Some guides to help grade 12 students know how to write a basic english paragraph well at nhu thanh high scholl

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ANDTRAINING NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL INNOVATION IN TEACHING SOME GUIDES TO HELP GRADE 12 STUDENTS KNOW HOW TO WRITE A BASIC ENGLISH PARAGRAPH WELL AT NHU T

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND

TRAINING

NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL

INNOVATION IN TEACHING

SOME GUIDES TO HELP GRADE 12 STUDENTS KNOW HOW

TO WRITE A BASIC ENGLISH PARAGRAPH WELL

AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL

The writer: Nguyen Thi Kim Lien

The post: Teacher Innovation of subject: English

THANH HOA, 2016

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

I RATIONALE OF THE RESEARCH

Studying English nowadays has become an essential demand for everyone Learning English is important It is simple as English is one of the most popular international languages and it is most not only all over the world but also in all aspects of society Therefore, learning and mastering it would greatly give advantages to the person concerned Especially, since Vietnam became the 150th member of the World Trade Organization ( WTO), it has been required that we have to build the labour force who are skillful at work and use English well as an effective tool of communication

Although many Vietnamese students get excellent certain qualifications, their ability of communicating in English is limited As a result, they must give

up their dream jobs There is no doubt about that English is the optimum standard for applicants into foreign and state- owned companies On account of the above demands, English is compulsory not only at school but also in examinations at certain stages of the school education system According to the national curriculum, English is built with the aim of communicating Creating the ability of communication in English for students is the most important target

in the process of teaching

As teachers, I think we’d all agree that communication is important In fact, it’s a necessary component of education, livelihood, and basic functionality

in our society It’s also fairly obvious that there are two main ways to communicate, although more obscure forms exist Basically, we talk and we write That’s how we let other people know what’s going on, and it’s an important skill to have Just about every student can talk, but how many Vietnamese students can truly write well? Writing is important because it’s used extensively in higher education and in the workplace If students don’t know how to express themselves in writing, they won’t be able to communicate well with friends, teachers, professors, employers, peers, or just about anyone else

Much of professional communication is done in writing: proposals, memos, reports, applications, preliminary interviews, e-mails, and more are part

of the daily life of a college student or successful graduate Even if students manage to learn the material in their college classes without knowing how to write well, they won’t be able to express their knowledge to the people who are making the big decisions Potential employers won’t know whether or not head knowledge can be applied to everyday demands unless it’s through a spoken interview Even the majority of certifications and licensures require basic writing skills to obtain The inability to write makes for a stillborn career

At Nhu Thanh High school, my students often find it extremely hard to improve the writing skill, especially they have difficulties in learning how to

write an academic paragraph effectively Therefore, in this study I give some

guides to help my students write a good basic paragraph and some ways of correcting it which I have applied successfully in my writing teaching to improve the students’ writing skill.

II AIMS OF THE RESEARCH

On the basis of surveying students’ ability of writing a basic paragraph in English at Nhu Thanh High School, I have given feasible solutions including innovating methods of teaching writing skill

III SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH

Researching innovative techniques used in writing teaching and learning, and methods of assessing students’ study result of writing at Nhu Thanh High School

IV THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS:

This study aims at finding the answer to the following research questions:

How can guides help grade 12 students improve writing skill?

The question has been addressed to two of the classes ( 12C9, 12C10) that

I have been teaching in Nhu Thanh High School with a view to examining how guides have taken an effect on the process of writing here

V RESEARCHING METHODS

- The method of collecting and analyzing materials for the research: research for materials concerning about the subject, analyze and get certain knowledge from previous researches, finally give the foundation to the research

- The method of talking to students: through talking to students, I have got

to know real situation of students’ writing learning in language classes at Nhu Thanh High School

- The method of surveying through answer sheets

PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1 : LITERATURE REVIEW

I The Basics of writing skills:

What Is Writing?

"Writing" is the process of using symbols (letters of the alphabet, punctuation and spaces) to communicate thoughts and ideas in a readable form

To write clearly it is essential to understand the basic system of a language In English this includes knowledge of grammar, punctuation and sentence structure Vocabulary is also necessary, as is correct spelling and formatting A writer may write for personal enjoyment or use, or for an audience of one person

or more The audience may be known (targeted) or unknown Taking notes for study purposes is an example of writing for one's self Blogging publicly is an example of writing for an unknown audience A letter to a friend is an example

of writing for a targeted audience As with speaking, it is important to consider your audience when writing There are many different styles of writing, from informal to formal

II What are the advantages of having great writing skills in real life?

Great writing skills translate to effective communication Well-written memos and procedures help companies run more smoothly If you want changes

in the workplace, or maybe a higher salary for yourself, being able to write clearly and persuasively will increase the chances that you will get what you want

Do you have a complaint about products or services you have purchased?

A well-written letter will be treated more seriously than a poorly written one

In public affairs, do you want to influence the government, so they do things your way? If you write a well-crafted letter to your Congressman (in a U.S context), your voice will be as influential as 50 or 100 people who simply forward an e-mail message written by an advocacy group

These are great advantages of written communication:

- Easy to preserve: The documents of written communication are easy to

preserve Oral and non-verbal communication cannot be preserved If it is needed, important information can be collected from the preserved documents

- Easy presentation of complex matter: Written communication is the best way

to represent any complex matter easily and attractively

- Permanent record: The documents of written communication act as a

permanent record When it is needed, important information can be easily collected from the preserved documents

- Prevention of wastage of time and money: Written communication prevents

the waste of money and time Without meeting with each other the communicator and communicate can exchange their views

- Accurate presentation: Through the documents of the written communication

top executive can present the information more accurately and clearly As it is a legal document everybody takes much care does draft it

- Use as a reference: If it is needed, written communication can be used as

future reference

- Delegation of authority: Written communication can help the authority to

delegate the power and authority to the subordinate It is quite impossible to delegate power without a written document

- Longevity: Written document can be preserved for a long time easily That is

why; all the important issues of an organization should be back and white

- Effective communication: Written communication helps to make

communication effective It is more dependable and effective than those of other forms of communication

- Maintaining image: Written communication helps to maintain the images of

both the person and the organization It also protects the images of the company

or organization

- Proper information: It is a proper and complete communication system There

is no opportunity to include any unnecessary information in a written document

- Less distortion possibility: In this communication system information is

recorded permanently So, there is less possibility of distortion and alteration of the information

- No opportunity to misinterpret: there is any opportunity to misinterpret the

information or messages of written communication

- Controlling tool: Written communication can help to control the organizational

activity The written document may be used as a tool for controlling

- Easy to verify: The information and messages that are preserved can be

verified easily If there arises any misunderstanding any party can easily verify the information

- Others: Clear understanding, Legal document, Acceptability, Reduction of

risk, Creating confidence, Easy circulation, Wide access or coverage etc

CHAPTER 2: PRACTICAL SITUATIONS

I METHODS OF THE RESEARCH

I have done the research in the context of two English classes (12C9 and

12 C10)- at the beginning of the school year 2015-2016 at Nhu Thanh High School In this survey, I have used the variety of questionares for students

II THE REALITY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING HOW TO WRITE AN ACADEMIC PARAGRAPH IN ENGLISH AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL.

I have carried out the survey of real situations of teaching and learning how to write a basic paragraph in English in class 12C9 and 12C10 (the school year: 2015- 1016) and I have got the following result:

Survey no.1

Practical Situation of learning how to write a basic paragraph in English at Nhu

Thanh High School

Questionares for

students

1 How difficult do you

find in learning how to

write an English

paragraph well?

Too easy 5%

Not difficult 10%

Difficult 25%

Extremely difficult 60%

2 Do you think it is very

neccesary to improve

your writing skill in

general and how to

write a good paragraph

in particular?

Very essential 10%

Essential 15%

Not really essential 25%

Not essential at all

50%

3 What do you think of

writing classes at Nhu

Thanh High School?

Really interesting 10%

Interesting 15%

Boring 40%

Very boring 35%

4 How often do you get

used to making the

outline form before you

get down to writing an

English paragraph?

Always 10%

Occationall y

20%

Rarely 30%

Never 40%

5 Do you think of the

materials used in

writing classes at Nhu

Thanh High school?

Very stimulating 10%

A little stimulating 20%

boring 30%

Completely boring 40%

6

6

How are you contented

with the teacher’s ways

of correcting your

written work?

A little

50%

Very much

10%

Not at all

20

%

Always

20%

From the above survey, it points out that teaching and learning writing skill in language classes at Nhu Thanh High School are ineffective and rather limited Students are not fond of writing lessons We can see that writing skill is little improved

CHAPTER 3: RECOMMENDATIONS TO HELP STUDENTS HOW TO WRITE A GOOD PARAGRAPH IN ENGLISH.

I RECOMMEDATIONS:

According to the data analysis from the survey no.1, it can be personally concluded that students need understand the processing of writing even the simplest steps and teacher must spend much time correcting their written works carefully and responsibly

Therefore, I have given them some guides to help students how to write a good academic paragraph in English

II PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS.

1 Supply students with general knowledge of the fundamental paragraph’s definition and outline form.

Through writing classes, I reliaze that the biggest problem of writing a basic paragraph to students is that they do not make the detailed outline form before they start writing As a sequence, the ideas in three parts of one paragraph are arranged in the incorrect order Therefore, during my language teaching in writing classes, I always emphasize the importance of making the detailed outline form in the process of writing a good parapraph to help them with an effective outline before they get down to writing an academic one My students understand its definition more clearly and the main parts of a basic paragraph They ensure that writing the outline of one paragraph is one of the most important and necessary steps in the writing process

In many languages, the fundamental unit of composition is the paragraph

A paragraph consists of several sentences that are grouped together This group

of sentences together discuss one main subject In U.S formal academic

English, paragraphs have three principal parts These three parts are the topic sentence, the supporting sentences, and the concluding sentence.

Process of writing a paragraph:

- Compose your topic sentence Think of a topic and a controlling idea that will narrow the topic enough to support it well in one paragraph

- Brainstorm supporting ideas Choose 2 - 6 supporting ideas that do a good job supporting your topic sentence

- Write your paragraph in topic outline form as follows

- Put your supporting ideas in a logical order

- For each supporting idea, think of RENNS that further explain the idea For balance, each supporting idea should have about the same number of RENNS

- Think of a concluding sentence

- Write your paragraph using sentences Use the coherence strategies to make your paragraph easy to follow

Here are the network used for making the detailed outline form of any paragraphs in English:

1.1 Guide students how to write a good topic sentence.

A topic sentence usually comes at the begining of a paragraph; that is, it is usually the first sentence in a formal academic paragraph Not only is a topic

sentence the first sentence of a paragraph, but, more importantly, it is the most general sentence in a paragraph What does "most general" mean? It means

that there are not many details in the sentence, but that the sentence introduces

an overall idea that you want to discuss later in the paragraph For example, suppose that you want to write a paragraph about the natural landmarks of your hometown The first part of your paragraph might look like this:

My hometown is well- known for several amazing natural features First, it is

noted for the Wheaton River, which is very wide and beautiful Also, on the other side of the town is Wheaton Hill, which is unusual because it is very steep

Note how the first sentence, My hometown, Wheaton, is well- known for

several amazing geographical features,is the most general statement This

sentence is different from the two sentences that follow it, since the second and

third sentences mention specific details about the town's geography, and are not

general statements

THE OUTLINE ( THREE MAIN PARTS)

THE TOPIC

SENTENCE

SUPPORTING SENTENCES

CONCLUDING SENTENCE

SUPPORTING

IDEA 1

SUPPORTING IDEA 2

SUPPORTING IDEA 3

SUPPORTING IDEA 4

Here are some examples of sentences that cannot be used as topic sentences Can you figure out why they are inappropriate?

2 My hometown is famous because it is located by Wheaton River, which is very wide, and because it is built near

an unusually steep hill called Wheaton Hill.

3 There are two reasons why some people like to buy cars with automatic transmission and two reasons why others like

cars with manual transmission.

The problem with sentence 2 is that it contains too many details Topic sentences are general, and details should appear later in the paragraph A better

topic sentence would be like the one mentioned above, My hometown is famous for several amazing geographical features Sentence 3 is not appropriate as a

topic sentence because it mentions two topics, not just one Paragraphs are usually about one main thing and so their topic sentences should also be about

only one main thing The problem with sentence 3 is that it is too general It is

also very boring! Therefore,We can rewrite sentences 3 in the following ways to make it better:

There are two reasons why some people like to buy cars with automatic transmission.

As I have made certain that my students know how to write a good topic

sentence, I give them some topics and ask them to write the topic sentence for these topics In order to help them write more effectively and academically, after correcting their work, I will provide them with the topic sentence models

The suggested topic: “ Write a paragragh about which your ideal world

is you'd like to live in 2050 (about 140 words)

The topic sentence should be “According to the great development of

our society, it is likely that human beings will witness the possitive changes of economic, peace, education and technology”

1 2 Guide them how to write persuative supporting sentences.

I make sure that my students make out clearly about controlling ideas that support the topic sentence, using reasons, examples, names, numbers, senses to

develop the supporting ideas by giving details and explanation The ideas must

be clear and be arranged logically in the correct order At first, I have forced

them to write supporting sentenses for a bit simple topics and they ought to be

written through the network By this way, my students can imagine how to write

supporting sentences easily For example, I give them the topic : “Write a

paragragh about your ideal world you'd like to live in 2020 (about 140

words)” With this topic, I will ask my students to write supporting sentences by

themselves to make clear the suggested topic sentence: “According to the great

development of our society, it is likely that human beings will witness the

possitive changes of economic, peace, education, environment and

technology” They spend about five munites to think and write the supporting

sentenses in the form of network After correcting their work, I give the

suggested outline

1 3 Guide them how to write concluding sentences effectively.

The concluding sentence is the last one of the paragraph It can express

the topic sentence in another way It should be enough short, for instance, with

the topic : “Write a paragraph of about 120 words to suggest measures to

protect rare and endangered species from extinction” The concluding sentence

Positive changes

in the world in 2020

Economy

- Stable finance

status

- No crises

Peace

- No wars

- No terrorism,

- Big happines

- Living in harmony

Education

- Be free, equal

to everyone

- Be advanced

Technology

- Robot appreace,

- Modern device

- Saving labour

Environment

- Healthy one

- Less noise

- Less polution

- More parks

- Protection of wildwife