TEACHING WRITING SKILLS TO FOUNDATION STUDENTS

Abstract

There are many reasons for getting students to write, both in and outside class. Firstly, writing gives them more ‘thinking time’ than they get when they attempt spontaneous conversation. This allows them more opportunity for language processing that is thinking about the language whether they are involved in study or activation. When thinking about writing it is helpful to make a distinction between ‘writing for learning’ and ‘writing for writing’. In the case of the former, writing is used as an aide memoire or practice tool to help students practice and work with language they have been studying. You might, for example, ask a class to write five sentences using a given structure, or using five of the new words or phrases they have been learning. Writing activities like this are designed to give reinforcement to students. This is particularly useful for those who need a mix of visual and kenaesthetics activity. Another kind of writing for learning occurs when you have students write sentences in preparation for some other activity. Here, writing is an enabling activity.