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Foreign Languages Bibliography
Compiled by Peter Sands, PhD Most writers addressing WAC principles in the foreign-languages classroom do so with the assumption that students will be writing in the second language. UW-Milwaukee's Writing Intensive Courses Initiative requires students to write in English, however, to meet the requirements of the program. Although there are hundreds of available articles on the subject, virtually all of them make this assumption. I have, accordingly, selected a short list of articles which focus on WAC principles that can be abstracted and applied to the teaching of writing-in-English in the foreign-language classroom. Most of the following entries, including the abstracts, are taken from the ERIC database available from the Golda Meir Library at: http://www.uwm.edu/Library/Info/db.html.
Argues that low-stakes writing, especially in journals, helps students develop comfort in the new language, and aids in developing sensitivity to nuance in reading of foreign-language literature.
Abstract: This report describes an approach to third-year college-level French literature instruction that used a more informal approach to student writing than that traditionally used in such a course. The approach evolved from a comparison of students' formal writing skills with the skills defined in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages' (ACTFL) proficiency guidelines, and discovery of discrepancies between the two. The teacher began with classroom exercises to build peer relationships and share student attitudes and concerns about foreign language literature study. Subsequently, the class read short stories, poems, and one-act plays, and each term read one longer classical work. In class, students analyzed the actions within each work and wrote brief journal statements of their perceptions of the works. As the quarters progressed, the assigned journal and free-writing tasks encouraged movement up the proficiency scale. Students shared their writing with each other and organized and reviewed their own journals at the end of the term. It was found that student response to the approach was positive, writing became more confident, and fluency and accuracy increased over that of students in previous years. Some practical guidance concerning journal management is offered.
Abstract: Three examples of conversation and composition courses that work well because of a large amount of preparation and coordination are outlined in this article. Courses in German, French, and Spanish are included that are concrete examples.
Abstract: One teacher's experience suggests that interpretive writing stemming from the reading and discussion of a literary work, in a second language, promotes development of higher-level cognitive skills. College students in an upper-division Spanish course in one institution are engaged in a writing process with three phases: preparatory; interpretive; and summative. The preparatory stage seeks to establish a common denominator of historical, linguistic, and cultural background for the reading. The interpretive phase allows students to express their own personal confrontation with the literary text, through writing about it. After reading and discussing modernist poetry by several Latin American authors, students write their own poem using specific modernist elements. After reading another text, students are asked to imagine themselves as a main character and write their own extension of events in the text. In other assignments, students are asked to contrast and compare perspectives on a problem posed in a text, assess authors' expressive techniques, and persuade others of their personal interpretation of a text. Examples of students' writing, all in Spanish, are included, with translations appended. A brief bibliography is also included.
Abstract: The purposes of writing in the foreign language classroom are similar to those in other disciplines. The process approach to writing instruction is useful in any language. Selection of writing topics is based on vocabulary and available skills, and careful sequencing and control of range of topics helps develop proficiency. Writing assignments can be used to integrate other language skills, and the audience sould be specified. Students need not always have the same assignment, and activities can be designed to be fun as well as instructive. Once writing is a regular classroom and homework activity, it can be incorporated into testing. Evaluation involves not only error correction but also encouragement of meaningful and interesting communication. Selective, not blanket, error correction that changes depending on proficiency level is appropriate, and an error matrix may be helpful in tracking and diagnosing error patterns. Composite grading, its complexity depending on level, is useful for targeting accuracy, content, lexicon, structure, and idiomatic quality. Writing across the foreign language curriculum can begin in the first weeks of instruction and be carried out throughout the program. Appended materials include suggested writing activities and topics for each proficiency level, and a list of codes for correcting papers.
Abstract: Presents techniques from Writing Across the Curriculum adapted to the foreign language classroom. Strategies for encouraging students to write more effectively in the foreign language are described. The strategies include assigning relevant topics, treating writing as a process, and responding to and evaluating student writing in a more constructive way.
Abstract: Discusses the need for increased collaboration and dialogue among foreign-language instructors and English teachers at the high school and college levels, focusing on the basic contributions such dialogue could provide to improving and increasing participation in such programs as "Writing Across the Curriculum."
Abstract: Describes several activities designed as part of La Salle University's Writing across the Curriculum project to improve advanced Spanish composition skills. Activities involved both formal and informal writing assignments such as notetaking, job application letters, and thesis support essays.
Abstract: This article describes a nine-week collaborative project involving the training of secondary school language teachers in the use of process approach, holistic assessment, and positive feedback of writing in the second-language classroom. A description of the three workshop sessions over the nine-week period is provided.
Abstract: This book reviews pertinent theories about writing in English, English as a Second Language (ESL), and foreign languages for teachers at secondary and postsecondary levels, to provide insight into the teaching and learning processes. Five hypotheses about the nature of foreign language (FL) writing serve as points of departure for analyzing writing, developing classroom approaches, and identifying issues for further exploration: (1) writing competence is general, not language-specific; (2) the FL writing process differs from the native language writing process; (3) computer-aided writing enhances the FL writing experience; (4) correcting and evaluating FL writing are complex tasks that address the entire writing process; and (5) teaching FL writing is effective at all levels of language study, even the earliest, and should be conducted in all discourse models (narrative, descriptive, expository, argumentative). Case studies are included for illustration. The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines are appended, and book contents are indexed.
Abstract: A discussion of second language writing instruction illustrates how writing activities can be incorporated into regular classroom activities and outlines strategies for providing purpose, feedback, and assessment while integrating language skills and culture. Three stages in the writing process are identified: (1) recycling previous information and background knowledge to generate ideas; (2) reformulation of ideas generated in the first stage into a first and successive drafts, including editing and peer evaluation; and (3) reevaluation, by the teacher, of the final draft. Practical classroom techniques corresponding to each of the three stages are then offered. The first group is intended to help the teacher establish a purpose for the writing exercise; the second group helps in providing appropriate and clear feedback to students, either during peer editing and revision or in teacher evaluation; and the third group addresses evaluation of the final copy. Suggestions for grading are included. Appended materials include: guidelines for scoring composition content, organization, vocabulary, language use, and mechanics; suggestions for teaching students how to evaluate others' work; and a composition marking guide. Contains 29 references.
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