Curt's post on genre-based writing instruction

Ken Hyland’s book Genre and Second Language Writing maps out a five principle process of organizing a genre-based writing course that is based upon five basic principles. The first principle is the concept of writing as a social activity, which has an intended contextual purpose of communicating to a given audience. This sense purpose applies even if the audience is one’s self as a reader of their own personal journal or diary. By having the writer begin with examining their audience with a purpose in mind, appropriate language usage will be realized. For example: research papers will use different language than classroom project assignments. This leads to the second principle that learning to write is needs orientated. I like that the concept of students achieving their goals even though their goals are ever changing. Even in the English 101 class, the student goals are changing to the needs of each project, but these goals are progressive as well. This is addressed in part by sequencing of writing assignments because the development of writing skills is progressive. A third principle relates to the notion that learning to write requires explicit outcomes and expectations including final expectation by the end of the course. This is referred to as the visible pedagogy which teacher helps the students unpack during crucial times the coursework beginning with the syllabus. This type of writing pedagogy is very interactive in facilitating student comprehension in specific instructor expectations. Fourth, by examining the methods of learning to write as a social activity involving collaborative support based upon a Vygotskian type of scaffolding approach. The fifth principle is that learning to write involves learning to use language. Although this conceptual principle may seem overly obvious, in part this includes the concept of making correct diction choices as well. I really find the aspect of integrating the grammar in the context of texts to be meaningful in a more naturally realistic way than the old “grammar grinds” that were so tedious and boring for students. I have unfortunate memories for middle and high language classes, English as well as other languages being “ground” in such artificially contrived ways. This chapter clearly maps out methods of researching the needs of the writing class beginning with asking a few a few simple questions including: Who are the learners? How do learners learn? Why are learners taking the writing course? And what do learners know about writing? By asking such questions objectively, the instructor can assess on how to best meet the needs of the students within a given class. This objective mapping facilitates the development of overall goals and their smaller supporting objectives. Hyland suggests that teachers should have enough professional autonomy or agency to collect and analyze their own research needed to adapt genre samples to the learning needs of the students. Again, sequencing genres is discussed in greater detail as to different types of sequencing including by topic, families, sets, repertoires, and relations among reading, talking, and writing. Each type of sequencing has pedagogical advantages as well as limitations that must be assessed by the writing instructor. Meanwhile, Ken Hyland’s other book Second Language Writing examines what constitutes effective syllabus design and lesson planning including the basic principles and techniques planning upon how learning goals and objectives are to be best met in serving the needs of the students. I had to keep such parameters in mind when I composed the syllabus for the English 101 section that I am teaching this semester. I find the follow three factors listed by Hyland relevantly pertinent. First, is that it should begin with the needs of the learners and incorporate these, such needs of my current class of English 101 student is to be able to transition successively into college from high school and that includes taking a greater role in the management of their own learning and following through on assignments without daily reminders. In second language learning, the instructor needs to ascertain as to what purposes and goals that the students have in their language learning. Secondly, such a plan should take account of wider curricular goals, both within and outside of language learning, basically how does this course fit within the overall curricular plans of a student’s educational program. Some more basic coursework tends to have students of a more diverse array of career and educational interests whereas as each student progresses, their language learning needs become more finely defined. And third, the syllabus will reflect the teacher’s philosophy of writing, including a view of language and learning. A syllabus may be a useful tool for discussing aspects of a teacher’s philosophy of education with students, which may have an even greater impact upon the effective accomplishment of learning than just simply stating the learning goals and objectives of the given course. I use this as part of an opening for students to get to know “from where I am coming from” and what is to be expected during the course itself. Hyland included figure 3.1 on page 56 cited from (Hutchison and Waters, 1987: 74) that I may use when refining my syllabus for the following semester. So far, I have made changes to courses each semester that I have taught them based upon expectations and the actual results of those expectations. After assessing student needs and balancing them with departmental learning goals, I have developed my syllabus based overall upon a genre driven model, figure 3.5, yet I include key components of a process driven model, figure 3.4, when constructing the major course projects. My students, as well as myself have found this blended model to be the most useful and meaningful for achieving positive learning results within the context of the class. Again, Hyland reminds readers of his texts about how planning lessons are key components focused upon a larger instructional goal or theme within the larger units of work contained within the syllabus itself. Hyland lists detailed elements for an organized lesson plan format that conveys a clear purpose with structured activities that fits within the parameters of the classroom environmental time frame as well as actual physical space. Both the time and space elements of the class need to be considered when mapping out the details of the syllabus for a given class. Other aspect of tailoring learning projects to meeting the interests and learning needs of the students includes structured choices, with each being valid for meet given learning goals. For example, allowing to select their presentation chapters, articles, and weeks for conducting their in class semester presentations. This facilitates the development of a more detailed learning upon chosen topics that may be of a greater interest in meeting deeper learning goals upon specific topics with an assortment of relevant issues studied within the materials of the class. In all, I have found Hyland’s chapters to be quite useful in stimulating ideas in the planning and organization of a genre based writing course.