Teaching writing as a process of communication at the tertiary level

Page No.: 
53
Writer(s): 
Michele M. Chan

The way composition is often taught takes no account of the processes by which people produce writing and ignores the primary purpose of writing: communication. Students write only for a teacher whose comments give students the impression that what was said is less important than how it was said. Standardized forms are taught without helping students to see that the content and purpose determine the form. TIlUS students find the techniques of writing and rules of language use they are taught arbitrary and sometimes irrelevant.
Recently there has been a great deal of research into how ESL/EFL writers compose. However, teachers sometimes find it difficult to translate the latest theories in to a course design and day to day teaching practices. At the Chinese University of Hong Kong we have designed a writing course that takes into account research into how people compose and which emphasizes writing as communication. Our course design and the assumptions

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