Teaching Writing

Teaching Writing
I - Introduction
Students need to be personally involved in writing exercises in order to
make the learning experience of lasting value. Encouraging student
participation in the exercise, while at the same time refining and
expanding writing skills, requires a certain pragmatic approach. The
teacher should be clear on what skills he/she is trying to develop. Next,
the teacher needs to decide on which means (or type of exercise) can
facilitate learning of the target area. Once the target skill areas and
means of implementation are defined, the teacher can then proceed to focus
on what topic can be employed to ensure student participation. By
pragmatically combing these objectives, the teacher can expect both
enthusiasm and effective learning.
II Choosing a Target Area
Choosing the target area depends on many factors; what level are the
students? What is the average age of the students, Why are the students
learning English, Are there any specific future intentions for the writing
(i.e. school tests or job application letters etc.). Other important
questions to ask oneself are: What should the students be able to produce
at the end of this exercise? (a well written letter, basic communication of
ideas, etc.) What is the focus of the exercise? (structure, tense usage,
creative writing). Once these factors are clear in the mind of the teacher,
the teacher can begin to focus on how to involve the students in the
activity thus promoting a positive, long-term learning experience.
III - Which Means?
Having decided on the target area, the teacher can focus on the means to
achieve this type of learning. As in correction, the teacher must choose
the most appropriate manner for the specified writing area. If formal
business letter English is required, it is of little use to employ a free
expression type of exercise. Likewise, when working on descriptive language
writing skills, a formal letter is equally out of place.
IV - Planning the Class
With both the target area and means of production clear in the teacher's
mind, the teacher can begin to consider how to involve the students by
considering what type of activities are interesting to the students: Are
they preparing for something specific such as a holiday or test?, Will they
need any of the skills pragmatically? What has been effective in the past?
A good way to approach this is by class feedback, or brainstorming
sessions. By choosing a topic that involves the students the teacher is
providing a context within which effective learning on the target area can
be undertaken.
Finally, the question of which type of correction will facilitate a useful
writing exercise is of utmost importance. Here the teacher needs to once
again think about the overall target area of the exercise. If there is an
immediate task at hand, such as taking a test, perhaps teacher-guided
correction is the most effective solution. However, if the task were more
general (for example developing informal letter writing skills), maybe the
best approach would be to have the students work in groups thereby learning
from each other. Most importantly, by choosing the correct means of
correction the teacher can encourage rather discourage students. |Differences Between British and American Spelling |
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American - British Spellings
Most dictionaries include both spellings and will make note of the two
spellings. Usually the differences are noted in one of two ways:
In many US dictionaries the difference is included in the headword with the
variation in parentheses:
For example colo(u)r
In British Dictionaries, the Dictionary makes note of the difference in
brackets immediately after the headword:
For example watch, plural watches; glass, plural glasses
Here is a list of the main differences between British and American
spelling:
|British |American |
|-our (honour) |-or (honor) |
|-re (centre) |-er (center) |
|-ogue (dialogue) |-og (dialog) |
|-ence (defence) |-ense (defense) |
|-ise 1 (recognise) |-ize (recognize) |
American English spelling sometimes does not double the consonant at the
end of a word, while British English spelling does, especially when the
consonant is an 'l'.
For example travel, traveller, travelling (British) and travel, traveler,
traveling (American)
|Differences Between American and British English |
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While there are certainly many more varieties of English, American and
British English are the two varieties that are taught in most ESL/EFL
programs. Generally, it is agreed that no one version is "correct" however,
there are certainly preferences in use. The most important rule of thumb is
to try to be consistent in your usage. If you decide that you want to use
American English spellings then be consistent in your spelling (i.e. The
color of the orange is also its flavour - color is American spelling and
flavour is British), this is of course not always easy - or possible. The
following guide is meant to point out the principal differences between
these two varieties of English.
Use of the Present Perfect
In British English the present perfect is used to express an action that
has occurred in the recent past that has an effect on the present moment.
For example:
I've lost my key. Can you help me look for it?
In American English the following is also possible:
I lost my key. Can you help me look for it?
In British English the above would be considered incorrect. However, both
forms are generally accepted in standard American English. Other
differences involving the use of the present perfect in British English and
simple past in American English include already, just and yet.
British English:
I've just had lunch
I've already seen that film
Have you finished your homework yet?
American English:
I just had lunch OR I've just had lunch
I've already seen that film OR I already saw that film.
Have your finished your homework yet? OR Did you finish your homework yet?
Possession
There are two forms to express possession in English. Have or Have got
Do you have a car?
Have you got a car?
He hasn't got any friends.
He doesn't have any friends.
She has a beautiful new home.
She's got a beautiful new home.
While both forms are correct (and accepted in both British and American
English), have got (have you got, he hasn't got, etc.) is generally the
preferred form in British English while most speakers of American English
employ the have (do you have, he doesn't have etc.)
The Verb Get
The past participle of the verb get is gotten in American English. Example
He's gotten much better at playing tennis. British English - He's got much
better at playing tennis.
Vocabulary
Probably the major differences between British and American English lies in
the choice of vocabulary. Some words mean different things in the two
varieties for example:
Mean: (American English - angry, bad humored, British English - not
generous, tight fisted)
Rubber: (American English - condom, British English - tool used to erase
pencil markings)
There are many more examples (too many for me to list here). If there is a
difference in usage, your dictionary will note the different meanings in
its definition of the term. Many vocabulary items are also used in one form
and not in the other. One of the best examples of this is the terminology
used for automobiles.
|American |British |
|English - hood |English - |
| |bonnet |
|American |British |
|English - trunk|English - boot|
|American |British |
|English - truck|English - |
| |lorry |
Once again, your dictionary should list whether the term is used in British
English or American English.
For a more complete list of the vocabulary differences between British and
American English use this British vs. American English vocabulary tool.
Prepositions
There are also a few differences in preposition use including the
following:
|American |British |
|English - on |English - at |
|the weekend |the weekend |
|American |British |
|English - on a |English - in a|
|team |team |
|American |British |
|English - |English - |
|please write me|please write |
|soon |to me soon |
Past Simple/Past Participles
The following verbs have two acceptable forms of the past simple/past
participle in both American and British English, however, the irregular
form is generally more common in British English (the first form of the
two) and the regular form is more common to American English.
|Burn |Burnt OR burned |
|Dream |dreamt OR dreamed |
|Lean |leant OR leaned |
|Learn |learnt OR learned |
|Smell |smelt OR smelled |
|Spell |spelt OR spelled |
|Spill |spilt OR spilled |
|Spoil |spoilt OR spoiled |
Spelling
Here are some general differences between British and American spellings: Words ending in -or (American) -our (British) color, colour, humor, humour,
flavor, flavour etc.
Words ending in -ize (American) -ise (British) recognize, recognise,
patronize, patronise etc. The best way to make sure that you are being consistent in your spelling is
to use the spell check on your word processor (if you are using the
computer of course) and choose which variety of English you would like. As
you can see, there are really very few differences between standard British
English and standard American English. However, the largest difference is
probably that of the choice of vocabulary and pronunciation. For further
information concerning these areas please refer to the fo