Writing, even in L1, is not easy particularly when compared with speaking, where reformulations, body language, clues from listeners can do much to compensate for a lack of precision or inaccuracies when communicating messages. Time is also a factor – writing may be relegated to homework tasks as there is often a feeling that writing in class uses up time which can be more usefully spent on other activities.
However, as this workshop aims to show, developing good writing skills is conducive to the development of other language skills including communication skills. The three writing workshops explore how teachers can help their learners to become better writers using a process approach to teaching writing.
The materials are suitable for teachers with a minimum B1 level, working in any educational context – primary, secondary, tertiary, adults. This is the first of three workshops.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this workshop participants will be able to:
- Assess the issues involved in teaching writing in their own classrooms.
- Identify the approaches involved in producing different types of writing.
- Match writing sub-skills to a process writing framework.
- Analyse writing tasks from the point of view of audience, purpose and context.
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Comments
It is considered that writing during class time can be wasteful. However, in teaching writing in class, I have found that it provides a time where all the students are focusing on that one activity-which is writing. It is quite empowering to be writing in groups because everyone feels like they are trying to achieve the same goal. So, I would recommend that in any writing class that one should allow students to spend a little time together writing together even if it is a short period like 15 minute with expectation of 1-2 high quality paragraphs.
I've just read the material. I found it very useful and interesting. I have to tell you that i am not one of the professionals in writing. I usually prefer to skip these tasks. But everything must have a beginning .I think it is time to be more confident in my teaching skills.
Thank you for all the information provided!
After having read your workshop materail on writing I know now that I really do everything right. While reading the material I had the feeling of "I know that" all the time ;) Thank you!
After reading your metarial , I feel safe as what you have presented is real in our classrooms ;however, writing skill is still the challenging activity for teachers to teach and students to achieve, but I think we must be optimistic that we can cope with this challenge.
Writing needs to be taken into consideration in the classroom. Saddly to say, I personally regret from not devoting the time needed for developing this skill ( thinking writting should be assigned as homework). That´s why I really see how writting is becoming discouraging and frustrating for our students. Moreover I see how frustating can be for us the teachers when marking related exercises .
I appreciate this workshop. It has the things I was looking for in order to improve my teaching skills and help my students overcome their frustration.
It makes sense to write in class time and not palm it off on homework.
This workshop got better towards the end - particularly the last 10 or so slides on putting writing into context with some very helpful tips about Audience, Purpose, Context (Who, What, Why) and how to set tasks that cover all 3 points, eg letters of complaint - one half of the class write the complaining letter; the other sent a response from the manager. etc etc
I think this workshop is very useful to encourage wrting skills usually very neglected in favour of other language practice. It may be a guideline for teaching how to write different tasks and develop creative skills. A great amount of writing must be structured and students should produce and realize a piece of writing as a personal project.
I really enjoyed the workshop, it helped me realise that teaching writing is a must in my teaching practise, it also provided me with clear and simple ideas on how to improve my classes. I'm looking forward to devoting a class to teach this skill.
When I went the through the workshop, I found it quite interesting and innovative when compared to what I regularly do in my classroom.This workshop Will be my guideline for teaching writing.
It is very important to help the learners get rid of writng problems because it is only through writing that they are assessed and evaluated by the end of the middle and the secondary school.
Thank very much for providing me with this informatiom
Excellant workshop but could not hear. Interesting reading and can use the workshop to train further teachers. Writing in English teaching is where the best of teachers avoid at times due to the level of students. this training will encourage all teachers to focus on writing.
hello i need learn english pleas help me thank you
TE Team
Hi Mohammad
Try our site for learning English: http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/
I hope it helps you.
Rob
Thanks BC for providing me this chance and Rob's offer for learning English. Hope this will help me in learning English.
How can I best use this service of BC?
Very interesting approach and I feel very interested to learn more about it.
Thanks,
Linda
This workshop is really very helpful and systematic. Thank you
I found this article very reflective on the process of writing. In my personal teaching experience, writing has been one of the most challenging skills to work with students, especially young learners. It has become as part of a product, after working vocabulary and the required grammar structures that will be involved in a writing task. Now, I can say that I will need to spend more time on planning better writing tasks and giving more time of the class to develop the writing sub-skills with my students, so the process of writing will work better and they will feel more comfortable and happy doing it.
Thank you for your ideas. Very helful!
Yoli
Thanks Rob. That was a really useful workshop. I feel so dumb because I do all this for my IELTS classes but just never considered doing it in my regular classes. How did I get to be a teacher when I am obviously so dumb? Thanks again.
thank you
I really appreciate it.
Thanks alot for this woekshop which is very important to me ,because I teach technical writing and I like to improve myself in this skill.
It is really usefll.
Best Regards.
Wanisa Ali
Benghazi - Libya.
i found it really interesting , the major steps are authentic and helpful but not so easy to 2nd english lge learners esp accuracy english. thank you.
Great Work. I thoroughly enjoyed going through your slides. Although I have studied 'process writing' before, and I do involve my students in the writing process in classroom, I found the information to be very much precise and easily comprehensible. Keep up the good work.