Pearson Longman February 2010 ESL Newsletter
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John Brezinsky

Why Aren't You Using Writing Journals?
John Brezinsky, Higher Education Marketing Manager

Writing journals can greatly improve students’ writing fluency and help students become better readers, without adding more than a few minutes to your workload. This article describes why you should use journals, offers tips for getting started, and includes a free podcast.

Why Use Writing Journals? 

Why? Because students often become better writers and better readers if they keep a journal. Journals are an opportunity to practice writing for meaning—without worrying about accuracy or rhetorical modes. They allow students to experiment with language and take risks. They develop writing fluency in the same way that open-ended speaking tasks develop oral fluency. Furthermore, research (Mylnarcyzk, 1993; Spack, 1993) suggests that journal writing also helps students to think more about what they read, reflect on their reading skills, and make stronger connections between reading and writing.

How to Use Writing Journals

Adding a writing journal to your Reading/Writing course is easy. Just keep these tips in mind.

  1. Make it interesting. Set the journal task after a good discussion of a reading. Don’t tell students to just react," but give them something specific to respond to.
  2. Don’t let them focus on form.The whole idea is for the students to practice writing quickly and fluently. They should not worry about spelling, grammar, or mechanics. Consider prohibiting the use of dictionaries during these exercises. You may even encourage students to add the occasional word in L1 if they dn'’t know it in English. These words can then become the source of personal vocabulary lists.
  3. Do it in class at first. Journal writing is a new concept to many students, so you may have to do the first several entries in class. Don't let the silent writing bother you—they’re learning a valuable skill. Once they're used to the idea of writing for meaning rather than grammar, you can start setting the tasks for homework.
  4. Grade the writing based on fluency, not accuracy. You can relax. You don't have to correct spelling mistakes, or grammar issues, or problems with cohesion. Just read what your students have written, and give them a grade based on how much they tried to communicate. Did they take risks? Did they push themselves further?

Where Can You Find Journal Activities?

Surprisingly enough, there are very few Reading/Writing textbook series that include regular journal exercises as part of their structure. Our newest series, From Reading to Writing, is a clear exception. In each chapter, students focus on reading skills, discuss the readings, and then respond to a discussion question in their journals. This happens right on the student book page, so instructors don't even need to invent the journal themselves.

Linda Butler on Journal Writing 

Linda Butler, an author of several ESL books, including New Password and Fundamentals of Academic Writing, describes writing journals in this podcast.

Get More Information

Contact your ELL Representative today for more information about From Reading to Writing, including a sample copy.



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