MODULE 3 - UNIT 3: TEACHING WRITING
Task 1: Compare the 2 following tasks.
Task A
Write about your two-day trip at the youth Union Camp in Nha Trang. You should write
about 70 words.
Task B
You have just spent 2 days at the youth union Camp in Nha Trang, taking part in some
interesting activities with other pupils. Write a report to your class using the information
in your diary below. You should write about 70 words.
Saturday AM went swimming/ sightseeing
PM singing competition
Sunday AM cooking competition, games
PM public speaking competition, more games
Start with this:
Report on camp activities
“We arrived in Nha Trang at about 7.30 ………………………………………………...”
TASK A TASK B
Task 2: Match the names of the activities with their explanations
1. Questions and answers 7. Write-it-up
2. Recall 8. Ordering
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3. Gap fill 9. Parallel letters
4. Substitution tables 10. Substitution boxes
5. Picture compositions 11. Transformation
6. Parallel compositions 12. Composition
A. ………………..
T gets SS to tell a simple story illustrated by a sequence of pictures and asks for
volunteers to repeat the whole story from memory. The T then gets the SS to write the
story in pairs or groups. It may be divided into 3 paragraphs – the beginning, the
middle, and the end of the story.
B. ………………..
T puts a box full of words on the board. The words fit together to either make one long
sentence or lots of short sentences. The class is divided into strong groups and weak
groups. The stronger groups write down one long sentence while the weaker ones write
down as many different short sentences as possible. For stronger groups, the sentence
with the most words in the given time is the winner. For weaker groups, the group with
the most sentences is the winner.
C. ………………
SS are put into groups (the same number of SS in each group as there are sentences in
the story) and each is given a sentence strip. SS discuss and find a logical order for the
story.
D. ………………
T gives SS a text with gaps. The gaps can belong to a lexical/ grammatical set (all the
verbs, all the adverbs of frequency, all the prepositions) or they can be random. Random
gaps appear every fifth or seventh word. The more gaps there are and the more random
they are, the more difficult the task. To make the task very controlled for weaker SS, the
missing words can be provided in a box below and it becomes a matching exercise. Gap
fill can also be done in combination with gap-fill dictation and predict activities.
E. ……………….
T gets SS to read a letter, consisting mostly of personal information, from someone
looking for a pen pal. SS are then asked to write a reply with their own personal
information, following the format of the original letter. The first paragraph might state
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the purpose of the letter, the second and third might give personal information, and the
last paragraph might be a request for a reply. Anther letter could ask for information
about things to see and do in the city, or for information about a specific hotel.
F. ……………….
SS write notes or fill in grids using the information collected from any speaking,
listening or reading activities. Then they ‘write it up’ in full sentences, or as a
paragraph.
G. ………………
T gives SS a series of questions. SS answer the questions in full sentences. SS have to,
where possible, combine two sentences into one and then put the sentences together to
form a coherent paragraph.
H……………….
SS are asked to write a composition with a little guidance of the T. For example, “Write
about their mothers. Describe what she looks like and what her likes and dislikes are”.
I. ……………….
T gives SS handouts with a short paragraph or a letter. SS rewrite the paragraph or letter
as required by the T. The T can change information in the paragraph in 3 different ways:
change the grammar (e.g. from the future to the past or from ‘I’ to ‘he’), change the
facts (e.g. from England to Vietnam), change the meaning (e.g. from ‘sad’ to ‘happy’).
K. ……………….
T puts a substitution table on the board. The more columns there are in the table, the
more difficult it will be. SS work in mixed ability groups or a pyramid. If T wants a
two-tiered task, the weaker SS only make sentences from the first three columns while
the stronger SS must use all five columns. This kind of task provides very controlled
writing practice but is good for practicing word order, collocation and how to build a
more complex sentence from a basic one.
L. ………………
This technique is used in the final stage of a lesson. After listening to/ reading a story,
SS are asked to rewrite it, using their own language. SS can work in pairs or groups.
M. ………………
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With the whole class, SS discuss the topic of animals’ characteristics and habits to elicit
sentences in the Simple Present tense like:
Chimpanzees live in central Africa. They eat fruit and leaves. Adult chimpanzees weigh
40 to 50 kilos. They are very intelligent animals.
T asks for volunteers to write the sentences up on the board. T corrects them if
necessary. T then tells the SS to use the sentences on the board as patterns, gets them to
work in pairs and write a parallel composition about some other animal, for example,
kangaroos. T could then ask SS to write compositions for homework about animals of
their choice. Similar work could be done about cities (to practice ‘There is/are’) or
famous people (to practice the Simple Past).
Task 3
A. Read the statements and tick the correct box
Statements Agree Disagree
1. When the T corrects SS by writing the right answers
for them in their books, the SS don’t study it or
remember it. The SS will continue to make the same
written errors again and again.
2. When the T elicits correction from the SS and
encourages them to correct themselves, the SS learn
from their mistakes.
3. The T should correct every mistake the SS make.
4. Mistakes are bad. The T should not encourage them
5. SS are not able to correct their own mistakes.
6. In a good lesson the SS don’t make any mistakes.
7. A mistake is a learning step. When a S makes a
mistake, it means the S is trying out something new; it
means real learning is taking place in the lesson.
8. SS don’t like correcting each other and don’t like to be
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Statements Agree Disagree
corrected by each other.
9. The T should use a red pen to correct SS’ written work
so that it is clear to the SS what they have done wrong.
10. Writing in real life is a process of draft-redraft; no one
ever gets it right the first time. Writing in a foreign
language should follow the same process.
B. Read and discuss and then modify any of your ‘agree’ or ‘disagree’ choices in
Handout 3 in the light of what you have read
Traditional attitudes to mistakes and corrections
In the past, a lot of Ts all over the world thought it was a bad thing if a S made a
mistake. To them, it showed that the S was being stupid, or lazy, and in some cases,
deliberately rude to the T for not paying attention or for not learning the lesson carefully
enough. Instead of helping SS to write better, the T would put a lot of crosses or put
“Do it again” at the bottom of the page as if the S had done something wrong or
impolite. If the T did correct the S, it would be by writing the correct model in the SS’
books and getting them to copy it. For these traditional Ts, a perfect writing lesson
would be a lesson where no mistakes were made by the SS.
The communicative approach to mistakes and correction
In the CA, mistakes are seen as positive steps towards learning. If SS make mistakes, it
shows they are trying to formulate sentences and express ideas for themselves – not
simply copy the T’s model. They are taking the model, and then adapting it to make it
into something they really want to write. They are learning by doing, and because this is
a process, SS will not come up with a perfect product – an essay, a paragraph or even a
sentence with no mistakes – the first time. For CA teachers, no mistakes in a lesson
means no real learning has taken place. Correction is seen as technique to get SS to
refine what they want to say. Correction is an integral part of the lesson. The T’s
attitude towards correction is positive and correction techniques are used to encourage
SS, not to put them down or to make them feel stupid. For these Ts, a perfect lesson is a
lesson full of SS’ mistakes and SS correcting themselves and each other.
Memory and correction
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Real learning takes place when SS are given the opportunity to internalize language and
memorise it. Often, rote repetition without understanding does not help internalization
or memory. For this reason, it is better for the T to elicit the correction from the SS, not
just write the correct answers in the SS’ books for them. If the T elicits correction from
the SS, by underlining the mistake and even coding what type it is, the S must think,
discover their mistake, choose an alternative word or words and write it/ them again on
their own in their books. SS remember the correction for longer because their T has
given them independence, encouragement and made them learn actively by getting them
to write down their own corrections.
SS’ ability to do self/ peer correction
A lot of Ts believe that SS are not able to correct themselves or each other and that the
T must them a right model to copy. This simply is not true. Nearly all correctable errors
are mechanical (accuracy) errors and as soon as the T points out to the S where the
mistake in the sentence is, SS quickly and easily correct it for themselves. If the mistake
is a vocabulary mistake and SS cannot self-correct, again, in nearly every case, another
S in the class can supply the new word. SS are happy to help each other and this sort of
correction encourages SS to be independent and learn from each other instead. In
general, peer correction can be a time-saving and useful technique. This does not release
us from the duty of checking and evaluating S writing, but it can be a substitute for first
draft reading. SS can work together on their first drafts, giving each other feedback on
content, language and organization. They then rewrite and give the final version to the
T.
What to correct and what not to correct
It is not necessary for the T to correct every mistake that occurs in piece of a S’s
writing. If the T takes a red pen and crosses out every mistake, the SS’ workbooks will
look like a battlefield. This is very de-motivating for SS. Too much red ink makes them
feel that they are not able to write well, and they do not want to lose face again, so they
do not want to write anything experimental or different or personal the next time they
are given a writing task. Psychologically, the red pen is telling them just to coy
something from the book (however meaningless) that has no mistakes. So, Ts should in
the first place give up using a red pen. The point of correction is not to show SS that the
T is right and they are wrong. The point is to encourage them to express themselves and
to self-correct. Use a pencil! Write lightly and keep an eraser handy because often Ts
make mistakes too and correct things which later turn out to be not wrong at all.
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Secondly, Ts should not correct every mistake; they should make a decision and select
the most important things – depending on what the target language or the focus of the
lesson was. This requires real self-restraint in the T – the temptation is to correct
everything. The problem with correcting everything is that major mistakes and minor
mistakes all get lumped together – it is not helpful to the learning process – the T is not
providing a systematic scheme for the S’s self-improvement.
Drafting and redrafting
It is important that the T emphasizes to the SS that nobody writes perfectly in a first
draft in their own native language, let alone in a foreign language. Rewriting is very
important because it reinforces learning, but also because rewriting is an integral part of
the writing process as a whole. This means there will always be a first draft, some
correction and then a second draft. Think of a job application or a business letter – it
may take three or four drafts until the writer gets it right. SS need to learn this, need to
train, and their motivation needs to be sustained, through the process of:
• SS write the first draft on rough paper
• T annotates corrections
• SS do self correction
• SS copy out the corrected piece as second draft into their books
The T’s job is to instill this process in SS so that it becomes a habit for them – learning
to draft, correct and redraft is a skill for life.
SYMBOLS OF MARKING SCHEME
Symbol Meaning
ü Good point
Sp Spelling
G Grammar
Voca. Wrong word (vocabulary)
^ Missing word
/ Too many words
? Meaning is not clear
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UC Uncountable noun
C Countable noun
Punc. Punctuation
WO Word order
Art. Article
T Tense
Prep Preposition
s/p Singular or plural from
[] Not necessary
Task 4: Identify the theory applied for the classroom practice
CLASSROOM PRACTICE UNDERLYING THEORY
Overview of the writing lesson
1. The writing lesson is divided into
three stages: pre-writing, while-
writing and post-writing
2. All three stages use the same context
(e.g. talking about people)
3. The task for each activity is clearly
set
4. The lesson is based on integrated-
skill activities
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Pre-writing stage
5. Vocabulary review
6. Discussion with incomplete
information e.g. an incomplete card,
guessing with the guiding questions
7. Skimming the reading passage
While-writing stage
8. Filling in the blanks in the card with
information from the reading passage
9. Scanning the complete card
10. SS write a similar paragraph
individually
Post-writing stage
11. Peer editing
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12. In pairs, SS interview each other and
take notes
13. SS individually write a paragraph
about a person they have interviewed
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