork. - diarl, enuies:The studentswrite up an accountof what happenedfrom the viewpointof one of the peoplein the sequence.Notice that this involves selectivereporting.For the sequenceabove,don't forget the diary of the monsterl - role descriptions:The studentswrite rolecardsfor one another if they are goingto act out the sequence.See4.6 (t) and 5.6 (d). They can alsowrite s c e n a r i o (ss e e5 . 6 ( e ) ) . -
86
letterwriring: Similar to the previousactivity. Again the activity will involve selectivereporting- and. if you do not wish to bore the personyou are writing to - realisticsummarising!
I
_1.
-4
1
I f4
I
1
I
f-
L
)_--
L_ l-L_
coNTEXTSFoR WRITING:THEUSEoF VISUALMATERIAL
r_{
-
reports(articles, etc.):This will dependon the contentof the sequence. The studentscouldwriteonefor the one above.For example:rur,I,ToNSTER lHAr cAMEro LUNCHI Reportwritingis discussed in detailin 7.3.5. Noneof thisprecludes morebasicoral work (questionand answer,true-false statements, etc.)andmorebasicwrittenwork (sentence linking,paragraph completion),whichmay be necessary with certainclasses.
r,_.-
r r--
L_ L_ r--
r r--
L1_ L_ L_ .l_L l-l_ 1_ .-L_ r-<-
7. 3 . 4 Techniquesfor presenting visual sequences
r-J
r-{
Here are somewaysof presentinga four-picturesequenceso asto stimulatethe students' imaginations:
r-J
(a) Showthefirst and lastpicture. Thestudentsfill in what happenedin between.
r--{ r-l
(b) Showthemiddletwopicrures. Thestudentssupplythe beginningand theend.
---J
(c) Showthelastpictureonly. The stLtdents decidewhathappened before.
}J
1l-a-rJ
1r-
(d) Showthefirst picrureon[y. The studentsdecidewhathappened after that.
g
tl_ L_ L_ LL r.d
r-l
g
L r---
t.=-
u g
L L-
a
1---
Ll-.,-1
tL->/1
L II
trtrtrtr trtrtrtr trtrtrtr trtrtrtr
If for anyreasonyou cannotuseincomplete you canaskthe sequences, studentslo continttethe story. F o r t h eu s eo f j u m b l e ds e q u e n c esse. e7 . 3 . 8( h ) .
j-1
j--z
Muchwill dependon theform in whichthisis available(book,displaychart, transparency), andalsohow muchyou wantthe students themselves to contributeideas.Whereverpossible, unlessyou wantto givethemthe taskof exactdescription(whichcanbe a challengingactivityif it is presentedin the rightway),you shouldwelcomerheopportunityof gettingthe students to contributeideas.Theyarecertainlylikelyto enjoyit more thanif theyare allowedto describe onlywhattheycansee.
7. 3 . 5 Usingvisual materialfor report writing
The pictureon page88 couldof coursebe usedfor a varietyof writing activities. It couldbe exploitedfor the productionof dialogues, suchasone betweenthe two cyclists or betrveen the lorry-driverandthe motor-cyclist if an accidentis narrowlyaverted,or for letter-writing. For example,an,r'of those involvedin the incidentmightrvritea letteraboutit at somesubsequent date. Reportwritinghasbeenchosento demonstrate that, if visualmaterialis used at the post-elementary level,it has_ereat potentialforformalrvritingtasks. A singlepicturehasbeenchosenfor thispurposeto shorvthat,properly exploited.it canbe just aseffectivein providinga contextfor thistypeof rvritingactivityaspicturesequences. in In fact,thereis evensomeadvantage u s i n ga s i n g l ep i c t u r eb. e c a u siet i s m o r eo p e n - e n d e d t h: eo u t c o m ea. n a c c i d e n t 87
F-
v -_-1
ITAUHINU
v
WHI IIN(l 5I\ILLS
-1
o r [ I n e a r a C c i d e n t .i s n o t a c l u a l l v r / l r t l l t a n d \ \ ' c c a n t h c r e f ( ) r e c l c c i d c l i r r o u r s e l v e su ' h a t f o r m i t n r i c h t t a k e .
---1 fv -1
v
-_1
e. 1
v
1 )1. 1
Jz. _-1
v.
-1 41. -Q
u
-1 a1
I
On the assumptionthat an accidentdid take place, u'e might set as a u'ritingtask a newspaperreport of somekind. Other possibilitiesare reports made by the lorry-driver (for example,in connectionwith an insuranceclaim) or by a policemaninvestigatingthe accident.For this, the eventswe can actually seein the picture - a lorry approachinga sharpbend in the road, two cyclists talking as the-Vovertakethe lorry and two men on a motor-cycle.whose attentionis distractedbv a planethat is landing.comingin the opposite direction- are likelv to be referredto in someway in the report but not in their chronologicalorder. At the oral preparationstage. necessarily we therefore. can get the studentsto describetheseeventswithout any risk of prejudicingthe writing task. Our classroompresentationshouldalsoaim to arousethe interestof the studentsin the themeand at the sametime to help them with someof the languagethey wiil needin the report. We might begin.for example,rvithout someof the thingsthat referringto the pictureat all. bir discussing necessarily board: on the be listed can These causeaccidents. Causesof accidents - fast driving - carelessdriving (for example:. . . . - mechanicaldefects - weatherconditions - pedestrians Examplesof the languageusedto describeroad accidentscan be given or elicited. Featuresof accidents - vehiclescollide/getdamaged/runpeopleover/knockpeopledown - peopleget killcd/injured,/taken to hospital.etc.
8B
1 f<
f,-
f-
.-f4 l-
-1 la
-1 .1
1 lz
1 t
.1
1 r4 -1 14
I I
4
v
I
Lr z f{
I fd
I
lr a
l_ -1
MATERIAL CONTEXTSFORWRITING:THEUSEOFVISUAL
L L L LL L
---J
W e c a n t h e n r e l a t e t h e s e i t e m s t o w h a t i s s h o w n i n t h e p i c t u r e aItnis d date c i d e w the outcomeof theseevents' onesapply,or mightapplyclepending.on several afterconsidering thispoint thatwe .un i., it . .to.t to decide, whatactuallyhappened' suggestions, reportsof thiskind, thenwe If the studen,,n."o iurttt.r helpwith writing canworkoutontheboardwiththemoneaccolntoftheaccidentandaskthe tousedifferentfactsintheirversion.Forexample,wemightbeginbydec onasuitableheadlineandshowingthatthisisfollowedbyanimportantp of information. CYCLIST KILLED ON AIRPORT ROAD
rr --{ r,
-J
r
--l
u u u -
-
-
--I
r=J
onecyclistwaskilledandanotherbadlyinjuredw.hentheycollidedwit yesterdayafternoon' motor cycleon the roadto Winton Airport probablyuseinformation We canthen showthat at thispoint we would providedby the picture'For example: in the road abouttwo . . . The collisionoccurredneara sharpbend
--J
L Lr
-
u r
.rl
--
milesfromtheairport.Accordingtothedriverofthelorry,whichwas two cyclists' ' ' travellingtowardsthe airportat the time' the
U U I-I
I n t h e v e r s i o n w h i c h t h e s t u d e n t s a r e a s k e d t o w r i t e , t h e ooru badly tcomeoft hitsthe tree,andis kiiled picturemightbe that the driverof the lotry Thiswill still allowthe injured.throughtryingto avoidthe motoi-cyclists. version,but at the same of the rehearsed studentsto usesomeof the language changes.In this way' noneof the time theywill haveio makequiteslgnificant of the writingactivityis lost' challenge
u u -rl
-J
-,.t
l-L-l
--!
r
LLU r
--l
r
-/l
u u u L-u r-.t -
--!
/.J.O
Using diagrammatic materials
for controlledandguidedwriting we havealreadyseenhow mapscanbe used (seea.3(b)and5.3(d)).rvhileearlierinthischapter(7.3.1)amapwasu g u ' o . p u r a g r u p h o r g a n i s a t i o n . . T h e S a m e m a t e r i a l c a n b e uhow s e dto a tget alate suchasrvritinga letterto advisesomeone for freerwritingactlvities. These,togetherwith graphslike to your houseo, *tr".. to meet,vouin town.
t h e o n e b e l o w ( s e e E x e r c i s e s , P a g e g ; 1 ) p l a n s o f r o o m s a n encourage dbuildingsa of activitieswhichwill and train timetablescanbe ur.d fo. a variety of . For example,theremaybe morethanonervay studentsto write preciselt, describingaroomoradvisingaroute-butatleastitwillbeclearifthe studentshavegotthe informationacross'
-J
.J
l-
r
=--
r_ --t
L----t
L -J
L_-
r
---t
. -4
L--4 L---t
L r--t
GREEN P O P U L A T I O Nr \ N D E N l P L O Y I " ' i E , NFTO R S T A N - | O N
K-^\ i
loclrllr cnllllor ccl c()nl lll Ltt c r\
ary;
retiretl r.rrtcntplIovccl
t g t iI
1 9 8j
193-i l9E7
formalnpes of
rvillnccclfor certain N,luchof the languaeen hich the stuclents of n'pical functions of use ttre in particulrtr r v r i t i n g .s u c ha s r e P t l r t su' i l l involve 89
f{
-1
y I trAUnll\u
vvnr I lr\u
--1 o^rLLJ
_--1
and contrastinq. the u'rittertlanguage.suchas deltniltg.cort'lparing exemplifying(etc.). The practiceof these(see9.2) can help to give a new slant to the programme and enableus to cover old ground in a new way. Visual can be very usefulfor this purpose. materialin the form of plansand diagran-rs representationof a town how the diagrammatic belou' The example shows can be usedto introducesomeof the languageneededfor writing a text which of data and also to structurea parallel involvesthe systematicclassification * writing task for the studentsto carry out.
v v
-1
v. ---1
v
-1
v. 1
F
The diasram below showsthe structureof a town calledBrunton.
--1 I
I N P 1 4 S T R I AL E f T A T E /ndu s trits 4 f
T.f/PENT/AL
AREA
HOUf|/VG E'TATE
fARK
fi1ps-sof f ui/d;a1a
fiz.cilitirs
-J
Brunton/allsintothreemainparts:the industrialestate. the residenttalarea. andthe commercialsector. The the industrialestateon thenorth residentialarealiesbetw,een side of.the town and the commercialsectoron thesouth.
l/ Z2
C0/tihlERC/AL
With the helpof the diagramwe canelicitfrom the the threemainareasinto whichthe town is divided students andu'heretheylie in relationto one another.This mai'be donebv askingquestions. For example:How manypartsdoes thetov,nfall into? Whatarethey?Wherearethey?With the of helpof thisinformation$'ecangivea generaldescription is Somekey language Bruntonin our openingparagraph. indicatedin italics.
5ECT0R /y
-1
u
--1
v
1
v
4 fz
f-
fz
_l-
Ofrrces -L Snopsf
II
t_1 I
how onepart of the town may As a nextstep.\\'emightshowthe students described.For exampie,the residentialarea.This is partly be systematicail,v structuredthroughthe diagram,but the studentsare alsoinvitedto make some we canbuiid up questions, Againusingappropriate for themselves. suggestions a descriptionasfollows: The residentialareaconsistsof.a fownerciaL housingestateand a park. Theformer is of buildings: madeup of two maint,vpes tect2r detachedhousesand biocksof.flats.The latterhassomeexcellentfacilities. Theseincludea footbaliground,a N swimmingpool. a tenniscourtand a f/owsr*rg playground. children's lwdustrial
Istnte
fstate
A I I
-f
-1 fz -1
Iz _1 r.d 1 lz
1 I
-1
1 l-a
I f.{
1 fr
-1
r-r *This does not cover all the languageneededfor *'riting textsu,herethe main function is one of classification.Some items can be more effectivelypresentedand practisedthrough textual models. F o r a m o r e c o m p l e t eu n i t . s e e9 . 2 . 1 .
1 f,l
-k
90
f,r
l-
L ]1
i
CONTEXTF S O RW R I T I N GT: H EU S EO FV I S U A LM A T E R I A L
L-i L, -__r,__{
neededto describethe trvo The studentsnow havethe key language remainingpartsof the town alongthe samelines.Againtheycancontributeto shopsand for example,the maintypesof industries. the text by suggesting, officesto be found in thesetwo areas. For theirparallelwritingtask.the studentsaregivena diagramof a town with a differentstructureasshownin the seconddiagramon page90. The studentsmay alsobe givenan outlinefor the beginningof their itemswhichmay be used, report,togetherwith a reminderof the key language alongthe followinglines:
t-
l_f-_-
L-
r -,--1
l_. -,-
L_ L-,1
Title Para I Town
r,-J
l_-
+ relativepositions
r-
L-
Relevantlanguage fallsiisdividedinto, liesbetween.on the (west)sideof
.--
L. LL_ L_ L_ L_ LLL_ L_ L-/ l_ LLt_LL L_ L_ U r-_J
r-<
Para2 Residentialarea--f-
L-
--<1
: typesof building
Housingestate--l-
-
L-
} l
Park
-------t:E
: facilities
r--J
Relevantlanguage consistsof, includes,the former/latter
V
U
}
l-1
.--1J
>-/
aLI
t.1
g
.--1
.-J
1--1
-)
Lj---/
-41
t.J.t
Other usefulvisual materialsfor writing activities
(a) Ads: Thesemustoccupya specialplacefor a numberof reasons: - thereis a widevarietyof them; -
theyarewidely(andfreely)available: - students respondto them. If you arecollectingor makingads,coverkey areassuchasjobs, schools.food,carsand thingsfor sale.holidays,language accommodation, that areparticularly ads any clothes but alsoincludein yourcollection strikingandmemorable. Wiiting activitiesrvill normallyinvolvesomeroleplaysuchaswriting for more information(e.-e.in connectionwith holidayaccommodation) (e.g.for a job or for a placein a school);writing makingan application lettersof complaint(e.g aboutfood ads), etc. TV andradio theatres,festivals, For example.for cinemaS, (b) Programmes.. (see+.0(d), wherethe students madetheirown).Thesecanbe usedfor rvhichinvolvemakingnotesor writingshortreports'or planningactivities the programmefor a davout)' for rvritingletters(e.g.suggesting 9I
---
-) :) u
II
.J H
SKILLS TEACHINW G NITING
,_-4
- r uct a nb c u s e dt o r r a l i n t e r a c t i oi n ( c ) X 4 e n u sT:h e s ea r en r a i n l vu s e f u l f o o vou have a vervgoodn-real stimulatea u'ritingactivitr. suchasdescribing h a d .w h i c hh a sa n a t u r a l b u i l t - isne q u e n c e . /. J.6
Writingfor fun
'fun' writingactivities in earlier Visualmaterialhasbeenusedfor a numberof 4.6(f) rolecard chapters.See,for example.4.6 (d) TV/radioprogrammes: (an activitywhichis andspeculation pictures:4.6 (i) picturesfor interpretation makeprogress with theirwriting);5.6 (h) jigsaw valuableasstudents especially (i) for drawine a picture or a map. writingand5.5 instructions belorv.The firstthreeinvoivethe use aresuggested Someotheractivities (usuallyshowinga singleobjectsuchasa pieceof of smallpicturecuecards f u r n i t u r e a, n i t e mo f c l o t h i n ga. n a n i m a ie. t c . ) .
.-r -z r4 L
lu ,_-J
v
--zl y
/ -v z
(a) Picturelinking
1
u'orkingin eroups.aregiven(or areallowedto choosefrom The students. a largernumber)threeto four pictures.aroundu'hichtheyhaveto make so the up a story.The objectsshouldnot haveanyobviousconnection. - andevenabsurdl to be imaeinalil'g studentsareencouraeed
v -1 -k -1 f.I lz
(b) Losrandfound Eachstudentis giventrvocards ( e . g .a d o ga n da p a i ro f s h o e s ) andusesoneof theseto rvritea he has noticeaboutsomething lostandthe otherto \\'ritea he has noticeaboutsomethin-e found.The cardsarethen andthe notices redistributed respond readout. The students b y s a y i n g ' T h a tm ' s i n e ! 'o r ' I ' v e g o ti t ! '
I
v
lz
_-
/05T Ow srnallwhikdoq. Its nant k l4aggte.
WAftlVINC/t'barhs a lot
I anC bLrcs
_lz
l-. ,1 lJ
,1
(c) DesertIslandmessoges After the studentshaveplayed the DesertIslandgame(thatis. whentheyimaginetheyare maroonedon an islandandhave t o d e c i d eh o u t h e r u i l t u s e( 3 ) objectssuchasa hammer.clock. mirror),theycanbe askedto w r i t em e s s a g et os p u t i n t oa bottleandthrowinto the sea. They canalsobe askedto write their diaryfor part of the time they areon the island.
u I
]z
TO THEPET'O^/WHOflND,M$! I
PleasetulLmy fa-twiLyI a'rruSafe, well - a-nd' t'ttt
hoffy/
/d.ortT wanr
tc, bi res
(d) How muchcanyoLtremember? is givena picture,whichtheylook at for abouta Eachgroupof students minute.Theythenturn thepictureoverand.workingindividually,write down asmanvthingsastheycanrememberaboutthe picture.They then
92
tz 1 t
-1 I
I t4 I I
I I
-1 4.1 1 rJ 1
r,-a I t-J
z lr
L -4
CONTEXTSFORWRITING:THEUSEOFVISUALMATERIAL
LL_ l -
descriptionof the usethesenotesto work togetherto build up a complete actualpicture' the *iti.t they comparewith fi.tur" (orallyor in writing;,
r,--J
L_
( e ) Who is it?
l_-
Eachgroupisgivenapictureofafamousperson(orplace)andhastowr are then passedround the a prec;sedescriptionof it. ttr. descriptions other groups.who try to identifythe people(or places)'
=-1
LLLL_ L_ Lr*d
(f) Life story
r,--J
and hasto Eachgroupis givena pictureof a face(not anyoneknown) doesfor a what.(he) (he) is; make"upthe liie story;f the person(e'g' who shouldof course living; tt lng, that havehappenedto (him))' The students aim io be asimaginativeaspossible'
-,1
-,1
r{
(g) Cartoons
or speechbubbles The studentswork in pairsor gloupsto write captions for cartoonsor other suitablepictures'
r-d
L---1
(h) Jigsawstories
l_ L l_ -' l_ LL_
Giveeachgroupacutuppicturecompositionsequence(see7.3.4),so Eachstudent eachstudentor pair of ,iuo.nt, in thegroup hasone.picture. The studentsthen put or pair thenwriiesdownwhat their pictureshows. out what the awaytheir picturesand usetheir noiesto try to work information' is aboutby exchanging completesequence
r-J
r-{a
(i) Ads
L
Giveeachgroupofstudentsapictureshowing,forexample'acarora hotelandaskthemtowriteanexaggeratedadvertisementforit.
>J
r
(i)
^-+ ^ ^^.i^^ .A (aqAr plctur(r c u t f r o m a Give eachstudenta postcard(madeby pastinga askthem to senda magazineor travelbiochureonto a pieceof card)and may do ro someoneelsein the clasi(thismay includeyou!). They message actor, singer, or in the role of a famousperson(e.g. this aslhemselves politician. . .).
L.J
L_ LLrU LL L
Postcards
LJ
)11
tU
r--
Discussion
.---J
of usingvisualmaterial and disadvantages I What aresomeof the advantages as a frameworkfor writingpractice? it is betterto usevisualmaterialat the post2 Doyou agreethat. on the"wtrote, level?Give reasons' elementarY
1-/
)--1
.---
u .--z
L =---
l-L=---J
1_ L H-
H,
l-
Exercises
,picturecomposition'materialavailablein publishedform is intended 1 Most of materialof your own for useat a fairly .i.,n.nr"ry level.Examineany set choosingandseewhetheritcouldbesuccessfullyexploitedatamore level. advanced write a description,similar 2 With referenceto the activitydescribedinl.3'1, the supermarketor to the one of the market.of anotherplace(for example, whichcanbe statements the Palacecinema) and thendivideup the text into (asshownon page82)' sitedon the students'cards 93
ra
f-
I
-=---
]1
-l
=
SKILLS TEACHINW G RITING
--
Identifysomervritingtasksu'hichcouldbe seton the followingptcture lettersor sequence. Theseshouldbe in theform of dialogues. compositit-rn anyone of for be needed might that the kind of preparation reports.Suggest t h e s et a s k s .
v v
_u u
%-*
W
]-J
1 ]-J
-1
u
v. -1.
-u -1
.a
-v 1
u
1 a1 _1 Ld _1
_u -1 fz -1 _k 1 v
Selectanypieceof visualmaterialand showhow it couldbe usedfor a report in 7.3.5. writingactivityalongthe linessuggested someusesfor the graphin7.3.6' 5 Suggest a friend andtry out one or more of the activitiesin 7.3.8.Can you with 6 Work suggestother activitiesalongtheselines? References
94
For examplesof visualmaterialfor writing activities,seeJB Heaton(i966); D Byrne(I967);JBHeaton(1975);C Fleming(1975);R Ridout(1975); D Byrne(1976);LA Hill (1978);L MarksteinandD Grunbaum(1981); J B H e a t o n( 1 9 8 6 ) ; DB y r n e( i 9 8 8 ) . Other compositionbooksthat containusefulvisualmaterialare:T Hedge (1983a,1983band 1985);R Knight(1986);A Pincas(1982band1982c) L Woods(1986). For techniquesfor exploitingpicturecompositionmaterialimaginativelysee A FreshLook. D Byrne (1987)PictureComposition: BeginningCompositionthrough Heaton is from JB picture in7.3.5 The in 7.3'3is from M Palmer Pictures(LongmanI975);the picturesequence and D Byrne Track3 (Longman1983)andin Exercise3 from G Fleming GuidedComposition(Hodderand Stoughton1975).
-1
v
-1 )-J
I
I I
_1
_u v -1 fz L I
-L. -1
r-J -1 l,.J I l'{ 1
r{
L
u u )t
r__r----
LLL_ L- ------_-t -
--ta
r__.-
u -11
lntegratedskills
Lr-.-
u ---
1_ --.l*_--.-
u
- -_--
L' ---L_
r*_ -1
--.-
LL---LL_ .-L_ -1
r--J
r_
8.1 The importance of integrating skills
The needto integrateskillsin languagelearninghasalreadvbeenstressed and in manyrespectsthis is not a newfeatureof the writing programme.In fact, manyof the communicationactivitiesand 'fun' writing activitiesin Chapters4 and 5 integratedtalkingandwriting (andsometimesreading)in a naturalway. See, for example,questionnaires andquizzesin 4 .6 (a) and (b), roleplay a c t i v i t i eisn 5 . 5 . 1 ; s c e n a rwi or i t i n gi n 5 . 6( e ) ; j u m b l e ds t o r i e si n 5 . 6( g ) a n d writing instructionsfor picturesand mapsin 5.6 (i). The key factorwith many activitiesis how you get the studentsto work: pair and groupwork offer many moreopportunities for integrating skills,asthe simpleanalysis belowshows. The activityis drawinga pictureor a map. INDIVIDUAL WORK
P A I R / G R O U PW O R K
-41
S I clrarvsand rv'rites
S st a l k . d r a r va n d r v r i t e
S I e x c h a n c e isn s t r u c t i o n tsv i t h
S se x c h a n q ei n s t r u c t i o n sr v i t h ancltheg r roup
.J
LL_----l------L
u
S2
rcadsand drarvs
S s r e a c l ,t a l k a n d d r a u
r--z
r-
e i c t u r c s( : t l l k ) S sc t r t t t p a r p
S sc o m p a r ep i c t u r se
.--
l-------t
If , therefore,you want to increasethe amount of skill integrationin vour daily teaching- and this is worthrvhilebecauseit allows the learnersto aselanguage rraturall,v. not just prac'tiseit (noticehorv in manv of the rictivitieslaneuageis
--t
95
Lllll-,--t
>--
-,-<-
-S{ 4
--.?---
lr
I4
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
drnte)-- InakesureYouusepair andgroupwork for usedto getsornctlting a n du r i t i r t sa c t i \i t i e s . rcading level.however, thismavbe enough.At the intermediate For manvclasses rvork you do with \\'ant flue r-rcy the amountof to increase vou rvillprobablv your studentsandthreerval'sin whichyou cando thisthroughintegratedskills belou'. activitiesarediscussed
-L L
L
l4
L
8. 2 Projectwork
it takesso manyforms.It Projectwork cannotbe neatlvdefinedbecause (through andreading)I it often interviewing usuallyinvolvessomeresearch (althoughthisis not essential) andit almost involvesgoingout of the classroom a l w a y si n v o l v e d siscussion. The process- carryingout the project- is clearlvimportantbecauseof haveto undertake;but equallvtheproducl- some the students the activities Writingmay kind of document- u'illqivethema greatdealof satisfaction. making takeplaceat both stages: alongthe u,a.v(fillingin questionnaires, (For purposewe prolect. our \\'hen writing the up and at the final stage notes) wouldavoidonethat resulted.for example.in drawingplansor maps,though this couldbe a legitimateprojectin itself.) it is importantthat projectwork shouldgivethe classroom In the language At the sametime it for language useanddevelopment. studentsopportunities to develop: educationalfront will helpthemon a broader - communication andreportingback; skills:wheninterviewing - research skills:whenreadingl
k
l-
l-
li
l-
f<
rrr-
-
collaborating. socialskills:u'hendiscussing, will haveto usethe mothertongue for projectu'orkthe students Sometimes (e.g.whentalkingandreading),but the outcomein writingwill alwaysbe in English.
-l-
l-
-l-
8.2.1 Organisinga project
'rules'for Although this is largelya matterof commonsense(sincethere are no somethingthat doesnot havea setform), projectshaveto be carefullyplanrred in presentingthe project and sustained.The teacher'srole is crucialespecially it and involvingthe studentsin it, and in ensuringthat doesnot breakdown. You mav like to foliowthesestages: P R E SE N T A T I O NA S .D D I S C U S S I O N
-l-
s -r-l-
3 P R E L I } 1 ] \ , , \ R YA C ' i l \ ' I T I E SA N D D I S C U S S I O N
-r-
s A C T I V I II E S -1-
OF MATER]ALS PROCESSiNG
-rf-r
PRODUCTION
_L.
_L.
96 La
.,/
]r
I
I
r
INTEGRATED SKILLS
L-J
at the start is to show one of the thingsyou may haveto do with the students thestudentshowto.op"nup'atopic'Onewayistogetthemtomakeachart in 6.3.1,whichwill involvetalkingand simlar to the on. ur.d for note-taking is Food, a chartmight look *riting. For example,if the topicfor ihe project like this:
l=
t-
E t-
tlleats and tiws
t-
- Ot0rt C01,1,/trry
\ - n;a;r, utA
r.--
t-
Oncilt . /,aca/l'/nlortad , ftralu,/aofi//r"
L--
t-.
t_ t-
l, -rifarolns
\_J
f ale a,n'/./'ts hibulton' =-sh,rpt
t-
r
Ch*,Ygt -Stnal,/slwPs rs. fupenn'atrkots
t-
r
only.Ineithercasenote-tutlngwillbeinvolved(perhapstogetherwithsome project shouldbe agreed:for initial reading).At this point the Scopeof the its scope.This may dependon example,it couldue decidedto limit or extend of the classroom,available researchopportunities(opportunitiesfor going.out the students. readingn1ut.riul,etc.) oriimply the interestsof amongthe groups'. distributed work when this hasbeenagreedand the If this involvesinterviewing' the student,.un U.gin*oit on the main activities. behaviour),questionnaires (for example,abouteatinghabits,attitudes,social writing' If theseinvolve will haveto be devised,aridthis involvesprecise or the mothertongue)'the reading(assome.*^i"fy will, whetherin English what they haveread' studentsmustbe preparedto summarlseand re-present alsotranilatingfrom the mothertongueinto English' ;";il o-ntheir researchto date At somepoint thelroups will haveto report back like. It is assumedthat this and alsoto agreewhat tieir frnalproductwililook of text andillustration' will be a brochureor bookletof somekind, consisting want to read.(e.g :Td.":::",. which will be attractiveenoughfor someoneto a gooddealof writing up and anotherclass).The studentt*ltt then haveto do *ltttln the constraintsof a editingof their material.If they are askedto work ihey rvillprobablyhaveto do a certainamount certainlength(sixteenpages), They *ititraue to do somethinking aboutthe actual of summarising.
tt-
r l-
.---J
lt-/
t,.J
tt--1
tt-1
t-<1
t-
i=
97
4.
tI
I
- od,rfuislng
to establishsomemain aspects At the presentationstage,it shouldbe enough and developthem' The and then dividethe studentsinto groupsto discuss or on one particularaspect grorrp,may work on all aspectssimultaneously
t-
t-4
- CLLSttTrts 'dryitrt'k-
. sfrelt mat*.ets
ttt-
t-^
Sodal a'tPe([s - part+es
,iLt
L.J
lr
-t-
-z -v -t SKILLS T E A C H I NW G RITING
-e 2
doeslook attractive.All of theirmaterial.sothat the end-product presentation skills- will nrake inir - apartfrom providinga frameworkfor integrating e c t i \i t \ . u ' r i t i n ga m o t i v a t i n a throughoutu,illbe importantbut mainlyasa Your involvement asfor otherformsof groupactivity.The studentsshouldbe consultant, encouragedto askfor your advice(for example,wherethey canfind relevant referencLmaterial.In someclasssituationsyou may actuallyhaveto provide it) and for your helpwith their English(dependingon their level and the extent The responsibilityfor the final to whichyou *unt ih.. to rely on themselves). productmustof coursebe their own.
_u -u -1 -v -1 _v
-I ]-J
1 t
8.2.2 for Suggestions projects
for projectsbelowhavebeenroughlygroupedunderheadings The suggestions but inevitablythel'overlaP. (a) 'Newsmag' This is a longterm project.perhapsextendingover the whole of the school offices,reading (e.g.visitsto ne\\'spaper year,whichinvolvesresearching and writing materialfor a and magazines) aboutthe historyof nervspapers andmagazine'Items of a classnewspaper hybridproduct- a combination to be includedarearticles,creativewriting,reviews,fun features jokes),ads,specialtopicareas(e'g' sport)and puzzles. (crosswords. Evenif 1'ouomit the outsidevisits,whichwouldbe primarily illustrations. to Englishmedium interestunlessyou haveaccess of educational Englishlanguage the in project of this the advantage newspapers, classioomis that it hassomethingto offer everyonein the class. (b) Projectsthatcouldbe donemainlythroughreading(in and out of class)and sharingof knowledge in theprevioussection,couldbe donemainlyin thisway' Food.anal1,sed Someothertopicsare: - time - money -
transport
-
usesof materials(e.g.plastic,paper'etc')
-
clothes
-
TV viewinghabits shoppinghabits
(d) Projectsint,olvingrealor imaginaryplanning - developing facilitiesin one'stown (see5'5'2 (a)) - developing island an imaginarY -
v
1
I
_r 1
v
_-1
u
r-< _1 l-a
_lz l:
l-
LI lr
I
r< 1 I
family andfriends (c) Projectsthatcouldbedonemainlythroughintervievving - eatinghabits - leisure(perhaps into sportandhobbies) subdivided -
)-J
planningan imaginarytrip to the moon,downthe Amazon.acrossthe S a h a r ae. t c .
JI
_< _k -1 _f-. I
fz
-/ a,,l
I
r-a --J
_k
98 r,J
) rJ
I I
L
INTEGRATED SKILLS
1--
L L L t_ l_ l_ l _
-
r,--J
.---1
8.3 Sk i l l s e qu e n ce s
f-<
r---<
r .---
l-_ l-l_ l-H
r-J
d.J.1
Oral work leading to guidedwriting
r-.d
r
planningan idealtown,shoppingcentre,house,school,club, recreationground,etc.
skillsin anysetorder- certainlynot in the In reallife we do not uselanguage order that they often appearin textbooks:listen--+Speak--+read--+write. We useSkillsaSand whenwe requirethem. For example,we Seean ad in the paper (for a job or a holiday);we maytalk aboutit to someoneor ring up or write a 'chain'of letter aboutit. (We may of coursesimplyforgetaboutit!) This activitiescouldgo on - andonl Importantly,however,it canprovidea model leveland, for integratingskillsin a realisticway at a post-elementary incidentally,providenaturalcontextsfor writing. Oncethe mechanismfor this is understood,it is not difficultto setup a chainof activitiesin this way. providesthe settingfor a note-takingtask, In thisexample,a conversation They are then with the 'characters'. which the studentsperformsimultaneously shownhow thesenoteswereusedto write a notice,whichwasthe reasonwhy askedto write a secondnotice the notesweremade,and aresubsequently Thus all four skillsarepractisedin a fully integratedway' themselves. I Bitt Hatlida;'-and Jane Stokes,hisgirlfriend, areplanning to go on holiday together.Theywantto travelround Br,itaintogetherbecauseBill, who is an Australian,hasnot seenmuchof thecountry.Theyarein Jane'sflat and they are talkingabouttheirplans. JANE:. . . Well, I don'twantto go by train.But why don't we hire a car? vou know. Andyou can'tdrive!. ' ' But BILL: Hm, it's veryexpensive, you'vegivenme an idealPerhapswe couldgeta van. :eNs: You meanbuy one? one.One of thosebig ones. BrLL: Yes,a secondhand thereareonly two of us. rrNr: But, Bill, theycosta lot . . . andbesides, BILL: Look, we only needaboutsix people.You, me, andfour more.We way to seethe countryIt's a marvellous canshareexpenses. camping,stayingin hostels. . . :eNe: Mm, but how do weltnd four people?Put an ad in the paper? L .i s t e n I. ' l l p u t a n o t i c eu p o n t h eb o a r da t c o l l e g e . B I L L : N o , t o oe x p e n s i v e * There'sonenearthe bookshop. And whataboutthat newsagent'S nearthe recordshop?Theyhaveadsin the window. rveoughtto makesomenotes. ' ' . :eNe: OK. then.Well. I suppose
f
L r-<
L1_ l'
r
LL L L k
r L r f
l,t, Bitt ttndJunecontinueto talk.** Janemakesnotes.Listen,and makea note of tlteirnportantpoirtts. : e N E :R i g h t ,h e r e ' s o m ep a p e r. . . a n da p e n .I ' l l m a k et h en o t e s ' can'tandI BrLL: CK. Well. first. . . mustbe ableto drive.After a]rl,,vott d o n ' tw a n tt o d r i v ea l l t h et i m e l rANE:. . . hasto be abieto drive.And we wantpeoplewho like a simple life. After all. rve'regoingto campand stayin hostels. BrLL: Yes.definitelvno luxuries!Haveyou got that down?
L L I,
f
L
t 4.
L L L L L L
' ' B i l l w o r k s i n a c o l l c g c ' b o o k s h oapn c lJ a n er r o r k si n a r e c o r ds h o p . '*'Thc hr'ltr thc convcrsatitlnl hich itlllorvs. stttr.lcnts
H
99
9-
3-
I
--./,-
IJ
--
) u.
T
-/
.2.
SKILLS T E A C H I NW GR I T I N G
2 _E
r n n r : i - I a n go n ! Y e s . a n d a n o t h e rt h i n g . . . t h e y o u g h t t o s h a r et h e c o o k i n g t o o . I ' m n o t g o i n gt o d o i t a l l ! tsrLL: Should be able to cook. then. Right. What else? .rnNE:Shallu'e tell them about the costof the trip? BrLL: Mm. ves. Let's sar'. . . about f2*5each.Plus expenses. JANE: . . . f25 and shareall expenses.What about age? BILL: Good point. Hou,about . . . eighteento twenty-five?And not all Englishl :eNr: Or Australian! So . . . eighteento twenty-five. . . any nationality. That shouldencourasepeople. B r L L : . . . D o v o u t h i n k t h a t ' sa l l ? :eNs: Can't think of anl,thingelse.We've got quite a few notes. BrLL: OK. then. i'11u'rite out the noticefor the board at college. ... JANE: . . . And I'11do the one for the neu'sagent's 2 This is the notice w,l'tichBillpur up on the collegenoticeboardIlle follov,ing day. 2a l,low write the notice v'hich Jane Stokestook to the nen'sagert's. Her telephonenuntber at the record shop is 874 9192and her number at honte is 675 3245.
u 2 : u
2
2 u 2 u.
-I z u u
/
-1
Y)u! Y,u! Y?u! ew Y,u!
r.z
ARE rou /SEnqEEP /8 AND 25? cA// yoq DR.VE? cAN YOUcooKT
rz
/ AM TRrING To oScAN/sE A FOUK W'EFK TR|P ROUN? BR|TAIAI IN A YAN PLACESFOR rcUR lNOBF PEOPLE
-1
r:
-/
l-z Lr l-
,T ANY NATIONALITYlELCOME ! x No LuxUR/Esf
]-
X 'HARE ALL FYPE^/'E,/ * TMALL cHABcE'- flseao*-
]-
coNrAcr : B;4 Hatli'da'
lz
Lr
8.3.2 to Reading leading freewriting
In this example, the sequenceopens with a reading activitv. It includes guided as well as free speakingand u'riting tasks. It should be noted that, at the end of the sequence,the studentsthemselvesdecide what happens. 1a Terry Barnes,a teenager*,is getting tired of his job at Holford Natural Products,so he decides to lookfor a new one. He seesfheseads inlhe H o l f o r dN e w s , Personnel Manager, HNP, Holford. L A B . A S S T . 1 6 - 2 1 . P r e v . e x p . d e s i r a b l e .G d . p r o s p e c t s for right person. Trafalgar Tobacco Co. Holford 7997 Ext. 5.
JUNIOR ACCOUNTS CLERK to work for Eastern Bus Co. 5 day wk. 9-5.30. Prev.exp. not essential. Typing an advantage.Apply in writing.
z f-r
I
fr
f-r
l-r
I
f,r
[--.
S I I O R T H A N DT Y P I S T f-r
*The students have backgroundinformation about Terrv from another part of the stor)'
100
f.-.
3r.
-/ }r
I
I I
t-L
INTEGRATED SKILLS
I
L L r.<
r u r l ---
f<
l_ r,
L a-<
l_ l_
r,----r--d
l_ L L L L l-<
I
1 a Terry first rings up the Trafalgar Tobacco Company. Listento his conversationwith the secretarY. 5... Mr Platt',s E xYt:e n s i o n SECRETAR Who's sPeaking,Please? secretarY. T E R R Y : O h , m y n a m e ' sB a r n e sI.' m r i n g i n g aboutthat vacancYYou advertised i n T h e H o l f o r dN e w s . .' Wasit S E C R E T A R Y : W h i c ho n e w a s t h a t ,n o w ? f o r a l a ba s s i s t a n t ? Y e s ,t h a t ' sr i g h t . , . | tsf{l{ Y . filled S E C R E T A R YW : e l l ,l ' m a f r a i dw e ' v ea l r e a d Y sorry' very I'm vacancy. that O h ,w e l l ,t h a n k sv e r y m u c h . TERRY: GoodbYe. GoodbYe. sECRETARY: 1c Terry next rings up the EasternBus.C.ompany' He is totd bv the secretarythat theiob is still available,but that he must applYin writing' Suggest what they actuallysaid to each other' 2t, Complete this letter which Terry writes to the EasternBus ComPanY.
f
E L Ll_ l_ l_ l-d
I Clerkt
ic
am lTiting !hich
lilov sau:
- ho,
|
LL L
old
- vhere
l'y icr:e:
Juicr
the ;c'c ci
a-DPlY frr
?'-s 'd'/":Lrsed
T:e ;::licrC
in
Accouts
llevs.
You are
You a:e
voril:6
-
Hhat iob You.do
-
vie'uher;rou have iaa any prevtous exPelience of accc'J:s
-
vheiner
class
You cal
teache:
zt
i:-e
'ioli::C
i'ou a referen:e
lj:r T llehrp-n, v;.11 seld
icurs
r<
r
10
July
l-
toElrehensive' ii
you rec-uire
one'
fai::fui1;',
7 Earna+ T. !a:nes.
2 e Thisis the letter which Terrygot f rom Mr
Davis, the manager of the EasternBus Company' JUl,y
fo
Dear Mr Barnest
LJ
L L L L L L L L 4.
.--z
thank you for your letter you to cone for
sn interyier
of iuly
lO'
I should }lke
on Friday JuLy 21 at lO'lO'
confirn C o u ) , dy o u o l e a s e t e l e p h o n e r y 9 e c ! e t a r y a n d
this'
Yours sincereLY'
S. Dazn's S. Davis.
.L
i0i
F-1 ]1 -1
-
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
--1
2a
?n
Terry phonesMr Davis'secretarY.He explains why he is ringingand confirmsthat he can come. Suggestwhat Terryand the secretarY said to each other. Terry is being interviewedby Mr Davis. Suggest what Terrysaid. , e r r y "S i t d o w n .T e l lm e : ightT M RD A V r sR s o m e t h i n ga b o u tY o u r s e l f .
--1
r.4 z l-
l14
TERRY: M F D A V I S : A n d h o w l o n gh a v eY o ub e e ni n Y o u r
I ld
p r e s e n jt o b ?
il-
TERRY: M R D A V I S : O h!
l ' m s u r p i ' i s eydo u w a n t t o l e a v e , then.
t-
| trnn T . MR DAVIS:
W e l l ,l ' v e h a d a w o r d w i t h T o m N e w m a n .B u t I ' d l i k et o s P e a kt o y o u r p r e s e n et m p l o y e r sl.s t h a t a l l rig ht?
l-
-1 14
TERRY: MR DAVIS:
f4
W e l l ,t h a n k sv e r vm u c hf o r c o m i n g a l o n g .\ { e ' l l l e tY o uk n o ws o m e t i m e n e x tw e e k .
l4
TERRY: l<
3e Mr Davis finatly decidesto offerTerry the iob' This is the letter he wrcte.
f-
July J0
: :l-
,ln ^^UYil
m ^-*, LELLJ
t
't-
you the job of
I am pleased to be able to offer
salary
Jr:nior Accounts Cferk at a. starting W o u l d .y o u p l e a s e c o n f i r n
that
this
is
of t100 a veek'
.l-
acceptable'
Can you also }et us know vhen you would be free
f-
to start? :ld
Yours sincerely,
S. Da,
lr
t
3c Write Terry's replY,accepting or declining the job. 4a The fottowing week, Terry meets Carol Davis, a girl he was at school with. She is the daughter of Sam Davis.Terry tells Carol what he has been doing recently.Suggestwhat he said. 4a Afterwards, Terry realisesthat he'quite likes' Carol. He decides to write to her. Write the letter which he sendsher. 4c Write Carol's reply.
l-
I
I
l-
I
f,-
i02
l.-r
L-r
L )_4
LLr,-
I N T E G R A T ESDK I L L S -
r---J
L: l_ r-..d
8.4 S i m u l a t i o n sa s a framework for writing activities
l-L_ r--rJ
l-L1
LL-
Ll--LJ
L_
example,inthesimulationdescribedin8..l.2below,somestudentsina while otherswill be asked ,..ondury schoolclasscanplaythe part of teenagers, is more importantis the to take on adultroles.For our presentpurpose'what to carryout generate extentto which the activitieswhichthey are asked At this level' simulations meaningfuland relevantopportunities.for-rvriting' of a well-defined form the would siem to be ideal,p.&laing guidanie,in to in the classroom'as setting.which getsasneir to reai life as\\'ecanhope the writingtasks' well ai motivationforexecuting
L--a
L L LLrf---
L
r L_ r k
L-.r
L_ Lkr
r Lr -a.
Ja
LL >-
f{r
t:
t 4.
L
r r -.
L =-L L L:
so far haveinvolvedan proposedand discussed Many of the writingactivities to assumethe parts elementof roleplay.That is to say,the studentsare asked l and 8'3)' The useof (See,for example'-5'-5' of differentcharacters. furtherboth by simulationsenablesus to takethiskind of rvorka stage work in.whichthe learners providinga frameworkfor integratedlanguage 'input' of the datafrom which the writing activities itr"*r"tu-"s providea larger to the situation'to are derivedand by allowingthem,wherethis is appropriate within a definedsetting.This latter featurehasan obvious be themselves who sharecertain advantagewhen we areworkingwith groupsof learners with andwho arelearninga foreignlanguage skillsandinterests professi6nal throughthe ihe.e p.i*arily in view.sincemotivationrvillbe increased groups,however' knowledge.with non-specialist utilisationof their specialist we shallprobablyhaveto continueto rely whetheradultsor aiolescents, a certainamountof largelyon roleplay,althoughwe maybe ableto introduce asthemselves'For rol"esimulation,wherethe learnersreactto the task
8.4.1 Devisinga simulation
if we of a simulation'especially While caremustbe takenwith the construction tasks,this neednot be want to ensurethat it leadsnaturallyto certainwriting will involvethe viewedasa complextask.By definition.the simulation uld the contextwithin discussionof a specificproblemor setof problemt: learners'To do this in a which this takesplacemustbe clearlydefinedfor the the languageskills' we must naturalway and, no lessimportant,to activateall information' provide the learnerswith an adequateamountof background to be discussed Thus,in the simulationdesciibedin 8.4.2,theproblem for failingto criticised relatesto the Holford Arts centre,whichhasbeen programme'In addition,to p,""io. the publicwith the rightkind of cultural of ih. C.ntt" is alsoaccused add an elementof spicyinterJstto the situation, ,undeiirablehappenings'to take placeon the premis"t. T: allowingcertain aswell asmembersof the settingisa publicmeeting,at whl;h invited speakers throughwhat they public discusstrr.r. proUiems.tt is left to the participants' issues'Thusthe speakers saywithin the limitsof theirroles,to decideon these for the writingactiviries. thlmselvesprovidethe raw substance Toestablishthesetting,thereisacertainamountofbackground of materialboth to be devisedby thJteacher,whichconsists infor:marion, by the teacheris the listenedto andread.The othercomponentcontrived is done,throughrole cards' specificationof the rolesof the participants.This to be plaved,the line to role i"p"nding on the whicheitherdefineor suggest, eitheron the role cardsor be followedby eachpartlJpant.We ma1:also. with certainitemsof througha preliminaryoraltrieling, hetptrrelearners theycanusein the discussion' langrrigewhich in 8.4.2is perhapsa little differentfrom most The simulationdescribed
103
rl F€
-r-
-a
u
.-1
-
SKILLS TEACHINW G RITING
-
to createa i'arietyof writingtasks. structured it hasbeendeliberatelr, because opens,q'ehavetx'o kirtdso.f At the start,u,henthe publicdiscussion performers.Thereare thoseu'hoq.reckat the meeting.Someof thesehave a certaindirection.whileothers clearlydefinedroles.to givethe discussion thusensuringthat the outcomeis by no involvement, havea moreopen-ended rvitha view to reportingthe meanspredict;ble.Thereare alsothoservho/lsrerr the press,the p.o.""iings from variousangles.For example,theyrepresent in the discussion speak who groups.However.those iadio andiertainpressure ;recvcled' in variouswaysSothat theytoo havea writingtask aresubsequently sincethe purpose to perform.This.to someextent,is a questionof expediency' an in the class,for which averagesizeof of itre simulationis to inr,olve ever))one in someform of writinsactivity' thirty hasbeenassumed, 8.4.2 An exampleof a the simulation: Holford Arts Centre
(a) Backgroundinformarion (i) This is a streetmaPof Holford.
1 =1 --1
u
-,-.1
v.
I
v. -1
l^z -/t
v 1
u
I
lz 1 lz
1
rz I .1
14
l-
l-
f4
O
-n. coun,,, ^,t...-
\6/
Hollofd Arms
O
an" *o,,"ra News oJice
@
er.tu'n aus companv
_4 f,-z
I
Lz I .1
I
lz
fz .1
(ii) Thisis an entr\)in theEastAnglia Guides'
r,,.1 .1
H o l f o r d P o p u l a t i o n :6 0 , 0 9 0 C a m b r i d g e6 2 L o n d o n 10 3 A pleasantmarket town situatedon the River H o l t . M a i n l ya g r i c u l t u r aG l . o o d w a l k i n gc o u n l r y P l a c e so f h i s t o r t ci n t e r e s t :H o l t o n A b b e y ( 1 1 2 2 ) a n d S t . J o h n ' s C h u r c h ( 1 2 3 7 ) O t h e r p l a c e st o s e e a r e t h e n e w S h o p p i n g C e n t r e( 1 9 6 9 ) a n d t h e H o l f o r d A r t s C e n t r e ( . f o u n d e di n 1 9 7 5 ) l n d u s t r i e s i n c l u d e : c o s m e t i c s ,t o b a c c o a n d l i g h t e n g in e e r n i g. H o t e l s H o l f o r dA r m s ,M a r d e nH o t e a l n d P e n r i d g Ien n . Restaurants HolfordArmsandThe CountryKrtchen.
104
I
L< I f.d 4 L,z
--
r,a z La z L{ u
z
7z I N T E G R A T ESDK I L L S
E -
E E l-
t-
r t-
E tt-
r r r l--
tt-
i-
i= t--d
t-
t-
r r -
L
r tI
$D fhis is an extractfrom an articleon Holford which appearedinThe CambridseGazette. ... Like many other towns in this part of the country. 'on Holford is the move'. There are new factories and officesas well as a fine shopping c e n t r e .w h i c h w a s b u i l t i n 1 9 6 9 . And, with the laree new housing estate on the iorth side of the town, Holtbrd has begun to spreadout into the surrounding countryside. Industry has brought prosperity to Holford. although m a n y p e o p l ea r g u e t h a t i t h a s already begun to spoil the essential character of the town.
Someevensaythat thereii roo muchmoneyaroundin Holford andnot enoughculture. T h i s l a s t c r i t i c i s mi s s t r a n r e in viewof the fact that Holloid has a flourishing Arts Centre. S e t u p i n 1 9 7 5 .l a r g e l y o n t h e initiative of a few dedicated i n d i v i d u a l s ,i t h a s a l r e a d ys i v e n Holford several fine oro-ductions, including Pintei's The Caretaker. It has also made a documentary on the theme of racial integration which was well receivedat a national film f e s t i v a l .. . .
(iv) This is a conversationbetweenDan Graves,seniorreporter onThe Holford News,and TedRaines,a younglocalfarmer. TED: Are you sorryyou camebackto live in Holford, then, lvlr Graves?After all thoseyearsin London,I mean. neN: Sorry?No, not for a moment.I wasgladto escapefrom the place! rED: Still,you mustfindit allchanged. . . orN: Well, yes,it certainlyhaschanged. . . all theseindustriesfor a start.But at leastpeoplehaveplentyof work thesedays.And the facilitiesareso muchbetter.After all, there aren'tso many townsthat havea shoppingcentrelike ours. TED: But there'snot muchgoingon, is there?Don't you find it rather dull? DAN:But there'sa lot goingon! Justtakethe Arts Centre,for example. rED: Yes. that has attractedquite a lot of attentionlately! oeN: Mm, I don't thinkpeopleunderstand whatthey'retrvingto do there. rED: Well, personally, I don't seethe pointof it. After all. rvehavea perfectlygooddramaticsocietyalready. oex: That'sexactlywhatI mean!It's not just a biggerandbetter dramaticsociety... rED: Somepeoplesayit isn'tbetter! DAN: . . . they do lotsof otherthingsdown there . . . T E D :H m , s oI ' v e h e a r d ! orr: I suppose vou'recomingto thismeetingon Fridaynight.aren't you? rED: Oh yes,I'll be comingalongto that all right.I like listeningto a goodargument!Besides,I cantakea look at the placeat the Sametime. D.lN: Yes,you certainlyshouldtry to find out moreabouttheplace whileyou'rethere. . . just whattheydo anddon't do. As for all t h i st a l ka b o u t. . . . r v e l l .I i u s tt h i n ki t ' sa l o t o f . . . 105
I
I
I
r-J I-
I
) LJ
) -
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
.-1
(v)
Tltis is rlte rtotir:einvitittgpeople to a public tneetingat the Holford Arts Centre. IIOI-F-ORDAR'I'SCE\I-RE - \ p u [ - . l r cl c c t i n gr r i l l l r c h c l r il i t l l t c c c n t r . e t r t t F r i d a r . fu n c l 6 6 - i ( ) p n t
u U
\ I I t l r o s c i n t c r c s t c t li n
t l i s c r r s s r r trhgc u c t i r i t i e so l ' l h c C C n t r cl t r c c 0 r t i i l r l l - irr t ri t c t i t ( ) i l t l c l t ( l S . f ) l r r i s ( C ' h l r i r n t u)n
(b) Briefitrg After the presentation of the backsroundinformation.involvingboth l i s t e n i na g n dr e a d i n sa n dp e r h a p as l s oi n c l u d i n s o m er e l a t e do r a l w o r k . the studentsarereadvto be briefedaboutthe problemto be discussed and the variousrolesthevhaveto play. The publicmeetingis intendedin the firstinstance to giveTony Cross. the directorof theArts Centre.a chanceto explainu'hattheirwork is about.At the sametime.a lot of publiccriticismis expected.It is anticipated that thiswill centreon t\\ o mainissues: (i) that the Centredoesnot giveHolfordthe rightsortof 'cultural' programme. (ii) that the Centreis frequented bv teenagers. u'hogo thereto misbehave various \\'avs. in
H
]-J -1 .4
u u
-1
1
-1
r:
z }J
-1
rz
1
r-<
As explainedin 8.4.i. thissimulationhasbeenstructuredso asto include 'speakers' and'reporters'. The speakers (see'Rolecards'below)are as follows:
f-J
couNCrLLoR sAI{DAvrs:Chairmanof the meeting T cRoss: Directorof the Arts Centre K RIXoN: Principal,Holford Comprehensive c s porrERToN: Secretary,Holford Amateur DramaticSociety J TAYLoR: Youth WelfareOfficer M plArr: studentat Holford Polytechnic K FosrER: studentat Holford Polytechnic
f-
r<
l_1 U
v J4
All of thesehavewell definedroles.In addition,there are five adult rolesandfiveteenage roles,representing the publicpresentat the meeting. The numbercanbe increased or reducedaccordingto the sizeof the class. Theserolesaremoreopen-ended. The provisionfor reporters(that is, thosewho will listenduring the discussion and rnakenotes)is asfollows.Two studentsshareeachrole and collaborateafteru'ardson the writing task.This is alsoa way of ensuring maximumclassinvolvement.
J.4 -1
-u 1
r.z -J
I I
L BARoN: reporteron TheHolford News r JENKS: reporteron TheCambridgeGazette J WISEMAN: reporterfor EastAnglia Radio w TRAILL: representing Holford Comprehensive Schoolmagazine r sMIrH: representing Holford Amateur DramaticSociety J srorr: Youth FreedomMovement PB L A K E : S e c r e t a rtvo t h em e e t i n s
106
- -1
.' if-d
-/ IJ
-/
r-J
-/
I
r-d
-/
I
l-
II
I
I
L j-4
INTEGRATED SKILLS
L L L
(c) Rolecards Assigningthe variousrolesto the studentsalsoformspart of the briefing belowillustrateonly a crosssectionof the The role descriptions session. partsplayedby the students,exceptfor the reporters,which are givenin
3_J
r L r r-J
full. Main speakers
r--
L ll--r< l_.-1
.-1
=4t
L_ L. l /
ll-J
L LLLL' L1_ l_ LLL. L tL L L.tl
l-4
l-J
v., t#k t:1;#+r*Tt*"''Jlin ;;;; 'losoel!' *^ ii:t:";;tl*;x'iild
L1
1--J
l--J
}J
u-J
S JAMES r h o r e c e n t l yl e f tH o l f o r d Y o u a r ea t e e n a g e w C o m o r e h e n s i v eY.o u b e l i e v et h a t t h e C e n t r e d o e s l i t t l et o h e l pp e o p l eo f y o u r a g e a n d y o u w o u l d l i k et o s e e m o r e m o n e ys p e n to n i m p r o v i n gt h e f a c i l i t i e so f t h e Y o u t hC l u b .
fiffiffH#fffi
T CROSS As Directorof the HolfordArts Centre,your m a i n t a s ki s t o e x p l a i ni t s w o r k a n d t o r e f e rt o s o m e o f i t s a c h i e v e m e n tssi n c ei t w a s s e t u p ' D o t h i s c o n c i s e l yY. o u s h o u l ds t r e s st h a t putting on playsis only part of the Centre's work Jnd that you are not in competitionwith the Amateur DramaticSociety.Referto a c c u s a t i o nw s h i c h h a v eb e e nm a d ea g a i n s t t h e C e n t r e( f o re x a m p l e y, o u m a y r e a da n a n o n y m o u sl e t t e ry o u h a v ej u s t r e c e i v e db) u t m a i n t a i nt h a t t h e r ei s n o t r u t h i n t h e m '
L-il
LJ
Membersof thepublic
9:
t:I:lJ'?|s admiration rortheY?'1"r
ff****i;',. M BRIDGES O n t h e w h o l e y o u a p p r o v eo f t h e A r t sC e n t r e a n d t h i n kt h a t i t d o e sg o o d w o r k ' H o w e v e r , y o u d o n o t l i k et h e w a y t h e d i r e c t o r u n st h e C e n t r e :h e i s t o o a u t o c r a t i c\ '" o ut h i n kt h a t , ith members t h e r es h o u l db e a c o m m i t t e ew . oualso o f t h e p u b l i co n i t , t o d e c i d ep o l i c y Y b e l i e v es o m e o f t h e s t o r i e sa b o u tw h a t g o e s o n i n t h e C e n t r e :y o u r t e e n a g ec h i l d r e nt a l k a b o u ti t a l l t h e t i m e .
ffi'.*l.*#ffit"td ;::l:'*l .]'"; x l :l*lY: llxj i:*rj:: ro"'::l i,li$i;tprove or disaPP :l:
o"'
{[:;|i;ugffr'liFHiti*,""" besoen.11t1;* """i0 i,"'#.-ot";examPles'
p o P u l a rP I a Y S '
11
---1
}J
}J
.-J
t: >4
L .4 L )--! L
K FOSTER Y o u a r e a m e m b e ro f t h e A r t s C e n t r ea n d o n e of its strongestsupporters'Likemany other you have-been studentsaitf," eotytechnic, i O t " t o d o a l o t o f t h i n g st h r o u g ht h e C e n t r e w h i c h o t h e r w i s ew o u l d n o t h a v eb e e n p o s s i b l eG . i v es o m ee x a m p l e sl'f y o u w i s h ' some u o u * u y a l s od i s s o c i a t yeo u r s e l f r o m t h e re' d o n e b e e n h a v e w h i c h of thethings
r07
t-< lr-1
lu y T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S _11
lz
lz
lz
l-
. ,i,,i dtr:i'H :ffi t*i{#}, 'x'"'""Jffi o'' "n i ::;#*
P BLAKE Y o u rt a s k ,a s s e c r e t a r tyo t h e m e e t i n g i, s t o write.aconcisebut accurate reporton the meeting,to serveas a recordfor future reference.lf you are not sure of any po-int m a d ea t t h e m e e t i n g y, o u c a n c h e c ki t the speaker .onr"rri.d afterwarOs. w i t h
i+::1,ill''3'l'il
sens'a^t]r::'"tr ti *iilt vo u r edito r' i : \/Oll llltv ""'
14
l-
lr
l-
l-
!"1' ['.'.1 i:l?T."I"s't; :i i'J Ji :II:i'l ?;'; ;' Iii"v :' ""aY i:;:m""*';.':'J; j g;
:'":ft;"#rt :i ?ii fl:"i,l, tl ".*: :'lT or il;il'' nt"'n'tivelv'
in addttto"'-
Iinnii*i'i';fFI: ["ll'xii*: ff'.""', jth: ;UY; :'I'J;::#:"3*"
[:[;;
J$',
s l o ga n s .
lr
W TRAILL Y o u r m a i nt a s ki s t o r e p o r t h e m e e t i n gf o r . l a g a z i n eI n H o l f o r dC o m p r e h e n s i vSec h o o m y o u r a c c o u n ty, o u s h o u l df o c u si n p a r t i c u l a r o n m a t t e r sw h i c h c o n c e r nt e e n a g e r sY. o u a r e a l s ov e r y a m b i t i o u sa, n d y o u w o u l d l i k et o b e . ouhope r h e n y o u l e a v es c h o o l Y a reportew t h a t t h e a c c o u n yt o u w r i t ew i l l c a t c ht h e attentionof the editorof TheHolford News, t o w h o m a c o p yo f t h e s c h o o lm a g a z i n ei s sent.
y,Tl*' H : r :1 ::' l:,'"1 ?fr;:"!iii..xl'f SocietY i:?"il;""". ;; i':li;;i; :',If U*:al!::'llt.1 L"":,:li w;.u'' itro' Ne ff :Jfi:''u n,::lf * ::to o"'l#:l:nflffiiJ ::: u't itut
"l
"u"'
J WISEMAN As a reporterf or EastAnglia Radio,your main t a s ki s t o p r o d u c ea s h o r ta c c o u n to f t h e m e e t i n gw h i c hw i l l a p p e a tl o l i s t e n e r o s f Easr A n g l i aa t O n e ,a l i v e l yl u n c h - t i m ep r o g r a m m e o f n e w sa n d v i e w s .I n t h i s c o n n e c t i o n l v o u m a y a l s ow i s h t o i n t e r v i e wf,o r e x a m p l et,n e Directoo r f t h e C e n t r ea f t e r t h em e e t i n o .
T JENKS As a reporter f or The CambridgeGazette, t f the y o u r m a i n t a s ki s t o w r i t ea n a c c o u n o m e e t i n gf o r n e x tw e e k ' se d i t i o n .M a k es u r e . ersonally, t h a ty o u i n c l u d et h e m a i np o i n t s P C e n t r es, i m i l a r A r t s a n y o u w o u l d l i k et o s e e i n C a m b r i d g ae n d y o u H o l f o r d , i n i o t h eo n e its t o a t t e n t i o n d r a w t h e r e f o r e should a c h i e v e m e n tas n d p l a yd o w n o r i g n o r es o m e o f t h e c r i t i c i s m so f t h e C e n t r e .
l<
l<
l<
f-
l-
r<
-l-
Li
14
l-
lr<
-r:_f-r
Li
-_/
Lr
-/
fr
108
,
]r
) )-
?.r-
L g
l_ L
I N T E G R A T ESDK I L L S
r_J
r----
lL
8.4.3 the E.xploiting simulationfor writingtasks
)-4
l-l-: L L L L LJ
r-J .-1
)4
r-J
L_ La,-J
on the outcomeof the (b) The Directorof the Arts Centre(depending or work out a newstyle meeting)mayeitherwrite hisletterof resignation for the Centre.This may be donein collaboration programmeof activities rvith,for example,one adultandone teenagememberof the publicand from the Polytechnic. with oneof the students (c) The Youth WelfareOfficer,togetherwith the Principalof Holford andtwo or threemembersof the public,including Comprehensive maybe askedto drarvup a proposalto improvethe facilitiesof teenagers, the Youth Club. of HolfordAmateurDramaticSocietymavwork rvithhis (d) The Secretary or on the at the meettngon the letterto TheHolford Neves representative up. is taken on rvhichtask circularletter.depending togetherrvithtwo or moremembersof (e) One studentfrom the Polytechnic. the public.mavdrawup theirproposalfora revisedArts Centre proqramme.to be submittedto the Directorfor consideration. mav be askedto lvrite (f) Othermembersof the public.adultsandteenagers, e i t h e rl e t t e r st o t h ep r e s so r ' a n o n v m o u s ' l e t t etrosv a r i o u sp e o p l es, u c ha s of the AmateurDramatic the Directorof the Arts Centreor the Secretarv a sg a i n stth e m . S o c i e t ym . a k i n qa c c u s a t i o n
r--t
LL LJ
r--J
LLL.--a
r L-.J
LLLLLL, L t_L L LLL. 4 L L LJ
r-J
r--J
rvritingtasks be clearthat thereis no difficultyin devisinginteresting It shor-rld the from quite naturallv in the class.All of thesetasksderive for et,err-otte bodyof simulation.The resultof thisis thatrveend up with a considerable or aloud read be which can themselves, material.producedby the stuclents circulatedroundtheclassandrvhichis of realinterestttl evervone.
t---l
L1 4
t-J
)-1
d
of thissimulationin detailand theconstruction The mainpurposein describing 'input' requiredfrom the teacherwasto demonstrate in particularshowingthe for a varieti'of writingtasks'For powerful framework a provides it that example,beforethe meeting.thosewho havebeeninvitedto speakwillwant to ensurethe to makeSomenoteson whattheyproposeto Say.At thisStage, shouldlook at reporters the that of the wholeclass.it is suggested involvement variouskindsof writingrelevantto theirtasks.For example,newsreports, l e t t e r st o t h ee d i t o r ,n o t i c e se. t c . takingplace.everyoneis fully occupied, While the simulationis actuall,v or in listeningandtakingnotes.After the simulation.the eitherin speaking in writingup theirvariousaccounts. reportersareengaged for those At the sametime. however.we haveto providewritingactivities extent on the actual to some rvill depend who spokeat the meeting.Clearlythis general a but, as outcomeof the meeting,whichis by no meanspredictable, are suggested: lines these along guide,activities on (a) The chairmanof the meetingmaybe askedto work with the secretary the taskof editingandwritingup the formalaccountof the meeting.
Discussion
at thislevel'/ to skill integrzrtion attachecl agreewith the importance 1 Do -,-ou canvou ri qg.tt otherwavsof ensuringthat rvritingactivities If i,ouclisagree. arepurposeful'? anytextbookof vourou'nchoosingto seervhatattemptis ntacleto I Exan-rine stl i l t e s r a t es k i l l sa t t h i sl e v c l .C o n s i t l cirn p a r t i c u l arrv h e t h errv r i t i n sf o l l o r v o 109
ll t-
/ f -z
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
= -1
especiaily naturallyfrom the otheractivities. oralwork. or whetherit tends as a homeu'ork task. to be presented for projectwork in --) Canyou seeanvproblemsarisingfrom the suggestions outweighthese? 8.2?Do ),outhink the advantages Do you think the simulationoutlinedin 8.4providessufficientguidancefor involved?If you wantedto givethe studentsmore the writingactivities guidance,how wouldyou do it? for integrating skillsdo you Whichof the differenttypesof activitysuggested Why' find mostattractive? Exercises
Examineanytextbookto seewhatprovisionis madefor proiectwork. Could into smallprojects? be developed someof the activities suggested in Draw a chartsimilarto the one on page97 for anyof the topicssuggested ( a ) . 8.2.2 anyof the Showhow you wouldpresentanddevelopfor classwork i ns8 . 2 . 2( a ) . suggestion of activities in 8.3.2.foilowingthismodel.This will Analysethe sequence the underlyingmechanism. helpyou to understand
lz
lz
lz
14
Dr
L
}r
L
L.
l-
l-
TEXT
O U T L I N EO F C O N T E N T
SKILL
lr
Ad Dialogue
TB readsad in Holford News TB rings up Trafalgar Tobacco Co
Reading Listening
f-
l-
of your own.Thismay be muchshorter Now constructa similarsequence t h e o n e i n than 8.3.2. for otherspeakersin the simulationin 8.4. 5 Write role descriptions rolesfor the 'reporters'inthe simulationin 8.4. somealternative 6 Suggest togetherwith relatedwriting activities.
>l-
l-
l-
References
On integratedskilisseeD Byrne(1986)Ch. 11andA Matthewset al (eds.) ( 1 9 8 5 p) a g e s3 2 - 4 a n d 1 2 6 - 4 0 . For projectwork seeD Byrne (1986)pages733-7. This sectionalsocontains an for developing more informationabout'Newsmag'. Suggestions imaginaryislandaregivenin A Matthewset al (1985)pages726-3I. A usefulbook on proiectwork generallyis D Waters(1982),from which the chartfor Food on page97hasbeenadapted. For skillsequencing seeD Byrnein K JohnsonandK Morrow (1981).The firstsequence in 8.3.1is basedon D ByrneandS HoldenGoingPlaces (1980);the secondsequence on D ByrneandS HoldenInsighr(Longman on thismodelseeD Byrneand S HoldenFollowIt 1976).For materialbased Through(Longman1978)and GoingPlaces(Longman1980).Also R White WriteAway (NelsonFilmscan1987). On simulationsseeK Jones(1982).For a simpleintroductionseeD Byrne (1986)pages725-8. The simulationin 8.4 is basedon D Byrne and S Holden Insight(1976).Comparisonwith the originalmaterialwill showhow textbookmaterialcanbe adaptedfor thispurpose.
l-
l-
L-
rL-
l-
r]L
l-
fr
110
rfr
L .J
LLLl -
r-
r---a
Lr-J
Ll-L L L, LLLr-J
r---l
.-J
Writingat the Post-intermediate level
--,J
rJ rl
--J
r '---
L. L_ --J
..J
l--1
L----
r r-J
LLL--LLa|.-a
at-14
.-zt
----t
,: )4
l: )-1
I- - -
t: ---
l-,-J
Ll>1 L.
l_ l_ )t l: ]-L1
9.1 Problem
It is often assumedthat, oncethe learne* haveacquireda reasonable furtherpracticein this skill canbe given profrciencyin written expression, 'composition'or 'essay''The mainlythiough tasksin the form of somekind of at studentsur" giu.n a topicor a themeand are expectedto expressthemselves seem It might write. to their ability somelengthon it in orderto demonstrate earlierstagesof the programme'we at activity of type this that, havingavoided are obligeJto fall backon it at this levelin order to givethe learnersextensive practicein their hard won skill. are still a featureof manypublic and essays Sincecompositions for clearlywe shouldnot denythe studentssomepreparation examinations, in 9.3.We mustalsoattemptto see thistypeof task.This aspectis considered throughthis kind of writing and whetherthe same rvhatskillsare practisecl it skillscanbe more effectivelypractisedin alternativeways'At the sametime, rvouldbe wrongto acceptthis kind of writing activityasone of the main which outcomesof the writing programme.For one thing, it is a form of writing hall' One needsonlyto or examination outsidethe classroom is rarelypractised an it presents uS, for mostof Besides, ask:whendid I lastwrite an essay? we are extremelydifficulttask,evenin our mothertongue'andevenmoreSoif askedto do it againstthe clock.Therewouldseemlittle point' therefore,in learner,whose inflictingthistypeof writingactivityon the foreignlanguage in writingis unlikelyto matchthe task' proficiency lvaysof It rvainotedabovethatwe wouldneedto consideralternative and essaywriting.Thesewe throughcomposition skillspractised developing thoseskillsinvolvingthe abilityto organiseideas to be particularly *oy "rru*e pieci of writing.But organisational skills,whichcertainlyneed in a sustained furtherpracticeat thislevel,canbe equallywell developedthroughactivities suchasletterandreport rvhichinvolvesomerealisticform of expression, writing.Reactingto a situationthroughwriting.for example.a letterof of relevantfactsto rvillrequireargument.u'hilcthe marshalling protes"t. 111
r,/ tr/ --7. SKILLS TEACHINW G RII'ING
I.a -,-/ -z
=
s u p p o rt h i sa r g u m e n\t\ ' i l li n v o l r , oe r g a n i s a t i o nsakl i l l s U . n l i k ec o m p o s i t i o r - l writingin the traditionalsense.hou'ever.the learnerscanbe morefully i n v o l v e di n t h i st y p eo f u r i t i n gt a s k .r h r o u g hs o r n ek i n do f r o l e p l a ya. n dc a n appreciate its relevance to reallife. In termsof developing rvritingskiils. therefore.the learners'needs canbe fullv met throughfurtherpracticein letter and reportwriting. Compositionandessayu'ritingalsoprovideopportunities for u'hatis often called'freeexpression': the learnersareallorvedto savwhatthevlike on a giventopicor theme.\\/hileit is truethat at thislevelcontrolof whatthe learnerswrite (exceptfor remedialpurposes, see9.2)wouldbe inappropriate. we still havethe responsibilitv for providin_e them with an adequate contextfor writingactivities. Ideallr,,thiskind of frameworkshouldbe providedthrough activitiessuchasthe simulation described in 8.4.rvhichhavethe further advantage of fulli,inteeratinq allthe laneuage skills.In practice,beciiuse of the shortageof classtime.ue mavhaveto be satisfied r.i'ithmuchless.It is stressed. hou'ever.that writingtasksshouldnot. simpll,for the sakeof convenience. be divorcedfrom otherclassroom u'hichinvolvelistening,speakingancl activities reading.The link u'ithreadingis the mosteasilyestablished. andof course commonlypractised at thislevel,if onlyin the form of askingthe studentsto u'riteaboutsomething thevhaveread.but the closeassociation of speaking and listeningwith u'ritingis lesscommon.Yet a classdiscussion, for example, canprovidean excellentsprineboard for writingactivities: ideashavebeen discussed. pointsof viewexpressed and.u'hatis especiallv important,interest in the topichasbeenaroused. All this.especially if the learnershavebeen askedto makenotesduringthe classdiscussion. canleadon quitenaturallvto a varietyof writingactivities in theform of letters,reports,newspaper articles andso on. Similarlv.project-tvpe work, carriedout in smallgroupsover a periodof time. providesexcelient opportunities for skillintegration. The learnershaveto discuss the contentof the projectandinvariablyhaveto do a considerable amountof readingfor it. whilethe writingup of the projectis in itselfa purposefulactivit\'. The possibilityof individualising writingpracticewasnotedin i.6. At this Ievel,asthe learnersbecomeincreasingly awareof how writing may relateto their future needs(for example.for occupational purposes,for academicstudy or perhapsonly for personalcommunication), motivationcanbe increasedby payingparticularattentionto these.If, for example,a groupof studentsin the classexpressa particularinterestin learningcommercialcorrespondence, becausethey feel that thisis the typeof writing whichwill be, or is most likely to be, of relevanceto them.eventhe settingof fairl,vformal tasksbecomes more acceptable. Needsfor individualised writing practicecanto a largeextent be met throughthe useof self-instructional material,with the studentsworking togetherin pairsor groups. A final point to keepin mind is that, aswe allow the learnersincreasingiy more opportunitiesfor self-expression throughwriting, we mustview what they write asattemptsto communicate something.Weowe it to the students,of course,to correctand evaluatetheir work to the extentthat this will improve their performance especially in examinations, sincetheseareoftenweightedin favour of written skills.but it u'ouldbe wrongto destroyboth their interestand confidencein writing throughexcessive correction.One thing we cando is to
rt2
] Iz tr
lr
lr
lr D-
L
14
l<
-r_r< fr
-E lr
l-.
lz
f-.
l-.
_f-
fr
f-
-rr<
f-r
f'-
F ]r
tr
L
LEVEL ATTHEPOST.INTERMEDIATE WRITING
)<1
L L L
r---J
performance, separatetaskswhichare designedto improvetheir examination intendedto and whichthereforecanbe viewedmore critically,from those which activities the skillson a broaderbasis,suchas developcommunication is importantthat fo.med part of the simulationin 8.4. For thesein particularit situation, classroom the the teacirershouldnot be the only consumerand, in shouldbe writing/or oneanother'This elementof thismeansthat the students in activities to somebodyis naturally-present havingsomethingto communicate students the like simulationsand projects:becausethereis a diversityof task, havewritten' And, are genuinelyinteresiedinknowingwhat othersin the class be ascriticalof to likely becauseof their involvementin the activity,they are however,is that what hasbeenwritten aSwe rvouldourselves.The difference' they reactasreadersratherthan asittdges'
t--.:
r L r L -1
r-J
l_ l_ .,-z LLr-J
l_
r-J
L L. r
al
l
The main features of the writing programme
r r--l
should be increased' (b) Opportunitiesfor free expression be settasks This doesnot imply, horvever.that the learnersshouldsimply that a for writing, in thi iorm of topicsor themes'It is suggested the useof through frameworkfor writing activiiiesshouldbe established activitieslike thosein Chapter8' shottldbe in theform of realistictaskssuchas reportand (c) Writing activities letterwriting. Most of theseformatsfor writing practicehavebeenonly superficially for exploredat previousstagesandihere are thereforeopportunities of instead level, aeatingwittr thesein depthat the post-intermediate practicein writing' resortingto sometyp. ot..ruy *iiting to giveextended to take developed proficiencyin ,p".id. varietiesof writing may alsobe this aspectof individualn".d, into account.It shouldbe kept in mind that appropriate the writing programmemustbe supportedby exposureto modelsthroughthe readingprogramme'
r--..
L, L L Lr-
r II-.J
L LLLLLTI-.J
rE--a
r--J
shottldnot be neglected' (d) Examinationrequirements continue Other componentsof the programmewill ensurethat the learners of mastery that to extendtheir rangeof *.iting skillsbut, to the extent public specificformsof wiiting, suchasessays'is a featureof examinations,theseneedsmustbetakenintoaccount'
r--J
>--a
L-)
L-
r L.J
J
l-
r Lr l-J
.--4
L--
L1t
LLLL-r
a--a
a--J
(a\ Provisionshouldbe madefor remedialwork' in g.2thatone way of doingthis is usinga functional It is suggested will upp.ou.trto writing skills.This componentof the writing programme problemof alsoensurethat th; learnersaregivin further help with the content' of at the level organisingtheir written expression
9.2 Remedialwork: the value of a functional approach
at this stage' ^ necessary It is inevitablethat someremedialrvorkwill become earlierstagesof While it is possibleto selectand repeatcertainactivitiesfrom writing skillshas the programme,the adoptionof a iunctionalapproachto slantto the new In general,it canbe usedto givea certainadvantages. : newway' The samels programme,,olhut fa,iiliar groundcanbe exploredin a to be felt. Thus.rvhereas no lesstrue of oralskills,rvherea similarneedislikely may havefocusedmainlyon actiVities reinforcement at previousstages, I t1
J
--
)
r-
I
H
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
u'tlrk.reviewthese structuralitems.\\'ecannorv.forthe purposeof rcnleclial functions,suchasexprrcssitlil itemsunderthe umbrellaof particularlanguage that alltltiswill be invitations, etc.It is not suggested requests, suggestions. thesefunctions. of treatment the learners; is tlle s-r's/enzaric it totallynewto rvhichis havealreadymastered. rvhichthe students bringingtogetherlanguage likelyto be different.In particular,howet'er.it will enableus to explorein of in longerstretches rvhichoccurtvpicallyr greaterdepthotherfunctions. exemplifying' generalising, andcontrasting, language, suchascomparing list of these. a comprehensive A for defining Seethe Appendix.Section valuablein helpingthe studentsto Masteryof thesefunctionsu'illbe especiallv organisetheirwrittenexpression. andcontrast.is An exampleof a unit of u'ork.dealingrvithcomparison that the contentis suitablefor alltypes givenin9.2.1.\[/hileit is not suggested arelikelyto be of generalvalidity.Thus.the of learners,the procedures the variousitemsof to a text$,hichexemplifies studentsarefirstexposed Their attentionis drawn contrast. and express comparison to language needed forms.althoughit is not to the key items.u'hichincludesomealternative 'basickit'. As a arebeingQivenan-vmorethana that the students suggested for usinstheseitemsorally,.Sothat secondstage,theyareeivenopportunities they canexploretheirusein a fairlyflexibleway.At thisstage.certain throughthe reading shorvup whichwerenot perhapsanticipated difficulties writingtask.whichshou's aregivenan appropriate text. Finally.the students how the functionof comparisonand contrastrelatesto a specific purpose. communicative
) F -/ ,_-/ --1
u
-1
: ---1
u ---1 l=2 )-1
!l-
9.2.r Expressing comparisonand contrast:a specimenunit
(a) Studythe languageof comparisonand contrastin the report below:
Iz
KEY LANGUAGE
R E P O R TO N E X H E A D A N D P O R T S E A
ts
in many woy,slin some respects/to some extent. alikel similar, both, each, like, similarlyl likewiseiin the same way, bal, dissimilarldifferentl unlike, compared withlin comparison with, while, on the other hand, unlike, difference between, howeverlin constrast/onthe contrary
Exhead and Portseaare two towns on the south coastwhich are in manl,wrzysvery much alike. Thev are both old towns and e a c h h a sa l a r g eh a r b o u r . Llke Portsea,Exhead has a population of approximately 120,000.It also has a growing number of local industries.Similarly, Portsea is expandingon the industrial front, too. B u l i n o t h e r r e s p e c t st h e t w o t o w n sa r e q u i t e dissimilar. For one thing, contpared u'ith Portsea.Exhead is a much more attractive place. For this reasonit is a popular holiday resort in summer, while Portsea,on the other hand. attractsvery few visitors. Unlike Portsea.Exhead has extendedits hotel facilitiesbecauseof the tourist trade. One striking difference betweenthe two towns is that Exhead has locatedits new industrieson an estateoutside the town. In Portsea,however, there are even factories n e a rt h e h a r b o u r ,
-1
--1 }J
j.4
-1 _4,-< <2 .J
-1
_v =1 r-J _1 r-J I Ld -1 f-z -1 f-<
714
_/ f.j
z II
L .-J
l__ -l_-l_Lr=J
r=J
cJ
t-t_ r
l_L_
LEVEL WRITINGAT THEPOST-INTERMEDIATE
andwork in aregivena bio-datacue-Sheet (b) For the nextstage,the students For andcomparinganytwo of the peopledescribed. pairs,contrasting and A P wavs, H Smith J many In like: example,theymakestatements alike. Theywereboth born in 1939,theyareboth Wheelerare verymL4ch married,etc. Or: Comparedwith MichaelWebb,Andrew Wheeleris a rich man! Noticethat, at this stage,the studentshaveto identifythe pointsof andcontrast,aswell asusethe appropriateIanguage. comparison
r-.J
r_ r_-4t
r
--
Lu
l__ L: L---LLLLLLLLrr--l r=J
-^h.
liane late
r
llornr
v r r r r
.lmi ih - r u ;
v r r
" u r l ^ J
tsirth
ci
status
l'.aritai
/ a
,a^arhFr
h
l-1Y
i,-arri ed 2 chi lci.ren ( 1 son,
n^^,,-^+i ^n LuruP4ururr
: . 1 0, { 0 0 p . a .
I nc one
( r lBJ model)
Ford Sierra fanri
il lorts Cther
1 daughter)
'Ieacher
interests
c
snl o"^^
t
+-^,.^l I i n ur4vs!rrrr5t ^hocc
I
"
ctimn
theatre, photogral:;r, collecting
=.J
a.J
t---J
aL---
Mi-chaeL i{ebb
Name )ate
of birth
D e c e r n b e1r 2 1 9 r 5
l'Iarita1 status
Single
Oncrrnaii
Teacher
-
on
( t 9 S 6 m ot e l )
itrada
:iat
---4
-J
p.a.
tl000
I nc orne
;-..
None
Cther interests
Cancingr'bravelling
Name
Andrew Peter 'rheeler
H
---J
LL l '
----t
l--l_-
)ate
of
liari- tal
bi-rth
Lprtt 1 1)))
s tatus
}larri ed i
nhi
ldren
)-1J
n^^"^-+i ^n wLUuvoLrvrr
Archi tect
I ncome
. 1 'lonn
---1
Ll_ L-,-
Ford Sierra
(4 sons, 1 daughter)
m o o e r ./
1<-
t-J
L_ -'--t
L--J
L-
=--t
L .--1
:-o"tu
rnl
Other interests
-L^+^ -^-L1' , rLU uu6adP'rJ
f
115
J f-
) -)H H
WRITING SKILLS TEACHING
I u
(c) For theirfinaltask.the students aresivendatain tabularform. They are askedto rvritea reporton oneof the carsin eachof the two groups, thiscarasthe'bestbu1".The.vhaveto compareand recommending contrastthiscaru'ithotheronesin the samegroup.rvherethisis appropriate. f'IAT Fanda
't50
/
f:rlce
4 18 6
llqo
i \
\l /
Uubl-c capacl- ty
| ^,
, 3. \ cn' J \
LenEtn \It., ]-nJ No. of seats
11
1
4 A\
1)
r r. P.6.
/^\
\L/ n , , ] . i ^ v^a^1^, o^e^r i * ,v,J vuuru
!sri6Vrr NI^
nf
/ ^,
\f U.t qoetq
r^
frr./
RXNAULT TL
FORD Ili aeta r L e -
w 4
4201
-
9r7
ts
RO\IIR 2 16 S E
V0LV0 24OGL
la
1 99'
1598 1) B
z)to
4
4
1C2
1' 1 0
to
27
108
110
-
Aq
AO(n
|r.P.6.
__-1
4 40
7ra9
I'iax. speeC m.p.h.
y --z
4BO' 11 0 8 '11 9 4 4B B9
9 14 9
1r) 5
) l-l
-
7 19 ' 14 2 4
-
/ ) v
CITROEN CX 20
/
I
QSO
Blf$/ 116
]\
r-n-
\
991 11 0 4 1l AA
Max. speed m.p.h.
rrlce
VAU}f,iALL Nova
--1
1q
-1
ts -
-.1
A
rz
_-1
F --_-a
.rDt
F 9.3 Freewriting: some suggested procedures
116
The main concernof this lastsectionis to suggestsomeprocedureswhich studentscanusewhentheyhaveto copewith the task,whichveryfew of us 'essay'on a find easy,of producinga text in the form of a 'composition'or an giventopic,eitherin an examination or in a similarsituation.That is, it is have no assumedthat the students specialmotivationfor writing aboutthe topic and that they havenot beengivenanyspecialpreparationfor it through, for exampie,a classdiscussion, in 9.1.It shouldbe noted,however, assuggested 'recipes' rvith that we are not concerned or'formulas'for writingmodel but rvithproceduressuchasoutlining,draftingand compositionsor essavs improvingdrafts. fheseform part of any writing taskfor which the students havenot beenhelpedu'ith the actualstructuringof the text they haveto produce.For example.for the u'ritingactivitiesderivedfrom the simulationin 'content'andthe format(article,letter, 8.3,the studentsaregivenboththe report, etc.)which thevhaveto use,but theyhaveto organisethe datafor themselves. Man.vstudentsin fact write lesswell than they are ableto simply becausetheseor similarprocedureshavenot beensufficientlystressed. It is not claimedthat thereis any one way of goingaboutthe writing of a text (thiswasacknorvledged in 1. 1) . What is important,however,is that studentsshouldappreciatethe importance.for example,of makingnotesand drafting.They mustacceptthat this is a normalpart of writing. The fact that they cannotalwavsdo thisu'hentheyareaskedto write againstthe clockin an doesnot invalidatethe Drocedures. examination
__-1
A< f-4
ts _4
F 4 _k _1
1!--L-1
-_r-1
y
1 --l.J -.1 f.<
z _r.l _k I
v -z I,.
l
I
L H
l-_ l_l__ L-
WRITINGAT THEPOST-INTERMEDIATE LEVEL
L-
a particularlyuninspiring theseprocedures, For the purposeof illustrating a placewhichseemsmuchmore topichasbeenchosen:Describe composition was when it new. and sadthan neglected faced In attemptingto writeabouta topiclike this,we are immediately naturally we have Seen, aS writing which, we are for, who problems: with two the how we write. andwhatto write about.In normalcircumstances influences we do not firstproblemwouldneverariseat all, since,outsidethe classroom, write unlessthereis somereasonfor doingso. For thistypeof writing,students areoftenexhortedto'imagine'a reader.This mayto someextentbe helpfulif the studentsalsothink of the taskinitiallyasformingpart of , let us say,a letter or a report.This at leastgivesthemsomepurposefor writing aboutthe topic in the firstplaceandcanserveto stimulatesomeideason it. And if the students 'otherstudentsin the class'.who areat areto'imaginea reader',it hadbestbe leastrealfor them. Studentsdo tend to rvritebetterif they know that other peoplein the classaregoingto readwhattheyhavewritten.Hencethe importanceof havinga displayboardof somekind in the classroom. then,our startingpoint is reallythe problemof In termsof procedures, whatto write about:that is, gettingsomeideason the topic.Understandably studentsoftenfeelthat theyhavenothingto sayat all, although,if the task a numberof ideaswouldby a shortclassor groupdiscussion, werepreceded certainlybe thrown up. In the absenceof tttis.the studentsneedto stimulate and this canbe quiteeffectivelydoneby askingoneselfclttestions themselves aboutthe topic andnotingdown anv ideasthat occur.As a first step,then, it is should: thatthe students suggested
LLLLL-
(a) List possibleideas. One ideaveryoftensparksoff another.In anycase,mostpeoplefind it helpfulto getsomethingdownon paper.It is betterthan staringat blank 'ideas'chart(see6.3.1and8.3.1)is oneway of getting paper!Makingan of beingflexible.You canexpand' started,andit hasthe addedadvantage if you aremakingnotesin a is difficult rvay that in a ideas link, number Here,for example,arethe resultsof tryingto decide conventionalwav. whichplaceto rvriteabout.
r----a r.--"J r-J
L
1-L L L LL L. r--J
..,,J
L.,-J
r{J
r-
.-J
t-r
LL r--{
a--a r-+a
l--J
a.-J
L.J
r--J
LLLLL1
Da't:
br*t
r--l
aotols
.-11
Lro/4i a/
--\
7 [ou^sc.
Blrgo Ha//!
>-14
l-t_l-: L € }J
l-J
L, L_ L1 L L,J
.-J
.--t
lYJ
la'nAstte hotuda'l4 '41re"rleact1) 'lwe/ygn-aog/ft
L6ed to emPq p'odu.cet wru{ins brukg.rL J e,Lfi,ffl-elltal ! m, b+kzs
fltn
doktnalr4/
W df PeiP{L "14 I IiAe i qrartevard r17
J
--
)
u ) u SKILLS T E A C H I NW G RITING
I t
u
I
The writer play'edaround with severalideas.House did not lead anywhere;farnt did. but he decidedthat he \\'assoing in the wrong direction. Both theatreandfactorl' had some potential, but in the end the rvriter decidedthat he could do more u,ith hotel. Horvever.he can easilygo back and developthem later if he getsnowhere with hotel (and it is much easierto transferideasfrom one placeto another by meansof arrows).
) j
--1
-
(b) Selectand expand one idea. The writer has decidedthat he can do somethingwith hotelon the basisof personalexperience.Again, it helpsto do this in chart form - perhaps merely expandingthe first one if time is short.
-u -
y ti:,
e)
57llu-ot -
c,ruwd^ed
(ho4 "tobo{hrtm{hs htbl'zl)
ALna'godplace
| l'//'
,.PEE5TNT ,/ ...
,"
F
Ah',r-stenpQ: -ard
iurt dorei J^--t s ,Jpeo-V4Z. 'Dead:/Lo
@)
-
';#'**"/
_4
tttz / L) ,/e,.t bae,kow , A/4& sgokz'at hin/6) \ 'ion't0mao'ta.L' '/
to eat Lrf":.dances/ da,, FulLa/ ""lLt Iitfe:
p*&s1"rtungs
-
IelLt as tottt' ai cott//: no'Ft da!/
P AS T
u
Food- aulull
-
frr oh;lnne'tu
l-
!-
At {-/
tlsed so qo {o/' sqrft4nei lrh,;a.as ?/Y(4y fa,r.
,l
f/0rEL
@,4"
6)
!ry:fndr*""?
0 m'rcr ta4,rl' :-qro/ut', oA tua! fulaqbe tot^n+/beao/x. t6/L U f;ct{ru/.Or *tea-kirtel 7
v. Hg
@
v td4'ge
qa'rdar -lba;ms to bea;/'t
. -al l-z
-
>1 _1
Lz
,@rrlt/ptacz:
Sizz
v
I Wha'e
-v
w
Oz lea't uqotd bealt / oplt/a4'
ttri'd/"
(+01
,-1
\--/ bard*rsn4qkotetd
Placeg3noful,tal ruzr.
d,o-ti14..
"
ftrru/l4l
-v 1
_1
. _r.1
(c) Make an outline. Not everyonefindsit necessary or evenhelpfulto makea planor outline. For someit is inhibitingandpreventsideasfrom flowing.In anycase,in (suchastheexamination somesituations room)theremay not be time. In that case.you cannumberthe ideasin the chartin the orderyou think you wouldlike to incorporate that nothing themin the text.Thisalsoensures importantis left out. 118
_k 1 -k _-1 ]1 -1
-u I
-k -4
v I IJ
L --L_ L_
WRITINGAT THEPOST.INTERMEDIATE LEVEL
r__J
t-J
Ll_ LLl_ L_ l--l_l-
L1
1--
..1
..1
''-1t
a--J
a--
1: l-J
l__ L. LLLLr--l
a-L
L-j
.4-
a--J
r tg
LLLLL.-,J
LJ
a-J
.-J
r
AL-1J
a-1
L.-1
l.-J
L_ L_ L.-,J
.-1
r L-J
LL LI
u
However,some studentsfind making an outlinehelpfulfor ideas, organising for especially identifyingand developingan openingand closing paragraph,whichwill make a great impressionon the reader.Students shouldat leastbe taughthow to do this, evenif they do not makeuseof it everY time they write a composition. (d) Write a draft. Writing a draft is a key stagein the productionof a text and the students shouldnormallybe requiredto do this as a matterof course. The purposeof the outlinein (c) is to providea scaffolding for the draft version. However,students s h o u l dn o t f e e l t h a t they must necessarilY keepto theiroutline: a pieceof writing off' sometimes'takes a goes in and completelydifferent direction,andthey may find it more productiveto follow this new line of Generally development. draftsshouldbe written quitequicklytheywill be because reworkedand correctedafterwards.
t.re
2 0 y e a r s - u s e r i t o g c , ^ . l t h .D a r e n t s
fcr
Slam€I1
)ra"A ir:,rc
ilcntecl"
2
Sea,lieu
see
to
ltseC
itotel.
bes: ,)n t:ctn (nea) I aTaays bookee up. 1.i.fe: naritl'-cus
in garden for
A r y i u e i . 1 . r . h ' o l . J d n ys e a s o r .
Pata 4
4
?att
P 1 - e c ea L n o : : i-''i:e
by iC.
Tctei ieserted
cere:o-r,l!
lt :::r;
chilCrer..
Fcsldurcnt
ilosl;Ly oLi ccupLes.
ervly ! !
be
luLL ci
resl:aurant and Ccr.ces.
c.rrcrgei enltert.innents
:a
vun cToum:rccns t-eeied.
!,-;er!thinE
Garien cotp"'etei'i
reieccrcl:.;,rg / outsiCe too.
neg"-.caeC. l'"ike ;ungle ! ?arc S (Cor,ciuslon) Fett pLace hai grcum o1-.i (!:,'
lar"i :Eo l,ieaiied
).a
:t
rr. !cur,.
ikere
xere
t.
'\e
,
ucs alaa1s
7ar:--e;
tni
!eq!s-
i:h'e
aet:cr'.
the uee!:er"d cnd the c'-zers
entertcinrents
:i:e childre't
lcr
:cr::r. but- ;he iwtei
e ;aiuriai!
).
tt:.)le;
jex tore:ec21,e,
rcstl'1
cli:c'tpies,
:tt
e::e::.x'r,e:e tas sc tieai!
:ni
bi, :;t:
ll'.e c;t:s'-ce cj ccrt|'e::"
+'ke hota!
1 teg':eetei:
:::e:'e :r.,
it
'-a!'
ot't'i':e: ic=er"'t
tlz
!'-e':r jcci
i':::":"ce
cle
h'air-'t beer: :e':ct'cte4.fol
tas just
r:::r's'
|'as qsvi':'::':z:':
ae buc.
to ore boti'"evei tc
c l a c e h - a di i r c L l t c : ' i ,
:er'tct:e :hey :i"i tot
uas c rle:,:.'r-e to gc bt:!- tr-C i ic :'.cuit":
;
erc-'1 .
cir:ca;
'-:tr i'L- clcss
cr ;1:t:
rct';.
I fe,::i;tt:i'.a ':e,:::i:e::!
-ecple
ta;
o'clocl'- the pl-ace xcs can?Le,eLr ieserie'j
)l! !'aaa iepres-"o-i re:
I
laliiaT
crcuCed iur:r'g
Car.ces at
sgectc!
tsed to arratge
ct;er r[e\tt
tex qnd cer:ci't':!
Das te!'r
dcys it
ln:bse
c":xcys::a-,ted.
ali?.'L1m4r
ucnteti to see the Seet:eu iot;e'L uh'::': te
- pc:::.culdrLil
best
been back xh'ere fcr
hoc to:
b,L.ti
h.ol!ici;,
se'asite tc''n ict
t:c tcke us tc::hi';
Lsei
cltays
!ut':ct'er:e
9oxle'1.
ta ga on a uisit:o
' " l i ' ' ' :t L e : e : : " '
rc:i.:ta ':a.
dectJei:c::c'<;
-cr: I i: :i' ty
e::''::e
^|: :t !h'e
rotr",ro.
119
J --
.J
-_ -) .-1
SKILLS T E A C H I NW GRITING
I
-.1
I
(e) Correct atttl intprrtt e tlte tlrutl.
I
I n p a r t i c u l a rt h e s t u d e n t ss h o u l dc h e c kf o r m i s t a k e st h r o u g h a c a r e f u l reaclingof q,hat thev have written. Thev should alsorevierv the text from and organisation. the point of vieu of expressitln
-
I
-
?A th*t t;"*
to ,go on a u'Lsit to BorLey. )ur parents :;ot Long/ago I d"ecid"ed" ,? ln',d4 toum f.or ouT su/mneT ihis tc us take to used claays ^f';easid.e sit't'we ry 2OquftJ aat fI i.c!;/al.tsl Aitt t hoC ro! b:an back therelfor ouer taentA aearS , < U//r147/5
l//76
ifpartieuLarlyfuanted
.o see the Seauieu HoteL uhere ue
r btune*',c'*ta&oL certainLy the cLuaus stau6d.. In 1:hoseieys tt ao"lun"y ne}.,a|'td. ?";bf ;t'r-*"11'--"-'
ttuott"eqn/r;*hot bet:l:h totm.
L It
l,crY l.the tscs aLu:Vsfgr-oudedCuringfhoLiaay season.
uere parti,es and. dcrces at the ueekend"and the oLmers tro a,t.L othrf, ?";;ertainmer!)for the chiLaren ^sed to orrong$p;;ili ft";
( ""n the
qaTaen. )
-1
-
v 4
.-1
,1
_v
y -1
v
-1
r-l
F !-
I arciued on a saturi,av but the hoteL uas aLmost ernptyf A
'- ?e'Asfu
- ary,iued Later in the day.
feu more people, mostlylr-_i "i"p{nt, /rnrsa 6.*-o'"oL9'2ry1o"4! tW lW T e o p T ec t e t h e i r l f o o d i n f s i l e n e e : u t e u e r y u h e ' r eD a s s c i e c : !
'te'tfu*r*nlt a n d b y t e n o 'e l o ck th e '& -i a s
/ ,w./t ba/* ("ry ry
co*pLetelydeser ted'
= I
b^4.-'L.
-
< _f4
-v
1o, YnorrQ n e : --t h adn' t been d"ecorated" l ( a "o o " 7 d e P 7 e s,s.e d , I ierrt {.i a. wa,l'k just as bad. The gardenrf,Won /ri',n'-oit'side of the 7"ote1' ':as
(T'
the grass or PLant
conpLeteLy negLected: no one bothered
!-
-1
-v -1
_l< z
-r-
fl,ouers any moYe.
-1
/t seunrcL btnz'+4+* tnai tfr pLace i"'adgrotnt old,
Like the peopLe uho
-1 -f-
uent thereQ Perhapsthey di'd not not'Lcei't /'raaL bze.n
i.6'"-*Lii"ke
. :'.
_u
)
*tmiJirifu .ve7e 1- "
| /.
to go back end I decLded to make my escapef(he
-u z
-
foLLouing ,orntrO)
-1 _f-. z
_tr
r20
1 _k I
r-
I
L 11
l_ l_ L L L l_ L, L L l: l_ l_
AV TE L W R I T I NA GTT H EP O S T . I N T E R M E DLIE
l ,
(0 Writethefinal version. The text belowis a modifiedversionof the draft in (d). It incorporates 'fair copy'because madein (e), but it is not just a manyof the changes Somenewideasoccurredwhilethe finalversionwasbeingwritten.
r--I
r=J
]-
."-,J
a-,-/t
r-J
a,
}J
t---a
l-_ r
L LLL a-
}J
rtu
A short uhiLe ago,
I decided to go on a uisit
our paTents used to take us euerA year for. ouIl sulrner hoLidnys. But that uas tuenta aears ago - and I had not been back since then. I rmtst admLt I uas particuLarLy HoteL, uhere ue aLuays stayed.
tentextainments' anC other, us, of course, this
9-
a-a1
r
For
uas the niddLe of
the hoLidaa season, the hoteL uas aLmost compLeteLy ernpty. It Later in the fua, o ieu more guests arTi.ued. uas a bad. sign! They uere mostLy eLderly couples.
At dinner, peopLe ate in
siLence and. by ten o,clock the hoteL uas cornpLeteLydesev'ted. Conpared.utth the oLd d.ays on a Saturd-a.ynight, tk"e pLace
I uent back to mA room - but tlnt
depressed me eDen more: it
I decided to take a uaLk h-ad not been d.ecorated foz, years. It uas not iust the round" the gard.er,, but this aas no better. ou_tside of the hotel,
uhich aLso needec painting.
Tk'e gaTdens
- those LoueLy gardens! - uere cornpLetely neglected: no one bothered. to pLant any flouers; no one bothered euen to cut the grass ! It
]L.-J
LL
uas the neDest
in the garden for. the children.
I aTriued. on a saturday and although it
aith
l---J
In those dnys it
was the speciaL attrietion!
I-
t-l
to see the Seauieu
the most popuLaT VtoteL in toum., aluays uerA cTouded There uez'e parties during the holidau season and fuLL of Life. and" dnnces at the ueekend, and the odltey,s used to apange tea
seemed Like a graueYard!
a--J
curious
and. by far
Lr--r LLLLLL r.J
to BorLey, uhere
seemeiLto me tlnt
the pLace Ltad sir,rpllJ gI,oLn oLd - aLong
the orineTE and the people uho uent there.
Perhaps theu
It had been a did. not notice uhat had happened, but I_ did. great nistake to go back, of course, anC I dccided to mo,keny esca?e as soon as I could in the morr"ing'
t1
l-J
LLL L 1L1)
I
U
L.J
t21
J f-
) -)u u
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
I
I
u I i\l rl()\\
\\'ritc l clruit
Correct lnd ttttirrttveclraft
I
shouldbe taughta setof that thestudents To sumup. it is suggested (summarised in the diagram),u'hichu'ill helpthemnot procedures only whentheyareu'ritingabouttopicslike the one dealtwith 'free'u'riting.In particular.these abovebut alsorvithan1'kind of of making procedures shouldtakeinto accountthe importance draftsbeforethe notes,writingoutlines.draftingandcorrecting the finalversionis writtenup. As theybecomemoreexperienced, during particular, In studentswill no doubtwantto modifythese. examinations, thevmaynot havetimeto takea pieceof writing of havinglearned However.the experience all these stages. through to makenotes.to write draftsand to correctthemwill standthem in it is it is hoped.that, because goodstead.And theywill appreciate. just it of inspiration': question a u'ritingis not a thinkingprocess. alsogenerallyinvolvesa greatdealof hardwork andorganisation.
) -
y u
v _v ---1
Discussion
In whatsenseis mostof 'real the writingwe do in life' everreallyfree?How usefula preparationfor it composition? is classroom Do you agreethat there are manyeffective alternativesto the Lt.THENI.TL]ELL {OU conventional IV €XGLIJH IEAo/'I.R'GA ' composition'u'riting V€4f,,5.. OCOI,LE6E FOR FOUR activity?What are they? What is your view of the functionally-oriented writing activiti6ssuggested in9.2?
N0.I Dof r K{otdtdl{y TEAC'{ER5 60'Ib Eil6tI5H FOR FOUR {EAR',. COUE6E
= U
7,11 t1 ti atl -.1 jz. --1 j-z
oftI/JHAI Tl{tY Att 9TUPID SurtllERl!
Li
rz
y
O 1986unded FeatureSyndrcate.lnc
Exercises
References
Examineany coursebookto seewhat provisionis madefor remedialwriting activities. Make a list of the thingsyou do (e.g.makingnotes,drafting,etc.)whenyou haveto write, for example,a reportor anycomplexpieceof writing. ri'ith a friend. Compareyour procedures you haveread.makea list of what you considerto be the In the light of what besttwentycontrolled,guidedandfreewriting activities.Compareyour 'Top Twenty'witha friend.
_v
On what studentsdo whentheyhaveto write (in the mothertongue)see S Krashen(1984)pages12-19. For writing activitiesat the intermediateleveland beyond,seeJ Arnold and J HarmerAdvancedWrttingSkills(1978);N Coe et alWriting Skills(1983); M Carrier Writing(1981);E Glendinningand H Mantell Writeldeas(i983); J O'DriscollPenguinAdvancedWriringSkll/s(i984); D Jolly Writing Tasks (1984)and A PincasWriringin EnglishJ (1982).
_ta1
]1 4 _a-1 _1 ta-J -1
_v
111 tf'T€ 1
-u
c.zc r-l I
_rJ
122
I --k -1 rd
I
L '}-4
l-_ l_l_LL'
1t
r---
10
r-ra
l-:
l_ l_ l_l_ l_--Ja
L-..
writtenwork Correcting
r--l r+I
u r-_-=-.t
l_ U Lr-, l_ LLr--Ll_ L_ r--{ L_ LL 1.*./ lr.t tllL L lL *a r-l
r-.-
10.1 Errorsand mistakes
When we seesomethingwrongwith a pie'ceof written work, we mustfirsttry to decidewhetherit is an error or a mistake.Broadly,learnersmakeerrorswhen they try to do somethingwith the languagewhich they are not yet ableto do. (theyusea regularinstead For example,they oftenmakefalsegeneralisations of an irregularform, suchasthrowedinsteadof.threw)or they transferfrom the mothertongue(theywrite: Thepeopleis angryinsteadof Thepeopleare angry).Theseare two major sourcesof error. Mistakes,on the other hand,are slipsof somekind. The studentshavelearnedsomething,but perhapsthey havetemporarilyforgottenit or are tired . . . or, we feel, arejust being careless. Although in practiceit is sometimesdifficultto decideif somethingis a mistakeor an error (afterall, we may think we havetaughtthe students somethingbut perhapsthey did not learnit) , it is importantto try to decide. Clearly,for example,if studentshavenot learnedsomething,we cannotexpect On the otherhand,it is perfectlyreasonable them to correctit for themselves. soundto get them to correcttheir own mistakes.And it is and pedagogicaily certainlyno usegettingcrosswith the studentsif they keepon makingcertain errors.The lessonwe canlearnfrom theseis that the studentsneedto learn something,whetheror not the syllabusor the coursebookhasprovidedfor it at this stage,andthe bestwaywe canhelpthemis by givingthemthe opportunity in short,canhelpshapeour teaching(and to learnit. Learners'errors, certainlyour remedialteaching).
10.2 Teacherand student correction
with It hasalreadybeensuggested thatwe shouldnot be undulypreoccupied is the detectionand correctionof mistakesin written work. Effectiveexpression not the sameasaccurateexpression. Accuracyis normallymeasuredin termsof grammar, spelling, etc., correct sincethesearethe areaswhichtendto getthe But a pieceof mostattentionwhena pieceof writtenwork is being'corrected'. conveythe writtenwork whichhasa numberof mistakesin it mav nevertheless
r-.-a
----
l---
L--
a..-a |-l
|--J
--Ja
.-J g
L-J
g
}--J!
I
L:)
J
F-
) -_ -) --t
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
) IJ
u'hileanotherpiece. adequately, purposeperfectl.v u'riter'scommunicative doesnot. The sameis true of oral expression. freefrom mistakes. superficially ri'rittenexpresslon a tendencyto scrutinise is we have noted. there But, as It is therefor inspection. accessible to careful it is readily morecloselybecause we tendto seemistakes. us to readandrereadandconsequently all the time. Studentsexpect Clearly,however.\\'ecannotignoremistakes by whatever andthe correctionof mistakes. to be informedof theirprogress procedures areused.rsoneu'ayof doingthis.Equally,however.if we indicate we shouldalsopoint out in the waysin whicha pieceof rvritingis defective, For exampie,we shouldinformthe students whatwavswe think it is successful. (not leaveit to be assumed of comment)that theyhavemade by an absence etc.Thispositiveform of or punctuation devices. gooduseof connecti\/es canbe givena feedbackneednot addmuchto yourwork: the students from checklistof itemsandthel'canseeat a glanceif theyaremakingprogress the onesthat havebeentickedoff. rveneedto stressonce Beforeu'elook at variouscorrectionprocedures. to identifyandcorrect againthe importanceof gettingthe learnersthemselves mistakes.Ultimateiythevu'illhaveto examine.evaluateandimprovetheir of drafting.correctingandwritingfinal own work: thisis part of the process in 9.3.But thisimportantcriticalabilitywill not versions,whichwasdescribed it from a much developunlessthe learnersaregiventhe opportunitvto exercise whenyou wiliwant to correctall the mistakes earlierlevel.Therewillbe occasions in a pieceof written work (see10.3for waysof doingthis). Equally,however, whenyou canleaveit to the studentsthemselves. therewill be occasions For a start,to get them into the habit of lookingcriticallyat a pieceof written work whichhasnot beencorrectedby the teacher,they canwork in pairsor smallgroupsto try to identifyanymistakesand only then to consultwith you. but it will at leastget This procedurewill not work perfectlyon all occasions, the studentsinto the habit of checkinga pieceof writtenwork for themselves.
10.3 Correction procedures
areexaminedbelow. VariouscorrectionDrocedures (a) Correctall themistakes. This is of coursethe traditionaiapproachto the correctionof written work. for the students- at for the teacherand discouraging It is time-consuming leastif the.vgettheiru'orkbackcoveredwith red ink. Apart from that' there mustbe somedoubtabouthow effectivethis form of correctionis. in why Somestudentslearnnothingfrom it: othersaremoreinterested somethingis u'rongratherthanthe correctionitself. If .voucancorrect in writingand arestillengaged somethingin class.u'hilethe students everythingis freshin theirminds,thisis likelyto be moreeffectivethan severaldaysafterthe event. lookingat a massof corrections systemobligesyou to carryout this Overall,unlessthe educational approaches. kind of correction.vou shouldconsideralternative (b) Correctmistakesselectiv e[1'. That is, you do not attemptto correctal1the mistakesin a pieceof writing, but only thosein certainareas.suchastensesor articles,eitherbecause you have particularlyneedhelpor because thisis wherethe students
I
) : : 2 --J
I l,-1
-1 v -4
U
v
-4
4 v -1
j4
| --1-1 b-, 1 f.ra =1 T.: _1
r-J -4 )L-1 -1 =.1 -1 -.1 I --1 -1
-
r-J
. r-4 I
r.4 1
F .J
-u I
_u 1 _q
r21
rJ
-l )
[-J
I
L LJ
WRITTENWORK CORRECTING
U L L L lr
decidedto focusattentionon thesefor a while. Certainlythis approachis more positivethan total correction- in practice,of course,mostteachers - but it probablyneedsto be backedup exerciiesomeform of selection by someform of remedialteaching(seebelow).
ar
r,-J
L
so thatthestudentscancorrectthem' mistakes (c) Inclicate
f-
This is normallydoneby underliningthe mistakesand usingsomekind of symbolto focusthe attentionof the studentson the kind of mistakethey listof these,seebelow' havemade.For a possible
L l
l_ l-l-_ l: r-a }J
l
SYMBOL
ss
S
I n c o r r e c ts p e l l i n g
I recieued jour
W r o n gw o r d o r d e r
w. o. W eknouueLL this c i ty .
t
l_ L. a,1
ul o.
L-J
L
W r o n gt e n s e
T
c
.
l--,. L' L L L' L L
r rL t--=
w.o.
I f L t ea i L L c o m e , i t u i L L be too Late.
C o n c o r d S u b j e c at n dv e r bd o notagree
q come. Tao poLLceryf_hasc
W r o n gf o r m
We uant that You come,
a,
t_
Letter.
ALuays I an haPPY here.
l'----1
l_
EXAMPLE
MEANING
The neus- are bad today .
w?
VF
slp
L
w7
That tabLe is oux, S i n g u l aor r p l u r a l f o r mw r o n g
Ile need more infornotion?.
S o m e t h i n g h a s b e e n l e f to u t
Theu saidfuo, urorn. "l_, He kLt me onl sl""cu1-deY lr
cl
tl
uas too nt'LcltdifficuLi.
S o m e t h i n gi s n o t n e c e s s a r Y
It
M e a n i n gi s n o tc l e a r
Comeand'rest u"Jth us for a ueek.
?m
-7n
The uieu fron here i's uerY
?n
suggebtiue. ; . 4
t_ t-
i-" r--
LLt--:,-
NA
NA
ne to sit
T h e u s a g ei s n o t a P P r o P r i a t e
Hn
P u n c t u a t i ow nr o n g
hhats Uour name
@
doum'
tt7
P
p
He asked me uhat I uer''ted? Ii-')
J F-
-) -_ -) u -)
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
u
individually.in pairsor in Usinga listof thiskind, vou cangetthe students. If for themselves' smallgroups.to identifyat leastmostof the mistakes makes theycannot.thentheysirouldconsultyou.This approachcertainly theyaremakingandis therefore themmoreawareof the kind of mistakes beinglearned.You do not needof courseto likelyto resultin something In practice.however,it doesnot solveall the all the mistakes. indiCate for areleft to identifymistakes problems.For exampie,if students form groups, some not bother.Evenif theywork in the1,ma-V ihemselves, may,be neededandthiscouldtakeup a lot of classtime in of confirmation a largeclass. If your teachingsituationpermits.you couldtry to implementa staged to correcttheirown work' approachfor gettingthe students it b,vu'ritingthe appropriate 1 Underlinethe mistakeanddiagnose Stage s y m b oiln t h e m a r g i n . it' 2 Underlinethe mistakebut do not diagnose Stage 3 Diagnosethe mistakeby u'ritingthe symbolin the marginbut do Stage n o t s h o u ' g ' h e ri et i s i n t h el i n e . 4 Put a crossin the margin(for eachmistake)' Stage 5 Put a crossagainsteachlinewith a mistakebut do not indicatehow Stage thereare. manymistakes
.J
tu
) u _2 M
2 ) ) ) / -k
-/ -/ -/ -
(d) Let thestudentsidentifl'andcorrecttheirown mistakes' This is not a procedurethat you arelikely to be ableto follow all the time. occasiona]l1,.hou'ever,Voushouldbepreparedtohandoverthewhole businessof correctionto the students- whichtheirwill generallydo andu'ithenloyment. scrupulously
-/ -r .-/
whentheymakemistakesare: Otherthingsyou cando to helpstudents
ts
(a) Explaina mistake. For example.you canwrite a commentin the marginor at the end of a pieceof wlrittentr,ork.This procedureis especiallyusefulfor drawing attentionto recurrentmistakesin a particularareaand when you are able in class. to look at students'work (b) Indicateto thestudentsthatthe,v,shouldconsultvou abouta mistake' This may be usedasan aiternativeto (b) and (c) above.Very often the cansuggestthe correctionwhentheir attentionhas studentsthemselves beendrawnto a mistake. (c) lJsethemistakeasa basisfor remedialteaching. This procedureshouldbe followedif a sufficientnumberof studentsin the classhavemadea mistaketo warrantgeneralcorrection.Alternatively, you cansetindividualremedialwork. Remedialteachingmay takethe oral iorm of an explanation,wherethis is felt to be sufficient,or exercises, the correct to designed to be appropriate, or written.whicheverSeems mistake. Teacherstend to placetheir faith in one typeof correctionprocedurerather than another.In particular.manvdo not accept(or only acceptwith some
t26
_) rr
I-3
.-/
F
-2
"_1 F
I l-
_k 4 f-r
=I
Li
f-r
-I-.
I
L .--t
WORK WRITTEN CORRECTING
l-1_ 1_ L, l -
In general,however,althoughit is procedures. misgiving)self-correction importantto givethe studentsopportunitiesto correctwritten work so that attitude,it doesnot seemthat one approachis so they developa self-critical you shouldtherefore intiinsicallysuperiorthat it canbe usedall the time and your of students' to suit the needs draw on the variousapproaches
r,--I
r--
-
a-
1l_ l_ l_ l--
Discussion
3----
rJ
.^J
r-J
l_-
u r
r--J
LL. L L. LL: L: LLLLLLL.
Exercises
and mistakesis 1 Do you think that the distinctionmadebetweenerrors important? of teaching(or learning)'d: Io" think that 2 From your own experience Give your reasons' detailedteachercorrectionof written work is effective? 3 - Inmediumtolargesizedclasses(i.e.over30students),whatproblems to correcttheir own work? you seein getting-students
lDeviseyourownsetofcorrectionprocedures.Youcanmodifytheliston page125. 2Useyourcorrectionsymbolstoindicatethemistakesinthefollowingpiec of writing, whichis in the form of a letter'
r,---J
LJ
1=,J
ta--J
L..J
L..
a--
L-.J
L.J
a-J
t--J
.-142
H-
H
l-
fu/Adea l'tott/a/rcyow. / a'rtr' vh'/ qord b4tufoivc'rry "ru'o/t'
hir;L in rhesed,ags,Pe'r+w7s
I as/eftw,t fhe 6{orrffl4'ti'C (b^'t Irw [,tlec. yneaw,ckh -d4;do'rsl) 'q:o+h ar Soinrlirnq I m,wst ts tdl YzLL. a lchwwle in,p/^t 'qs"foYnthLn'int' worte Ubtlt 6,^d I b,znte. I nni r"*t'ctt',3x'c^t,r19 {or rhis ! I hoPe to gain
"more a't barn/?.
L of rne fo fuauea/'L You'r
TtEts. / arrn,cn@1y to,kruow them. EoLipue rVL(, I T,4/L'A/4/L,
Youn'' fi'e;"rt'c/, "pa,rl.o-
-a*a
u L-J
LL. L L. L L 4. l-al
.--J1
9-
127
J
tr
) -) H
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
) H
References
2
. or F o r u s e f u l q e n e r acl u i d a n c eo n c o r r e c t i o ns r - eR J W i n g f i e l d( 1 9 7 - l ) F studentcorrectionseeCJ Brumfit in S Holden (1983)CorrcctirrqY'ritt(ll work. The ideasin this chapterowe a good deal to thesetrvo articles.Seealso R W h i t e ( 1 9 8 0 )p a g e s1 0 6 - 9 a n d . l H a r m e r ( 1 9 8 3 )p a g e s1 , 1 0 - 1 . For correctionsymbolsseeJ Willis (1981)pages112-3 and L Dangerfieldin A Matthews et al (eds) (1985)pages195-8.
t
II
v
I -.1
I f-J
I
_-J u
2
Aboywrote a poem NICHOI.AS CTIAPIVTAN A b o y u ' r o t ea p o e m . I t w a sf r o m h o n r e w o r kf r o m c l a s s , L I ew r o t ca b o u tc l i f f ' t o p s , A n d h o wt l r cu i n d sl r i r s s H e j u s tl c t i t I t o * ' f r o m h i sh e a dt o h i sp e n , B u t h i ss p c l l i n g* ' a sb a d , " C , d o t h i sa g a i n l " A b o y w r o t ea p o e m , A n d t h o r r g hot f h i sn r a r k . A n d t h i st i m eh ec h c c k e ri tl A n d w r o t eo f t h e d : r r k . H e c h a n g e da n dc o r r e c t e r l . G a v ei t i n t h en e x td a y , He got "B+ Good effort" a n dt h r e wi t a w a y .
-
1
z -k
!!1
ts !-
NicholasChapmanis 12 and attends QueenKatherineSchool,Kendal, Cumbria. in the TimesEducational Published S u p p l e m e n1t6 . 8 . 8 5 .
1
--1
-1
_.1 _f-
!1 _k < _f-
=-k
_f-
r28 _f-.
l-
L r
LLLLLLLLLIT
-,-a
---a
11
--r'l
r-a r-+l
Writingactivitiesfor children
tr--a f--r-
-i.t-
L---i-
L_ L: a.--
r--f
L:
rlL---
rL-J
L: L. -L: L. L: ---t
--.-Jl
lA.-r.f
ffE-ra
lj f;-
lag
LlL--J
.-t .,J
l-r:-L_ Z-t
L.-t
l€ l---t
L-
u Lu }J
.J
-?
r--.
11.1 for Reasons teachingwriting
yearsold' who The agegroupwe havein mind hereis that of gupilsi9.".trt7-8 ageare this at have,Jnlyreclntly startedelementaryschool.Sincechildren tongue,we good at learningorally and arestill learningto write in their mother them to write i""d to explainand perhapsjustifywhy we shouldwant to teach just givingthem a few in anotherlanguageat this stage,apartfrom perhaps Won't ii just be yet anotherlearningburdenfor routinecopyingexercises. them?If iiweri, thenit mightbe betterto keepwritingto an absolute whenwe look at minimum.But it doesnot liaveto be a burden,aswe shallsee the many the varioustypesof activityproposed,especiallyif we k-eepin mind applyto good reasoniit .r. arefor teachingwriting at this age' Someof these l-.u.n.r,of all ages.A number,however,arepeculiarto children'
(a)Childrenusuallyenjol,writing.Thisispartlybecausetheyhaveonly copyingstill startedto write in their mothertongue.Even activitieslike havea certainnoveltYvalue. This is one^ (b) Most childrenexpectto be taughtto write (and readof course)' it aspart of see they of the thingsyouhaveto do rvhenyou go to schooland learninga language' - but evenmoreso,needa breakfrom oral (c) children,like olderstudents
work.Theyenjoytalking.ofcourse.buttheysoongettired,evenifyo activiiies.Writing activitiesprovidea very important keepchanging'ttLe afterwhichthey quiet (or relativelyquietl) period-foithem in the lesson, usuallyreturntooralrvorkrefreshedandlessrestless. to work at theirownpace.whichis (d) ' ' writing giveschildrenan opportunity differences u.ru ,.iJ*ing for them.Rememberthattherecanbe very big theirmotorskillsarestilldeveloping' learnersat thisagebecause betrveen rvhich (e) Accessto the rvrittenlanguagesometimesclearsup difficttlties
r29
J )
y
-) y
-)
SKILLS T E A C H I NW GRITING
y
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
1 1 . 1. 1 Someguidelines for teaching writing to children
theycannottell you about childrenhaveu'henlearningorall.v.Sometimes theyarenot evenawareof themthemselves. because thesedifficulties Writing activitiesprovidean opportunityfor personalcontacr.This againis very importantfor learnersof thisage,who areStillgettingusedto the Whentheyarewriting,you cango andwork with environment. classroom themindividually(at leastwith thosewho needandwantthisattention), them.This is sometimesmore important sort out difficultiesand encourage than the writing activityitself. Children like and needto havea recordof manyof the thingsthey do in the - of dialogues andsongstheyhavesung. theyhavepractised classroom althoughtheylearnquickly,theyforget Again thisis importantbecause, quicklytoo. You shouldnot forgetthattheyleadverybusylives- in and outofschool! Childrenneedtheextrolanguagecontactthat writing canprovide. if there throughsomesortof homeworkactivity.Thisis essential especially need course. of Homework, next. onelessonandthe is a longgapbetu'een not be a burden.For example,if childrenareaskedto illustratea song(see 1 I . 2 . 1 ( i )b e l o w ) .t h i su ' i l l h e l pt o k e e pt h e mi n t o u c hw i t h t h e l a n g u a g e astheydraw!)as (theyareverylikel,vto be heardsingingit to themselves well asbeingenjovable. to showtheirparents.Parentsare usuallypleased Childrenneedsomethirtg when they heartheir childrenutter a few wordsin a foreignlanguagebut they are usuallymore convincedthat they are makingprogress(even perhapsif they are not) if theyhavetangibleevidencein the form of written work. They usuallyexpecthomeworkto be in the form of writing too.
The main purposefor goinginto the reasonsfor teachingchildrenof this ageto write is that they lvill helpus to seehow we shouldgo aboutit. Two things especiallyshouldbe kept in mind. First,rvritingmustnot impair oral fluency. There is no reasonwhy this shouldhappenprovidedthe pupilsgetplenty of opportunitiesfor hearingandusingEnglishand if writing is treatedasan extensionof oral work. Secondly,we shouldnot try to teachaspectsof the written languagewhichlearnersat this agecannotbe expectedto understand and copewith. For example,they aretoo youngto do sentencelinking that thesecanbe turnedinto a kind of activities(exceptin the few instances than game)andthe kind of textstheywritearemorelikelyto be imaginative coherent.Rememberthat the pupilsarestill learninghow to organisetheir ideasin theirmothertongue. (a) Give thepupils plent;' of opportunitiesfor copying. This willhelp them feel at easewith the written languageand shouldalso providethemwith recordsof thingstheymayneed,e.g.listsof words, copiesof songs,poemsanddialogues.
) II
) -J
) ) / / --/ : -/ / -u z
: -I-
!EE=: -1
1
: --! Id
_f{ fd
fd _1 fr
-1 f-.
-./ r,-t
(b) Give thepupils adequateopportunitiesto useorally learnedlanguagein writing. In short,theywill needa fair amountof controlledpractice.particularlyto
z f-r
I<
130
f-.
E
I
L r-J
l_-l-l_ LL_ LLl-LLr-..-
FORCHILDREN WRITINGACTIVITIES
r,-_--
reinforcekey structures andvocabulary. This neednot andshouldnot be boring.(In fact,mostworkbooksfor childrentry to makethistypeof andenjoyable.) activityinteresting
r.--a r----
(c) Provideactivitieswhich thepupils can do at their own speed.
r-<-
Somepupilswill finishan activityveryquickly(andcallout for attention!). You shouldbe preparedto extendthe activity(by someform of parallel writing) or havean extraactivityready(whichneednot be a written one). Slowerpupilsshouldasfar aspossiblealwaysbe giventhe opportunityto finishan activityin someform (that is, they must not be left feelingthat theyhavefailed,otherwisetheymaybeginto getdiscouraged).
r--L4
a--t
(d) Work with thepupils wherever possible.
)-ala
Writing activitiesprovidea breakfor the pupils- but not, asa rule, for the teacher!Somepupilswill actuallyneedyour help. With all of them writing will providean opportunityto get to know them a little better personally.
f...r-
L Lrlt
(e) Make surethatthepupils beginto seewritingasa meansof communication.
L: .-L: L L' LL--
This canbe donemainlyby gettingthe pupilsto write to one anotherin class(see17.2.3and 11.2.4),whichis an activitythe learnersparticularly enjoyat thisage.
rL-t
(f) Encouragethepupils to be creative.
9-
This shouldbalancecontrolledand language-focused activitiessuggested in (b). At thisagetheyhaveplentyof imaginationandtheyshouldbe to useit. encouraged
L--
f--.:
(g) Make writing activitiesenjoyable.
b
This is the mostimportantprovision.Rememberthat manypupilsarejust startingon a programmewhichmay lastfor years.It would be a pity if they were turnedoff at this earlyagethroughboredomor failure.You musttry, therefore,to ensurethat theygetasmuchfun out of writingastheydo f r o mo t h e ra c t i v i t i e s .
fa-,
L.--L-
r L=-
L--
LLL L a-.-
71.1.2 The organisation of writtenwork
Seealso4.7.3. At thisagethepupilswill normallybe makinguseof workbooksor activitybooks.Thisin itselfwill helpto keeptogethera good dealof theirwrittenwork. Sometimes, however,materialhasto be cut out and a folder will be usefulfor keepingtogetherthis and other looseleafmaterial. As a rule at thisageit is betterto askpupilsto work with exercise books (ratherthana folderfor everything). The kind of exercise book theyuse(i.e. the distancebetweenthe lines)may alsobe importantfor writing.Pupilswill needat leasttwo exercisebooks:onefor vocabularylistsand relatedactivities (e.g.Word Bingo)andthe otherfor copiesof dialogues, songsandpoems, to iilustrate.They may alsoneedonefor whichtheyshouldbe encouraged projectwork suchasmakinqan illustrated dictionary.
11.2 Writing activities
Thesehavebeendividedinto four groups- copying.practicewith words, andcreativervriting- but thereis inevitablysome practicewith sentences groups. overlapbetweenthese
U
9-
V
;
L L L LLL a'
a--
a-t
L--z
-^
tI
131
J
F-
)
y
-) v -)
SKILLS TEACHINW G RITING
11.2.1 Copfing
(a) Joirtingup dorstoform v'ords Thisverybasicactivitycanbe usefulin the earlystages. partly to givethe PuPils practicein formingthe letters' More thanthat, however,it givesthe pupilsthe illusion that they are Producingthe It is of wordsfor themselves. coursean activitythey are familiarwith throughPuzzle booksthat containhidden objectsin pictures.
u -)
Join tire dots ond circle the number. '..."._'.'
IJ
)
"-:=t:t\ .:.j .G-tt
6
-4
)
u
) -, ) -H
-/ -
-1 -u -/ :/ - u
( b ) Finding rhe word that is different The pupilsare givensetsof 4-5 wordslike thosein the diagram and are askedto find andwrite out the word that is different. This combinesreadingwith writing. ChildrenenjoYthe asPectof this problem-solving activity.
-/
rJ
cat banat'ta daq l'torse
-/ I.J
-z l-t
--r -z l-J
_/ I-r
(c) Labelling items For this the pupilsusewordslistedfor them in a box to identifyand label, for example,individualobjects,peopiein a group,objectsin a Scene'etc.
u -/ I.J
-/
bird
lorry
cat
Pig tractor
I:
z
cow
I.J
I-r
donkey tree house
woman
I
Lr
puzzles (d) Completingcrossh)ord The pupilsuseor selectwords from a list to comPletesimPle crosswordpuzzleslike these. The puzzlescanbe more extensiveasthe PuPilsProgress.
black blue brown green orange red
I
1
& fi
f-
l-
r3z
l<
l-r
L ---
W R I T I N GA C T I V I T I EFSO RC H I L D R E N
l-Ll*Lr--J
(e) Finding words 'hidden'in The pupilshaveto find andwrite out wordswhich havebeen boxeslike the onebelow.The wordsmaybelongto a set(e.g.animals, clothes,etc.) and at a laterstagemay form a sentence,suchasan instruction.The pupilscanalsomaketheir own wordboxes,working individuallyor in groups,usingwordswhichtheyhavebeengiven.
a,--a
a----
L
L: l_ L L L Ll---
[.,ook+
r-J .--d
t---
r--al
L_ L: >1.t
---,a-
LL LL-.t
9-
E LtL,
L L. L. .-L^
6
l,f
t
J ond circle the
words.Thenwrite them.
s t omp
wc
zmr
er lb
(rocweoxi gc0.twver otfvlbft dolphinU f p o g s c b r i g i o 10 huwe isetfcrd 11 lgrikldi L2 lsqkneoo
(f) Filling in speechbubbles with the The pupilshaveto fill in speechbubblesby matchingthe sentences a sequence. form pictures if the situation.The activityis more interesting
LJ
( anoLknow
a-J
i;;u "oL:99
Wheres
",:te, rR;"
r. P-
LL.a/
V,
L .Era
L 4. LL LLLL. L--. )--r,
.4,
>-) aE,
qE{GD *l'-;D (g) Forming dialoguesor storiesfrom ittmbled sentences See4.3.1(c) for thisactivity.Thismakesa goodpairworkor groupactivity the pupilshavealreadyheard. andcanbe basedon something IJJ
J
tr) y -) u -)
W F I T I N GS K I L L S TEACHING
u -)
( h ) Playingv,ord bingo See4.2.3(e) for thisactiviti'.Thisis a lie-vactivitvfor learnersat thislevel vocabularv setsneedto be keptfreshin their mindsthrough because aswell asspelling,because constantrevision.It helpswith pronunciation the pupilscantell 1'ouwhichwordsto writeon the boardandthenhearyou readthemout. You canalsoplay'phrasebingo'withthe pupils,but be carefulthat this doesnot presentproblemsfor slowcopiers.
) r-l
u
)
I
-/ /
a b/'a<'h ha,t a bk42 Pu1,
-z -z -/
( i ) Making copiesof songs,etc. songsandpoems(i.e. any The pupilsmaketheirown copiesof dialogues. material)in a booksetasidefor thispurposeandprovidd key reference Thisagainis a veryimportantactivity.Most pupils theirown illustrations. materialof thiskind. whenillustrating exhibita gooddealof imagination
--1
y
z -4
z
F 1
!-
Fiveetdr'bottlcs siondfnq ortthe,rroll, - thenall. Eiy"fre.l bolfles.stcMin{r on [vtiP-onggrcgnbottle lcciAe*cllylf olls .. .
Tr-
Tlrcdlf be $vr 9t .n bottles ing onthewolI Jtand
-v ----l
1
---1
1r.2.2 Word activities
For the activitiesin this sectionthe pupilshaveto provide(i.e. think of and spell)the wordstheyneed. (a) Completingcrosswords T h i si s s i m i l a tr o 1 1 . 2 . 1( d ) exceptthat the pupilsarenot givenany of the words.They may,however,be givenpicture clues(perhapsplacednextto or to linkedto the relevantsouares be filledin).
-k
_ft<
< -k -1
-k -1
v _-1 -k I
F I
F 134
I
.Y -1 :J
I
L r-a
W R I T I N GA C T I V I T I EFSO RC H I L D R E N
LLL Ll -
(b) Labellingitems This is similarto 11.2.1 (c), exceptthat the pupilshaveto providethe words.Theycanalsobe askedto drawor completethe picturesneeded. For example,theymaybe askedto labelitemsin a zooor fridgewhichthey havedrawn.
l--ir
a--a
t-<-
l-:
(c) Making lists
l-Ll-LL
For example,the pupilsmaYbe askedto compilelistsof: - thingstheywouldlike to eat; - countriesthevwouldlike to visit; - animalsthey would like to see (or haveaspets)(etc.)
L4
a-.J
1aa
r-J
f--.4
(z) t*o elzpl,wnts (s)alt
qsnake
(1) n pa,rrot
They canthen comParetheir choiceswith a friend.
L L'tD
L. L* L-
(d) Classifyingitems The pupilshaveto identifYand (the then arrangein categories have to normallY wiil headings be providedor at leastworked out with the classbeforehand) thingsthat theycanseein a plcture.
Lprt
L--
tL,-3
L: L: -LJ]
a
I twtld ti,ke ,o h'atrc ( t) n t?na/l d"g
(e) Completingtexts That is, the pupilsput in the missingwords.The textscanbe dialoguesthey by a picturesequenceor songs'poems havepractised,storiesaccompanied andriddleswhichtheyhaveheard(etc.).
-I
L. V,
L: L: L: lg
S a l l yg o e sr o u n dt h e . . ' . . , S a l l yg o e sr o u n dt h e . . . . . , S a l l yg o e sr o u n dt h e " . ' . on a SaturdaY..,..l
r-.J
L--,
r:
(0
U
L: 1: L €Le, 1_ L: LLL9z
or texts Correctingsentences bv a pictureso that the pupilsarecorrecting Theseshouldbe accompanied mistakesof fact(not grammar).For example:
V-
Thereis a boatin the Picture.
Tl,urrva/re frlrd b{at; A g i r l i sg o i n gh o m e .S h e ' sg o t a bottlein her hand.
! hv r'9Y! M!:' H3
.r-
L-'-
135
v-
1-,
.1
LV-
4
J )
ll -) y
-)
T E A C H I N GW R I T I N GS K I L L S
IJ
(g) Making u'ords The pupilsaregivenone long word and.workingin pairsor smallgroups,seehow manvne\\' wordstheycanmakefrom it. like to look Theysometimes to throughbooks try to find words(andthis is a goodu'avof in class gettingtheminterested readers).
_)
COMPIT/T/ON
Pet notz
IJ
) u
-/
I
-/
I
-/
l
u -
(h) Making notes Thisis particularlyimportantduringa gamewhentheymay needto keepa recordof whatobjectsthel'havewon or whichanimalstheyhaveseen(if the gametakesthemto a zooor a safaripark).Usuallythe itemsto be phrases haveto be writtendown.If much notedarewords.but sometimes writingis involved,pupilsshouldwork in pairs(i.e. one actuall,v-'pla-ving. the othernrakingnotes)so asnot to slotl'thegamedown.
-z
/ : -/ -
F
We/oayeseen{hzseanhxals
l-
-E
1r.2.3 Sentenceactivities
The purposeof theseactivitiesis to reinforcekey itemsof structure(often Thereis no reasonwhy thiskind of togetherwith a gooddealof vocabulary). (in manipulativepradticeneedbe boring an-vcasemostchildrenenjoy for thiskind of practice. repetition).Most workbooksprovidegoodactivities belowwill you this. any case the suggestions may need to supplement In but help you to seeif the workbookhasleft out anyusefulareasof activity. (a) Writingparallel texts That is, the pupilshavea modeland haveto write one or more parallel versions.This is particularlyusefulif the pupilswrite dialogueswhichthey canthen practisewith one another.Later on, they canbe askedto write (5-6 sentences) whichwill givethem some shortnarrativesequences practicein basicsentencelinking(and,but, so) and sequencing ffirst, then, after that). (b) Completingspeechbubbles Thisis like 11.2.1(f), exceptthatthe pupilsnow haveto supplythe sentences for thernselves.
_E
F -1
ts z
:-E
l'-
f-.
l-.
-rfr
f-.
(c) Wrilingsentence sequences usingthe same Thisis a devicefor gettingthepupilsto writesentences structure.For examDle. thevusethe davsof the weekto write about
L<
_f-
1 36
I
I.J
C-oTYLC
tt4ne
-/
y
l.-.
r,-r
L jJ.a
L. L-
A C T I V I T I EFSO RC H I L D R E N WRITING
a--J
r Lr t: r
Althoughthis or perhapsa character from theircoursebook. themselves involvesrepetition,thereis alwaysroom for imagination!
.,--
l-.J
/tt //londr/'q,/'4 l/,lu b 9o h Ch'rv1q( /t's Ttn'sd*Y./Ut *z 6 ! g" to kGnal''/ / /ikeIt3 W"n44r%d&,4.
I t ' sr q i n i n g . I ' r n g o t n g f o g o s w l m m t n g. lf's w i.ndg . l'n loing fo
to qo ro Wq-"mazYt!
V
L L Ll,-LLl L L. L.
go +t3in9.
4
g
L--t
L--
V
V
V
r
rr Ll L rL. Lrl
(d) Compiling information whichprovide For this activitythe pupilshaveto write somesentences in the coursebook or information,for example,aboutone of the characters abouta topic. It often involvesrepetitionof a structure(andcanbe used to a picture. just for that purpose)andmaybe donewith reference Notice that in the examplesbelowthe pupilsalsopractiseincidentally pronominalreference.
?ro{esso,?afenl'sgota f{6eopeHe's1of a cdf and a dog. He'salso gof d monstecl
Pr-ofessor Patenl'sqofa qfamoPhonz He'salso gof -a ,afdevis'ion
He's7of
big pier.
(e) Completingqttestionnaires that havebeenpreparedfor For this the pupilswork with questionnaires someverybasicquestion them.It canbe a usefulwayof disguising to questionone questionnaires such course use of pupils can The practice. another.
V,
V,
*z
L, L. L L, L. L. L L L. L. a*) E).
)-2t
Lrl
a,---
v9z
>-' L--
La-
(0 Makingnotes This is similarto keepingrecordswhileplayinga game.NIanyactivities involvekeepingsomekind of recorclin the form of a list.For example,the form. the differences pupilscanbe askedto writedown.in sentence mistakes theycanfindin a pictLrre. of number or the pictures tetweentrvo
J
--) II -) y
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
)
u
I
(s\
nnaires \,\./ Writing questio Thisis similarto (e) aboveexceptthat the pupilshaveto rvritethe asu'ell.Seea.6(a) and (b) for details.Younglearners questionnaires enjoytestingone another!You must,however.checkthat theycananswer thel'are because Also, wheninterviewing, themselves. the questions andadults.theyneedtime to record slowerat writingthanadolescents answersand preferablyshouldsit down to do this so that they write neatly. (h) Recor ding p ersonal inf ormatiort andtheyrvill Younglearnerslike talkingandu'ritingaboutthemselves family address. (names, age, personal data veryhappilywrite down or likesand dislikes.The details.etc.)or makelistsof theirpossessions linkingpracticesentence elementary can be used for some activity
IJ .J
) / / IJ
-/ IJ
^z
U
H
in |ve gof a Tel
fne ga- de
.
cs&W,":t W-[e@/*g. frnatwtk wI,6^'tA t't s a-funUda'| //A fr/^tv1^'^'(? cdG@ l+t>'l'o4s-
"be/.*uttet UkLVwsea,
I aa-t
k)
.J --1
u
/
I l-a -l l-J
f-t
(i) Writing notes
-
in detail.That is, the pupilswrite See4.5,wheiethisactivitvis described to one another(andto you) in class.This is a key activityfor young learnersbecauseit getsthemto write quickly.Thusin five minutesthey canget a lot of writing practicesendingand answeringnotes.For sentence .2.a@)for morecreativewriting)the pupilscan: practice(see,11 - askfor something(e.g.one of a numberof picturecardswhich another pupilhasin front of him)I -- askfor somepersonalinformation; -
r-a _1
--1
v
ask abouta characterin the coursebook.etc. -k
--1N1 fn!
Oclr- il;&, //ue
r,r
Pi
Hciasu
gru".got a naLto A v
,'oo*r?"
"lanrt,
t\
Jtu-r
!-1 -k
-k
g
--1
F D eot At'ttto, Do qo,^ [ih{t
138
camels ? Yot t!' Nior'
v /
rJ
2 r-J
I
) !,-J
-l_J }J
L
r-,--
LLL
WRITINGACTIVITIES FORCHILDREN
r-_J
--ana
L-
11.2.4 Creativewriting activities
Pupilsat this ageneedplentyof opportunitiesto uselanguageimaginatively. theyarealwayswillingto showyou theirwork and Unlike manyolderlearners, to ask'CanI saythis?',so that fewermistakesoccurthanmightbe expected. Let pupilswork togetherin pairsor smallgroupswhereverpossible.
l---
t-. l-. lr--, LL. L.
(a) Writing notes See11.2.3(i). For this activity,however,givethem tasksthat will require longersequences. For example:
L-t
FeidoY DearEleno, Please olrsw W a picfure o?
v
a ry\ontfer. ft hosb;geyes
V
G^ ol la nq leefh stn4-lhsrets
tL..-
t-' 11
.
L: .-, L. L L. La
V
r L-
rr L1 9;
Vi
Ll v,
L: .--. L L: L. L lL L. LLL L 4 U.
Dem, #orns, Gob Vhe-futof Dr"act{ussrwwt .STord ov.', d, ch).r.jT.,e/^,*"A
htz i,t i\ t vno$h. lt hqs .Thonkyo,-,, a vef/v lonqlaif ., )or.g<
H*Ffy l'rr-o.r, r lW
'
(b) Writing aboutpictures See4.6 (i) for the basicideabehindthis activity.Choosepicturesthat will encouragethe pupilsto usefantasyand rehearsethe ideaorally first so that they understandthe kind of thing you want. Pupilscanalsodraw pictures for one anotherto write about. (c) Writing rolecards See4.6 (f) for a descriptionof this activity.The pupilscanasksomeoneto be a characterfrom the coursebookor an animal!
For Gca,o( Yor,a*<,fr^l"y7bln. /n" wrz arle'1\ta
rto^,
Yor+t6al
Ytu
Cu&
vT%'
-t\l
l-of DOtd,
!
Yoq ere q caf. Yo, €qf q lo( qna qr? verS {aL. *yo,n "furt anol ?o,A 66annof cl-i, b . lot| .cqn\of You ( i ke, 5l <.,?ta 3.
9z
V
a-1-
l--
V
LJJ
9-
)1,
(d) Making up stories Seefor example4.6 (e). You canstartby askingthe pupilsto write short dialogues,rvithtwo speakers, which they shouldthen cut up and giveto anothergroupto piecetogether.Then let themtry their handat very whichtheyshouldalsocut up for another simplestories(5-6 sentences), g r o u pt o p i e c et o g e t h e r . 139
1
F_ ll-
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
L-
( e ) Writing nottces See7.3.8(b). You cangivethe pupilssmallpicturecardsfor thisactivityor let themusetheirown ideas(i.e.theymaypreferto write aboutthingsthey wouldactuallylike or thingstheyhave).childrenveryoftenlike to exchangethingsso the activit)'canbe authentic.The pupilscanalsowrite rulesand regulationsfor their classroom,for example,or for a club or recreationpark.
l-
-l-
l-
L-
I l@fte te/h' qlA L-
AsCon'xbcrk s.Wlw f)(:t/m ?. I fArqmt a- bolJ.k vnfi\ftt
doavt, qw,+r*'Fws gloa,lr-l I
b-
RULE5 FoRouR PLAYPARK
I 6e happy! 2 MqkeI l6rof noiset 3
.rl
9t(I anq
b-
Do nof brinq your moartter o?-'fAther!
(0 Writing book reports See5.5.2(d). Whenthe pupilshavereachedthe stageof usingclass readers- or evenlookingthroughthem- they canbe askedto write 2-3 'reports'on them.The reportsshouldbe pastedat the back of the sentence book for other puPilsto read.
lf's a very qcrod book. I tike'if. BvI it ls sqd. lf-fs qboufo
L-
I VJre-t*rn-pirfitn<'s 't/rL
fh^ts ba*, AlL t*rz stottl th r1,Gt verl tn[orc*fing.
I oarit fi'/r^irrWi.t.
b-
L.-
:
=
:. b-
L.
=
(g) Writing messages See7.3.8(c) for the basicidea.The pupilswill happilyenterinto writing places:the moon, the bottom of the sea,a from other Strange messages balloon,the middleof the desert,etc.
L.
=
Dgatr M unu a'fi'e Da'd', I an, u'nd.o/r the- ,t'a'l lt ts t'uft' lvn'<' a'v'aLZhene uft m,aflw bt'q frrs+L. I lltu)e a lrt af ftenda Oft'g #envd t'sJo,rt"ooCo*,t's. He irs,at'rng th:'i^ l,fa'rfu*!
140
L
r.-
L
I
If-. L. l_ l_
r Lr Lt_ l: L
r L r
FORCHILDREN WRITINGACTIVITIES
canalsobe donein postcardform (see7.3'8(j)) andthey Writingmessages canalsobe writtenin code.
code. Writeoutthecomplete C=X E=Z A:V B:W D:Y likethis. Thenwritemessages
HJ IYVT
YZVMIDXF, JI DO'NHT WDMOCYI/T NVOPMYVT KGZVNZXJHZ OJ HT KVMOT TJ PMN, vllt/
whenit is Don't forgetto get your pupilsto sendbirthdaymessages as done can be card the of preparation The someone'sbirthday. homework. Make a birthdaycardfor a friend. Draw a pictureand write a message.
r r l'
L
ll-' |' l-
r l-
l.
MonyHoppyReturnsof theDoYl AVervHoppVBtrthdoY!
HoppyBrrthdoyto You!
VeryBestWrshesfor yourBirthdoy!
aJ4
L: L = 1
L L L" Lat,
V-
v)
l-. Pz
LLL >-. L--
)1,
(h) Projectwork One usefuland enjoyableprojectfor learnersat this ageis to get them to maketheir own picturedictionaries.The pupilscanwork on their own or in groups(evenif theywork in groups,so asto help one another,theymay like to maketheir own copy).For the dictionary,they will needan exercise book.Theycandrawtheirown picturesor cut suitableonesout of The intentionis not to getthemto keepa recordof all or even magazines. -on1' of the wordstheyhavelearntbut only to write aboutitemsthat abouttheirwords(not interestthem.Theyshouldwritesentences 1 ,l 1 ttl
y
--4
v
I E
SKILLS T E A C H I NW G RITING 1
and from time to time eo back and add to what they have definitions) rvritten.
---1
e
-1. E -1.
-.1.
e. --E
lnrt
l5 &
Y " t t r f v L ' ' r Ronng.tlerrv';:u.'' aAffit tio*rrs
lt*vvtv'n':
is'a vsrAold' robhit , Ror"tty liu-e's irr, rn5 €a"fd'In,
b
-1 aa
1
u H
(see5'5'2 (g))' which Most pupilsalsoenjo,vmakinga classwallsheet will provideu fo.ut for a numberof writing activities,e.g' little stories, captionsandballoonsfor pictures.jokesandriddles(etc.).Both the picturedictionaryandthe $'allsheetshouldbe spreadover a schoolyear e'g' on a summercourse)' iunlessthe pupilsareworkingintensively, in8.2.2caneasilybe adaptedfor Many of the projectssuggested youngerlearners.
Discussion
Exercises
or desirableto teachyounglealnersto Do you think it is eithernecessary write in a foreignlanguage? Would you givechildrenopportunitiesfor creativewriting earlyon in the courseor would you restrictthem (for example)to copyingand reinforcementactivities? What are the things1'ouwould do to makesurethat childrenreallyenjoy writing? How ilportant do,vouthink it is to ensurethat children'swritten work is neatandtidy? Examineany children'Scourseto seewhat provisionis madefor writing activities.Is there a workbook?If so, arethe u'ritingactivities(a) interesting (b) useful? .2.4. s I7 .2.1.-11 for eachof the four section otheractivities 2 Suggest a J Make a list of the projectsin 8.2.2whichcouldbe adaptedfor childrenand work out how you u'oulddevelopone of them.
-
v 1 l-
-1
l-
F I-
l-
ld
k
1 14
I lz
I l-
f-
-r-
References
to writeseeo Dunn (1934)andS Holden(ed) on teachingyounglearners
(1e80).
io. u .ung. of writing activities,seeD ByrneRoundaboutResourceBook M Igguldenet al and relatedWorkbooks(ModernEnglishPublications); sam on Rqdio321(Longman);K JohnsonNowfor English(Nelson)l (MacMillan)andSnap! (Heinemann). Kaleidoscope The illustrationsin IL}.I (a) and (e) are ftom Samon Radio321;the illustrationin71.2.7(f) hasbeenadaptedfrom Kaleidoscope;I'he i l l u s t r a t i o ni n s 1 1. 2 . 1 ( c )a n d( d ) ; 7 7 . 2 . 2( a ) a n d( f ) ; 1 1 . 2 . 3( i ) a n d 1 1' 2 . 4@ ) are from theRoundaboutWorkbooks.
t42
< -f-
_f,< -l1
_I
_r< _r<
F lr
L L. Ll--
lr
r.--
L-
r
12
L--
-L; l: 1--
l: a_r Ll-l:
the Englishscript Teaching
ta-t)
fJ-
L-rrr
1: L: Ll k))
1-,
DJt
Laaa'
Ll
r r r V)
a-) 1-.
L -.1
L. L-
rL1,r-' l-
L
r L-
Lt-L--
r3 v/
LL >z
V/
t4
12.1 The needsof the learners
All studentswhosenativelanguagedoei not usethe Latin scriptwill haveto be you may taughtthe symbolsneededfor writingEnglish.In somecircumstances alsowant to improvethe handwritingof thosewho alreadyusethe Latin script. In order to be ableto do this effectivelyand, no lessimportant, you will needto inform yourselfof the learners'areasof sympathetically, 'problemareas'arenotedbelow. possible Four difficulty. of the newsymbols.Thisis not just a haveto learnthe shapes (a) The students alphabet,the orderof which English of the questionof teachingthe letters is mainlyirrelevantfor teachingpurposes.Instead,somedecisionhasto be takenhow to groupthe symbolstogetherfor effectivepractice,takinginto andcontrast.For example,the accountfeatureswhichallowcomparison btter A. may be derivedfrom the letter C ; the lettersA- and O. on the otherhand,needto be contrasted. (b) The students haveto learntwo setsof symbols:loweranduppercase(that Again,a decisionhasto be madewhetherto is, smalllettersandcapitals). teachbothsetsof symbolstogetheror whetherto teachfirstthe small lettersandthenthe capitals. mayhaveto learnto writein a newdirection:that is,from (c) The students left to rightinsteadof from rightto left.This will only applyto certain groupsof learners(for example.to Arab studentsbut not to thosewhose scriptsof the North Indian employsoneof the Devanagari nativelanguage the new scriptis not to be Thisphysicalaspectof mastering languages). underestimated. mayhaveto learnthe positionof the symbolsof the scriptin (d) The students the Englishscriptmay be viewedas relationto the ruledlines.Essentially whilethe upwardsand downwards, sittingon the line andextending 'hang'fromthe lineabove' for example, in the Devanagariscripts, s-vmbols I+J
t-/ -d
v. E
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
Adult learners Anotherkey factoru,ill.of course.be the ageof the learners. will therefore and quicklv learn more (and probablv need) to will rvillwant practice.u'hichto a largeextent,giventhe right requireconcentrated out of class.For children,the guidance,the1,canprovidefor themselves period.While it is assumed longer programmeshouldbe spreadovera much script,theywill theirnativelanguage that theywill alreadyhavemastered their motor skilis all not and difficulties handwriting probablystill havesome will be equallywell developed.Hencethe needfor copyingactivitiesas in i 1.2.1.Younglearnerswill alsobenefita gooddealfrom suggested thatgivethemthe opportunityto play,andtheywill handwritingactivities almostcertainlyneedsomekind of workbook.
12.2 LettershaPes
of the newsymbols,we needto identify the shapes For the purposeof teaching and convenientlytaughttogether. effectively u'hich can be groupsof letters One,for havebeenproposed(seenoteson sources). Variousgroupings ten groups.asshownbelow.Upperandlowercaseletters example,proposes practice. with punctuation are taughttogether,integrated 1 2 3 4 5
i.l,t v,w,b u,y(+?and!) n,m,h k , p ( + . a n d, )
6 f.s.r 7 c,e,o 8 a,d.g 9 j,q," 10 z (+ numerals)
t h e e g r o u p :e , i , u , t thec group:c. a, d the o group:o, w t h en g r o u p :n , m , x , v
5 6 7 8
-14
v ,L-/
E
fLzA -1
-
-4 f-1
E -1 -z .za -a 1 )z .1 )1
Another approachhaseightgroups,eachidentifiedby a letter, for the lower casesymbols. 1 2 3 4
-
the r group:r. s t h e/ g r o u p :l . h , k , f . b t h e7 g r o u p :j , p , y t h ez g r o u p z: , E ,p
lFId
.1 l-
.-4
r
and are dividedinto the followingnine groups: Capitalsare taughtseparately -a
1 C,O,Q,A,E 2 N,M,K,H 3 U,V,W,X
4 P,R,B 5 D,L 6 T,F
7 l,J 8 S,G 9 Y,Z
-1r
numerals
Awarenessof groupingssuchastheseis usefulif you want to do remedialwork in certainareas(for example.you may find that somestudentsare consistently miswritingor confusingsomesymbols).
12.3 Procedures for teachingscript
144
At the start,moststudentswill needto be madeawareof someof the importantdifferencesbetweenwriting the Englishscriptandwriting in their nativelanguage.For this purpose,if they are askedto write somethingin their own languageand to notesomeof the essentialmovements,a broad comparisoncanbe madebetweenthis andwriting in English.You will also needto draw attentionto the positioningof the right forearmon the desk,at somethinglike 80",andthe flexiblemovementsof the wristto produceanticlockwisemotions,whichsometimesgivestudentsa lot of difficulty.You must shouldalso thesepoints.Two'warm up' activities be preparedto demonstrate be noted:
1 ).4
!-_4 f.-4 V
I
Z
f4
.J
IT -.1
Ir -_1 f,.d
I
fr
L a-l
TEACHINGTHEENGLISHSCRIPT
L-,-)I
L-Ll
(a) Rhythmicpatterns
taJl
shapesof the English To get the studentsusedto someof the characteristic scriptand the movementsneededfor makingthem, you can askthem to draw rhythmicpatternslike thoseshownbelow.They are particularly importantfor studentswho arehavingto learnto write from left to right (for whom evendrawinghorizontallinesacrossthe pageis a useful activity).Rhythmicpatternscanrelateto someof the basicshapesof the letters,asin the examPlebelow:
-,-Dl
Ll rt
Jl
a.-
u r-Jl
rajl
L:
f' aJ)
LrLJ)
L: rt
-l
rJ
ffi
vwxz
ffi W
hlam.n"bp LLtU,y
w
cLcd,eqo g o1.
f j s
rr t'
Many teacherspreferto get their studentsto draw thesepatternson blank paper.For childrenthe activitycanbe presentedasa game,suchas climbingup and down mountains. (b) Writing in air
tl
It generallyhelps,whateverthe ageof the students,to practisetracingthe shapeof the lettersin the air. This helpsthem to concentrateon the way a letter is formedand enablesthem to go on practisingaslong astheylike. For this activitydraw a largeversionof the letter on the board,with arrowsindicatingthe directionsto be followed,and then demonstratethe movementsyourself. The studentscanmakelargemovementsfirstof all, to writing graduallymakingsmallerones.Studentswho are accustomed of strokes a series to make from left to right canbe helpedby beingasked or circleswhichstarton the left and movetowardsthe right. The examplebelowshowshow letterformationin the air canbe presentedin a fun-likeway for children:
ri
il' f' i:' T'
rr
L,
'{
]--.)
t"
t*
L
b L.. -r.)
l_. l-. r-t)
72.3.1
rr L
Somebasic proceduresfor teachingscript
a'-r) .r)
L lL-t
L
a-.J/
(a) Give thestudentsclearand carefullymademodelsto follow. Draw theseon the boardif a workbookis not available.In anycase'a attention.You modelonthe board,drawnby you, will helpto concentrate script. mustalwaysbe preparedto demonstrate 1,45
J F-
)
v -) E -)
SKILLS TEACHINW G RITING
u (b) Sftowthestudentsn'hereto beginthestrokesfrom u,hicheachletteris made (tlrcremay be morethanonestroke). For examole:
'f
rI
) --1 -) H
6
1 u )-) IJ -)
(c) Get the studentsto practiseseveralspecimensof eachletter.
( d ) Get the studentsto practisethe new lettersin combinatiort tvith previously Iearned ones. Thesemay be simply patternsof lettersor words, phrasesand short sentences.
]1
1 u 1 u ) --J
1 u 1 --/ 1 )-/ )
-_l f
lr-J
:l :l :l I.J
H
A matterwhich rpquirescarefulattentionis the actualpositioningof the symbolson the lowerhorizontalline.At the startit willprobablyhelpthe studentsto practisewithinthe limitsof an additionalruledor dottedline, as shownbelow.
L-a-Lg. Someteachers,however,arguethat anyruledlinesat the startmakeit more difficultfor the studentsto write well becauseit restrictsthe sizeof their script, and they thereforepreferblank paper. On the whole,it would seembetterto separatethe teachingof capitals This permitsthe kind of groupingaccordingto shape from lower cases1'mbols. asshownin the secondexampleon paget44.It alsotakesinto accountthe many differencesbetweena lower caseletterand its uppercasecounterpart (for example,r and R,g andG). In In addition.therearesomeotherfactorswhichneedto be considered. introduce to the course to decide how early in the firstplace,we shallneed writing practice.Shouldwe get the studentsto practisemakingthe shapesof the lettersvery earlyon, evenbeforetheycanread,perhapsasa breakfrom oral work, or shouldu'eu'aituntil theyarefamiliarwith the symbolsthrough
= ]1
_) IJ -) --J
1 I-.
:l --J -_J I-r -_l IJ
Il--
IJ -) I.J -)
-_J -J -l I.J
!,-{
146
L-{
=
-
TEACHING T H EE N G L I S H SCRIPT
practice? someform of readingrecognition Althoughthereis clearlyno one answerto thisquestion,on the whole,if thereis time for thisactivity,whichis a kind of drawingexercise, it wouldseema goodideato introduce essentially problemsof actuallymakingthe symbolsas to the mechanical the students soonaspossible.Youngerlearnersenjoy this kind of activity,while adult instructionin both readingand studentsmay actuallyneedto haveaccelerated writing in order to becomeliteratein the foreignlanguageasquicklyas possible. ^fhe paceof that part of the writingprogrammewherethe studentsare beingtaughtthe symbolswill relateto the agelevelof the learners.The work of youngerlearners,for example,shouldbe carefullysupervisedin class, althoughthis doesnot rule out a certainamountof practiceashomework. sheets on the otherhand,mightwell be givencyclostyled Adult students, copyingmaterial,so that, afteran introductionto the containingappropriate continueto work on their own out of class. practised, they to be items We mustalsodecidewhatkind of scriptwe are goingto teach.Do we teachthem someform of cursivewriting from the Startor do we delaythe introductionof this until they havelearnedto print? Again, the agefactoris relevant:youngerlearnersareprobablybesttaughtthe printedform first. On the other hand,thereis no greatharm in introducingfrom the starta kind of modifiedcursive,of a kind rvhichis easyto write and easyto readandwhich standsverycloseto theprintedform. In makinga decision,we haveto takethe needsof the learnersinto account:adult students,for example,would probably be intolerantof anythinglessthancursive,sincethis is the only form they can using. themselves envisage
-
-
-
Discussion
1 Which wouldyou prefer? (a) to teachcapitalsand lower caseletterstogetheror separately; (b) to teacha print scriptfirstor a modifiedcursive. Give your reasons. 2 How importantis the teacher'sown handwritingasa model?Would you be preparedto changeyoursto helpyour students?
Exercises
1 lvtakea list of any difficultiesthat your studentshave(or might have)with the EnglishscriPt. 2 Choosesomeof the lettersof the Englishalphabet(capitalsandlowercase) andwork out the strokesneededto form them.
-z
-z
Jz
-)
.t-
-t-
*t
)-
References
Two usefularticleson teachingthe EnglishscriptareGK Pullum(1971)and BH Seward(1972). The first groupof symbolson page144is from J Bright and R Piggott Handwriting(CUP 1976);thesecondis from BH Seward(1972). Someusefulmaterialsfor teachingEnglishscriptareJ Bright and R Piggott Handwriting(CUP I976); D Cobb It'sFun to Write(Longman1984) R PhilpotEngtishHandwriting(Collins1983)and P Smithand A InglisNew NelsonHandwriting(Nelson1981).The firstand lastbooksmentioned books. in theform of teachers' providedetailedguidance The illustrativematerialin i2.3 (a) comesfrom ly'ewNelsonHandwriting.. in 12.3(b) and 12.3.1arefrom It'sFttnto Write. Otherillustrations I+/
-z
,-/
I
-r
) U
I
-/
U
.J
Appendix: Cohesivedevlces
_/ -/ U
.) = _/ H
The purposeof this appendixis to providea more extensivereferencelist of the in2.2.2.It is intendedto serveasa checklistof rhetoricalfeaturesdiscussed itemswhichshouldgraduallybe learnedin the courseof a writing programme goingup to the intermediatelevel.For more completetreatments,seeQuirk et al (1972)and HallidayandHasan(1976). A Logicaldevices
listedbeloware givenin For easeof reference.the logicalconnectors Some examples are also provided. order. alphabetical
2 2 ) H
_/ -, ) y
(a) Addition
I
again also and andthen besides
equally further (more) in addition(to . . .) indeed
in fact moreover too whatis more
u ) )-/ ) I-. !l
l
Examples:
I-/
The housefacesnorth, so it nevergetsthe sun..A/so,it is ratherdamp.
--)
The childrendo not like one another.Moreover,they often quarreland startto fight.
I
F-1 y
I
Shehardlyevergoesto the theatre.In fact, shehasnot beenfor months. )-J
(b) Comparison
I
comparedwitfr in the sameway similarly in comparisonrvith likewise Examples: I usedto work fifteenhoursa day.In comparisonwith that,my presentjob is more like a holiday! The doctoradvisedhim to giveup smoking.Similarly,herecommended him to eat muchlessandtakeplentyof exercise. (.) Contrastand concession* besides naturally but nevertheless however of course in contrast on the contrary instead on the other hand
-l H
I
-, -l _) y
) --Jl
I
-__ F-. FJ
still whereas while yet
:J :l--J I.J
I-.
l-.
_l
* Someoi theseitemsimplybothcontrastandconcession (for exampl e: however) , whileothers, suchason thecontrary,on lhe otherhand,aremoreclearlyconcernedwith contrastive relationships betweensentences. On thewhole,however,it seemedmoreconvenient to subsume theseitemsunderoneheadins.
F-. -)
--J I-a IJ
148
.l :l -/
=
AppENDtX: COHESTVE DEVTCES g,
a-
:
Examples: He did not showanyonethe papers.Instead,assoonashe got a chance.hc burntthem. Sheis not asprettyassheusedto be.Nevertlteless, sheis stilla verv attractivegirl. His firstnoveltook him onlv a fe*' n'ecksto u ritc. *'/lilchis nc\t onc to.k overa year.
g_
(d) Enumeratiott
.L)
f i r s t ( l y () s e c o n d ( l ve) .t c .) l a s t ( ) n t ( ) [ rt r t ' (t l r r r )t finally next t o ( [ r g { i 1111 i 1 h ; in the (first)place morc inrprlrtlnt thcrr Examples: His job involvesa numberof things.Firsr,he is responsiblc for sencral administration in the office.Secondly, he hasto look afterthe hnancialside of the business . . . Finally,he hasbeenaskedto buildup outsidecontacts. Therewereseveralgoodreasonsfor changingthe plan. To beginwith, it involveda lot of money.On top of that,it neededtoo manypeople.
\
..r,J +) [-
(e) Exemplifi.cation as(evidence of . . .) for example for instance let us (takethe caseof . . .)
suchas thus to showwhat (I mean)
J4
Examples:
rz -l 4
r--2, I
L-
l-
Most countriesdo not grow enoughfood for their needs. Let us takethe caseof the United Kingdom. Most peoplearesuperstitious in someway. Thus,a lot of peoplebelieve that the number13is unluckv. . . (0 Inference ifnot,... otherwise then in (that)case that implies Examples: He left the countrythe sameday.In thatcase,he musthavehad his passportwith him. You mustget somemore petrol. Otherwise,we will not haveenoughto get us to the nexttown.
La
(g) Summary L
La
in all in short on the whole in brief in conclusion to sum up Examples:
L
t
Shespendsa lot of moneyon clothes.Sheis alsofond of buyingexpensive jewellery.In short,sheis extremelyextravagant.
r49
L,
J -) y -)
--l y
SKILLS WRITING TEACHING
y
The caris not newbut it is in goodcondition.The pricetoo is very . On thev,hole,Ithink it is quitea goodbargain. reasonable The film hasa veryunusualplot,with plentyof action.Both the actingand photographyare excellent.To swn up, this is a film you shouldnot miss. (h) Time"
after(a while) afterwards at first at last at (thesametime)
before(thattime) finally in the end meanwhile next
since(then) so far then (uPto) (then)
l.J
I
u _-/ )-/ -/ u
I
II
I
IJ
_J
He tried to openone of the smallwindows.At first it remainedfirmly closedbut. in theend,aftera greatdealof effort,he managedto openit a few inches. . . . andthe fire hasfinallybeenbroughtundercontrol.Severalmenare of the explosionarestillbeing the causes . Meanv,hile stillmissing investigated.
-/ -'
v _J
-
( i ) Result then therefore thus
Examples: Most peoplewere opposedto the schemeon the groundsthat it wastoo Accordingllt,it is now beingre-examinedto seeif costscanbe expensive. reduced. Seveninchesof snowfell duringthe night.blockingmostmain roads.,4sa result,trafficconditionshavebeenchaotic. In the past,no one hastakenhis advicevery seriously. Hence,it is very probablethat he will not be inclinedto help on this occasion' (j) Reformulation
)-/ y
P
ts -
ts -/ -2
in other words that is (to saY) to put it more (simPlY) rather
y
Examples:
F
Towardsthe end of the partyhe got up and dancedon the table.In other words,he madea completefool of himself. Most peoplefelt that the projectwasnot worthwhilein proportionto the amountof time it would taketo completeit and equallythe financial expenditureinvolved.To put it moresimply,it wasa wasteof time and monev.
*That is, indicatingtemporalrelationships. asthe groupof devices, Thisis a veryopen-ended numberof bracketeditemsshows.For example,insteadof.at thesametime,we mayhave'.at that timelatthatmoment.
ts 4
ts
)
ts F -/ =1
!150
I
-
Examples:
accordingly for that reason hence asa result of that is . ' . consequentl.vthe (consequence)
I
--/
y -
A P P E N D IC XO : HESIV DE EVICES
(k) Replacement again
(better) still
alternatively on theotherhand Examples: I t i s v e r yl i k e l yt h a tw e s h a l l g ob v c a r .e r . c nt h o u s hi t i s a l o r r gd r i r c . l e e ds o m em e a n so f t r a n s p o rrtrh i l c\ \ ' cl r r cr h c r c . b e c a u sw e eshaln we mightfly out andhirc a cartvhcnrrc urrivc. Alternatively, , e m i g h th a v et o a r r a n s ea p u b l i cn r c c r i n rs( ) I f t h i n g sg e ta n yw o r s ew the matter.Betters/i//,we couldevenorganisca dcnronstrittion. discuss
Lt
(l) Transition asfar as . . . is concerned now toturnto... asfor... with (reference) to . . . incidentally
4 --r'l
Examples: We canleavemostof the detailsof the proposaluntil the nextmectinc. thisneedscarefulconsideration. Now, asfar dsmoneyis concerned, In the end, he decidedto sellhis car.Thrs,incidentally,provedto be a
*) l'T. ") I
\ s'J
mistake.
*) J--2,
u.-
.1
-z
2
1-2.
J--
*,2
f; ---z
Jz
D
B Grammatical and lexicallinking devices
In this sectiontherearefurtherexamplesof the devicesreferredto in2.2.2(b) and2.2.2(c). (a) Useof pronominalforms to replacenounphrases Napoleonwasa greatsoldier.He wasalsoa greatadministrator. Johnbought a newcar.It costa lot of money,but it goesa lot betterthan his old one. on holidayto Brazil. Theirfriendsarevery John and Marlt are,eoing envious. He decidedto takesomeheavyshoeswith him. He thoughtthatthese would be usefulin casehe wentwalking. (b) Useof pronominalforms to replaceadverbials(nounphrasesof timeand place) He left thefollowingday.He knew thenthathe wasnot comingback. We calledon themsoonafterbreakfast.We shouldhaverealisedthat rhls wasa bad timefor a visit.* I decidedto takemy booksbackto thelibrary.WhenI gotthere.lfoundit wasclosed.
L. Lt
7-
*Noun phrasesare alsoused as replacives.For example:John was born jrtsr beforethe war. AI tltat t l r n eh i s D a r e n t sl i v e d i n L o n d o n , 1 <.1 IJL
9z i I
-) .-1 -.4 SKILLS WRITING TEACHING .14
or selttetlces (c) {Jseof pronominalforms to replaceclauses Iftis is a sreatmistake. Somestudentswork all night iustbeforean exan"L. 1l u'asquiteunexpected. John hasjust resigned. abovethe pronominalformsall referbackto Noticethat in the examples They may alsorefer forward.For mentioned. previously something example: Thisis what you shoulddo. You shouldbe veryfrank. My adviceis asfollows. Be veryfrank. (the,this,that,etc.)to referbackto a previousnoun (d) Useof determiners phrase Thievesbroke into a jeweller'sshopin North Streetlastnight. Thethieves enteredtheshopthrougha smallbackwindow. I boughta pocketcalatlatorlast}'ear.Thatcalculatorhasprovedvery useful. Former andlatterareusedto referbackto one of two previousnoun phrases. John and Tombothtook part in the play. Only theformer hashad any real experienceof acting.Thelatterhad neverevenbeenon the stagebefore. (e) Repetitionof key words are not usedvery muchby commuters.As a Theseparticulartrain services rule,commutersrendto travelmuchearlier. (f) (lseof synonymsto avoid repetition Thesecarswere firstmadein 1972.When they were firstproduced, they werenot vervpopular. If you haveany thoughtson the subject.pleaselet me know. I shallbe interestedto hear your ideas. (g) Useof a constructionimplying whole-partor part-wholerelationship You will needto take someroolswith you. You canget a hammer,a saw and a screwdriverfrom mostbig departmentstores. Largecarsand lorriesare not advisedto usethis route.Thesevehicles shouldtakethe otherroad. (h) Useof relatedwordforms
(i)
-_-4 U 4 E --1
v . E
-1 V
-1 .z '1. b
-.2 )1
I
f==:F -!!1
1
---. <
F
were madelate last so far. The arrests Sevenpeoplehavebeenarrested night.
--
Useof parallelstructures 1rls equallypossiblethat it will fail. It ispossiblethat the plan will succeed.
1
4
<
F
t52
l< l-
l_.
r_: rI
)f
t; t: r_: ill ili
L1 -l il' TJ il' -],
i:
i:
i_'
a'
a' L? i: r
EIBLIOGRAPHY
Bibliography 'Teaching ABBorr,e English Spelling to Adult Beginners' English Language TeachingJ ournal XXXIII:21979 ABBorr, .rand wrNGanD,e The Teaching of English as an I nternational Language (Collins
1e81) ALLEN,s r and cAMIBELL,n N (eds) Teaching English as a Second Language(McGraw Hill 1972) ALLEN,r p a and coRDER, s r (eds) The Edinburgh Course in Applied Linguistics 3 (Oxford University Press 1974) ARNoLD,a I nd senutn,.r Advanced Writing Skl//s (Longman 1978) B A R z u Nt, a n d c n e r r , H n The Modern Researcher(Harcourt, Brace and World 1970)
BYRNE,D Teaching Oral English (new edition) (Longman 1986) BYRNE,o Focus on the Classroom ( M o d e r n E n g l i s hP u b l i c a t i o n s 1988)
'li"
l* --t
Ls-l
I
le16) H.\RrvlER, t The Practiceof English Lan guage Teachi ng (Longman 1983)
HEDcE,t
R, HILL, p and prNces,e, Teaching English as a Foreign Language (Routledge and Kegan Paul 1978) BRUMFrr,c Communicative Methodology in Language Teaching (Cambridge University Press 1984)
cARRTER, u Writing (Hodder and S t o u g h t o n1 9 8 1 )
tr
H.ALLIDAY, lt e x and HASAN, R Cohesion in English (Longman
BROUGHTON, G, BRUMFIT, C, FLAVELL,
'a:
t
FLEMTNc. o Guided Composition revisedby H J S Taylor (Hodder and Stoughton1975) D The David Freeman FREEMAN, Sftow (Modern English Publications1985) g and v,rxtrLl, tt GLENDTNNINc, Write Ideas(Longman 1981)
HEAroN,J B Compositionthrouglt P ictLtres ( Longman 1966) HEAroN,i B Beginning Composirion through Pictures(Loneman 197J) HEAroN,J B Writingthrouglt Pictures (Longman 1986) HEDGE, r Pen to Paper (Nelson 1983a)
('
'a.t
DUNN,o Developing English wirh Young Learners (Macmillan 19g.1)
BoucHARD,o I and SPAVENTA, LJ (eds) A TEFL Anthology selected articles from English Teaching Forum (1980) 'Quantity BRTERE, r before Quality in SecondLanguageComposition' (LanguageLearning 16:3,4 1966)
BYRNE. D PrttgressivePiL'ture Compositions (Longman 1967) BYRNE, D lustWritet (Macmillan 1988)
il' i: i:'a;t
Rehabilitation' ( E nglish Language T each i n g J o ur nal XXIX:3 1975) DOUcHry,e, eeence,r and rHoRNroN, t Exploring Language (Arnold 1972)
ct-osE,R a A ReferenceGrammar for Studentsof English (Longman
r97s)
coBB,D It'sFun To Write(Longman 1984) n andenNest,e coE,N, RYcRoFr. Writing Skil/s(Cambridge UniversityPress1983) cnorr, x (ed) Readingson English (Winthrop asa SecondLanguage 1980) oevres,e (ed) Problems of Lunguageand Learnins (Heineman1 n975) r r o N L E Y .l t
'Prccis
Writing: a
In a l,Vord(Nelson 1983b) HrLL,L A Writingfora Purpose (Oxford University Press1978) Hor-oeN.s (ed) EngLishfor Specific P urp oses (Modern English Publications1977) Hor-oeN,s (ed) TeachingChildren ( \ l o d e r n E n g l i s hP u b l i c a t i o n s 1980) HoI-oeN,s (ed) SecondSelections from Modern Englbh Teacher (Longman 1983) 'Using H o R N \. ' C o n n e c t i v e isn Elementary Composition'(English L ang ttage T each i ng XXYI:2 1972) H U B B A R D , P , J O N E S .H . T H O R N T O N , B
a n d w H E e L e nn. A T r a i n i n g Coursefor ?'EFL (Oxford Universitv Press1983) JoHNSoN, r and rvroRRow, x (eds) Communication in the Classroom ( L o n g m a n1 9 8 1 ) roLLY. D Writing lasks (Cambridge University Press198.1) JoNES,K Simulations in Language Teaching (CambridgeUniversity Press1982) rupp.r and NITLNE, J Basic Writing Skillsin English (Heinemann 1980) KNtcFrr.x Writing2 (Cassell1986) KRrsuEN,s Writing; Research, T lteorv und .1pp licutiorts (Pcrgarnon.l9S-l)
LAvER,J and HurcsesoN,s (eds) Communication in Faceto Face I nteraction (Penguin 1972) MARKSTETN, L and cRuNsnuN{,o What's the Story?(Longman 1981) MATTnEWS. e. senatt, lt and o,lNcenrrrro, I (eds) At the C halkface(Arnold 1985) o'DRrscoLL,t Ady'uncetlWriting Ski//s(Penguin l9tl.l) P A U L S T o cN B . ' T e a c h i n gW r i t i n c i n t h e E S O L C l a s s r o o m(' T E S O L Q u u r t e r l v6 : l l 9 7 l ) PiirLpor.n Errg/ull Hund*,ritins ( C o l l i n sl g t t - ] ) PINcAS, .r ?'eat'lrirrq Englisltll'rittnt ( M a c m i l l a nl g f i h ) pINcAS,s, Writing,itr Enelish Rrtoks 1 - J ( N { a c m i l l u nl 9 8 2 b . c t 9 f t 3 ) puLLUlv{, c p 'lndian Scriptsand the T e a c h e ro f E n g l i s h '( E n g l i s h Language TeachingXXV:l l97l) Q U I R K . R , G R E E N B A U M ,S . L E E C H , G
and sveRwrr, t A Grammar of Contemporary English (Longman
t972) RATITES, s Techniques for Teaching Writing(OxfordUniversityPrcss le83) RrDour,n WriteNow (Longman 197s) sEwARD, B H 'TeachingCursive Writingto EFL Students' (English LanguageTeaching XXVI:2 1972) sHARwooD-sMrrH, M 'A Noteon "WritingversusSpeech"'(English LanguageTeachingJo urna! XXXI:11976) sMrrH,F Writingand theWriter (Heinemann1982) sMrrH,Pand rNcr-ls,e, New Nelson H andwriting (Nelson198.1) wArERS, o PrimarySchoolProjects (Heinemann1982) wHIrE,R TeachingWrittenEnglish ( H e i n e m a n1n9 8 0 ) wrLLrs,t TeachingEnglishthrough English(Longman1981) W T N G F T E L DR.J
'Five
Ways of
Dealingwith Errorsin Written Composition'(English Language Teaching JournaiXXIX:1 i975) wooDs,t Writing1 (Cassell1986) zAMEL, v 'Writing:The Process of Discovering Meaning'(TESOL Quarterly16 1981) zAilrEL, v 'The Composing Process of AdvancedESL Students: Six CaseHistories'(TESOL Quarterly 1 71 9 8 3 ) TheArt of TESOLSelected Articles from EnglishTeaching Forum(1982)
J
--
J v .)
-Hl
.) H
Index
_)
L '
-l
.-z
->.a l
--1
v to teaching Approaches writing21-3
G u i d e l i n efso r t e a c h i n g writing2T -29
\A'riting to Children,teaching - activitiesl3I-12 - guidelines 130-1 - reasons129-30
Handwritin1 g43-7
1-2. 10-14.27 Coherence C o h e s i o1n7- 1 9. 2 7 devices17-19. Cohesive 148-1-s2 - grammatical 17-18 -lexical 19 - logical17 - p r a c t i c oe f 3 8 - 4 0 .5 5 - 9 Communication - activities in earlvstages 40-2 - activities at postlevel60-4 elementary - non-personal 12-14 - personal10-12 purpose9-14 Communicative 70-2 Comprehension Controlledwriting21-2 Copying34 - activities34- 6. 132-4 - evaluation of 34 Correction123-7 - procedures 124-7 Dialoguewriting - reasons f.or32,48 - reinforcement activities 3 6 - 7 .5 0 - 1 - visualcuesfor 83-6 Dictation38 - dicto-comp60 Drafting1,716-22 Errorsandmistakes 123 Essaywriting111-13,116-22 - alternatives to 111-13 Fun writingactivities 43-6. 6J-R q7-?
Functional writing.for r e m e d i awl o r k 1 1 3 - 6 Guidance. roleof defined 25-6 G u i d e dw r i t i n ge, x a m p l eosf 3 6 - 4 0 .5 0 - 9 ,7 1 - 2 ,8 3 - 6 . 8 9 - 9 1 ,9 9 - 1 0 2
Integratedskills9-5-109 Learners.needsof 27-29 Letter\\'riting - in earlystages 40-2 - at post-elementarv level 5 1 - 3 . 6 0 - 1 . 9 9 - 1 0120. 9 Mistakes21-2.29.12-I- 6 N{othertongue.learningto u'rite 5 N o t e - t a k i n7g3 - 6 Note-writing40-2. 51- 3 OrthographyseeSpelling uriting 55-9. 81-3 Paragraph Parallel*'riting37- 8 Projectwork 96-9 Punctuation 16 for u'riting9 Reading.importance activities Reinforcement - in earll'stages 36-,10 - at post-elementary level49-55 Kemedlal worx llJ-0
Reportwriting54,63-4 - visualcuesfor 87-9 exercises 60 Reproduction (seealso activities Role-playing 61-2,99-109 Simulations) Script,teachingof 143-7 - p r o c e d u r e1s1 1 - j i n k i n ga n ds e q u e n c i n g S e n t e n cl e - i n e a r l ys t a g e3s8 - 4 0 - at post-elemen'rary level5-5-9 S i m u l a t i o n1s0 3 - 9 g activities 99-102 Skillsequencin S p e e c hc.o m p a r eud i t h u r i t i n g2 - 3 Spellin1 g5-16 Summarywriting71-8 Texts - aspracticeformat25,32 -
analvcis nf 10-14
Visuam l aterialT9-93 - d i a g r a m8s9 - 9 1. 1 1 3 - 1 6 - fun writing92-3 - m a p s8 1 - 3 - paragraph organisation 81-3 - picturesequences 83-7 - reportu'riting87-9 - r o l eo f t e a c h e8r 0 - 1 - s c q u c n c ef os r d i a l o g uw e riting 83-6 - techniques 87 for presenting - useandabuseof 79-80
-)
-J
.)
H
2 ,-4
_2
P
.2
F
I
Writing - communicalive 23-4 teaching - compared with speech 2- 3 - controlled21-2 -correction of.123-7 - foreignlanguage with compared m o t h e rt o n g u e5 - 6 - f o r f u n. 1 3 - 6 6, 1 - 8 ,9 2 - 3 - guided,examples of 36-40,49-59, 7 1 - 2 .8 3 6 , 8 9 - 9 1 ,9 9* r 0 2 - guidelines 27-9 for teaching - natureof 1-2 - problemsin 4-5 - programme for - in earlystages 32 - at post-elementarv level48-9 - at intermediate level113 - reasons 6-7 for teaching - recentirendsin teaching 21-3 - rhetoricalfeatures of 17-19. 148-52 - useof role-playfor teaching61-2, 99-109 - useof simulations for teaching i03-9 - useof visualmaterialfor teaching 19-93 - usesof 2 Writtenlanguage - communicative purpose9-14 - graphological 15-17 resources - rhetoricalresources 17-19
* --1
v v a-
P
ts -
v t-F 1
P --1
F -1
I
._1
= .<
-1
!-1
-1
_k -1
-r4
154
F I
r<
