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1. Building a Class Library Using Local Folktales

   In: English Teaching Forum 2003, Volume 41, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   In areas of the world such as Nigeria where reading is not a central part of the culture, teachers may face a shortage of reading materials. One way to address this problem is by asking students to create their own reading materials. The activity described in this article focuses on a way students can engage in process learning by writing down oral folktales. Because students work in groups, they must communicate with each other in English to write and prepare their book. Students produce a tangible object from their learning that can be used to build a reading library.

2. What Mary Shelley Never Wrote: Using Basic Computer Skills to Enhance Student Writing

   In: English Teaching Forum 2003, Volume 41, Number 2 Format(s): Text

   This article describes an inspired, well-managed process writing class project for intermediate language learners. The author used Mary Shelley’s book Frankenstein as a creative writing tool in class to develop writing and computer skills. Students read and discussed the book. Working in a collaborative format, students wrote a short story sequel to the novel and offered revision advice in a workshop format. The sequels were then compiled and shared with beginner language learners. The author pointed out that the sense of audience was also established with this project.

3. Stimulating Writing through Project-Based Tasks

   In: English Teaching Forum 2005, Volume 43, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   As students often see writing in any language as a challenging task, it can be hard to encourage motivation to practice writing in the language-learning classroom. This article offers project-based tasks as a way to motivate students with relevant and interesting topics. The author discusses the principles of project work and explains the process approach to composition, followed by detailed lesson plans for writing a problem/solution essay and the expected outcomes of this project.

4. Writing for the Reader: A Problem-Solution Approach

   In: English Teaching Forum 2012, Volume 50, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   A “how to” piece on using the problem-solution approach to writing academic articles, this article explores (originally published in 1997) defining the audience, defining the author, and evaluating the structure of an article, and it outlines helpful questions for writers and readers.

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