BBI3421 EXPOSITORY WRITING

Objectives At the end of the course, students should be able to: use a variety of techniques to generate ideas for writing (P4) 1 2 write unified paragraphs with appropriate supporting points and details(C5) 3 compose coherent essays using different rhetorical modes (A3) 4 evaluate essays critically (A3), and

Synopsis This course involves experiencing the processes of creating and criticising; content generation; organisation and rhetorical ordering; sentential skills; proof reading and editing; interaction of writer, text, and audience; and feedback in the process of revision and evaluation.

Required Texts: Oshima, A and Hogue, A. (2006, 4th ed.). Writing Academic English. New York: Pearson Longman. To get the book, you need to contact Mr Tan Yun Chun (012-2808241/tancyprinsip@gmail.com) Please take note that exercises for the course assignment are taken from the prescribed textbook.

Evaluation Mid-Semester 40% Assignments: -Task Portfolio 20% -Personal Reflection 10% Final Examination 30% Total 100%

Format of Evaluation Mid-Semester Test: Structured Questions and MCQs (Topics covered from Week 1- Week 7) - Identifying topic sentences - Writing topic sentences - Writing supporting sentences - Identifying Types of sentences - Coherence devices - Outlining -Writing an extended paragraph

Assignments: Task Portfolio and Reflection Exercise Week Assignment: Task Portfolio (20 marks) 1 The Writing Process Read pp. 265- 270 (Textbook) Do the following practices as found in your textbook (pp.266-270). practice 1 practice 2 practice 3 2 1) Think of a topic of your own interest and narrow it. 2) Use one brainstorming technique that you learnt to generate your ideas.

3 Paragraph Structure and Topic Sentence Read Chapter 1 (pp.2 -11) Work on the following exercises as found in your textbook. Practices 1 A and 1B(p.6-8) Practice 2 (p.9) Practice 3 (p.10-11) 4 Supporting Sentences and Concluding Sentence (pp. 11- 17) Practice 4 (p.11-12) Model (paragraph supported with examples: Language and Perception (p.13) Practice 5 (15-16) Read The writing Process, Step 2: Planning (Outlining) (pp. 271-272) Based on a topic of your own interest, write an extended paragraph outline. Your outline should have a topic sentence, main supporting points, supporting details and a concluding sentence.

5 Unity and Coherence Read Chapter 2 (pp. 18-19). Work on the following practices as found in the textbook. Practice 1 A, B & C (pp. 19-20) Practice 2 (p.23) Practice 4 (p.25) Practice 6 (p.29-30) Practice 7A, B & C (p.30-32) Practice 9 (p.33) 6 Types of Sentences Before you write your paragraph, it is important to know that to make your paragraph interesting, you need to use a variety of sentences. Read Chapter 10 (pp. 162-178) on Types of Sentences and work on the following practices. Practice 1 (pp.163-164) Practice 3 (p.167) Practice 4 A, B & C (p.167-168) Practice5 A, B, & C (pp. 170-171) Practice 6 (p.171) Practice 7 (p.171) Practice 8 A & B(pp.172-173) Practice 9 (p. 174)

7 Sentence Problems Work on the following practices as found in the textbook. Practice 2 A & B (pp.184-185) Practice 3 (pp.186-187) Practice 4 A, B & C (pp. 189-190) Practice 5 (p.191) Writing an extended paragraph Based on the outline that you have done on the topic of your interest, write an extended paragraph. Make sure your sentences are correctly written. After you have written your extended paragraph, look at Self-editing Worksheet 2 (p. 319) and edit your work. Then, write your second draft of your essay.

8 Essay Writing Read Chapter 4 on the structure of an essay (Introduction, Body and Conclusion) Introductory paragraph Practice 1 A (p.62-63) Types of Introductory paragraphs Practice 2 B (p.64: A and B ) Thesis statements Body Paragraphs Read pp. 64-66 Practice 3 (p.66-67: A, B, C) Thesis statements for logical Division of Ideas Practice 4 (p.68) Concluding Paragraph (p.72) Practice 6 (p.73-74) Concluding paragraph Practice (p.74-75) Writing concluding paragraphs

9 Outlining an Essay Practice 8 (p.76-77) Essay outlining Writing an Argumentative Essay Read p: 142 on Argumentative Essays Practice 2 (pp.148-149) Practice 3 (p. 149)

10 Writing an Argumentative Essay Choose a topic of your interest for the writing of an argumentative/persuasive essay. Then, select a brainstorming technique to explore your ideas. Write an outline of the essay. 11 Write your first draft of your essay. Next, use Self-Editing Worksheet 9 (p.329) to edit your work. Then, write your second draft of your essay.

Reflection Exercise (10 marks) 12 Reflection Exercise (10 marks)  Write your reflection on your process of learning how to write an essay. Look at the handout on Reflection Exercise and use the questions as a guide on how to write your reflection. *Submit your Assignment to PPL together with your two reflection exercises 13 Revision 14

Reflection Exercise (10 marks) In about 150 words, write your reflection on your learning experience of writing an essay. You can use the questions below to guide you in writing your reflection.   How is your experience of writing an essay different from that of writing an extended paragraph? Now that you have completed writing your essay, did you face any challenges while writing it? Explain the challenges that you had faced. While writing your essay, did you consciously follow the steps of the writing process? Did you consciously use some of the coherent devices to make your essay coherent? If yes, what were they?

In writing your essay, did you consciously use varied sentence patterns? What types of sentence patterns did you use most of the time? When editing your own work, what aspects of writing did you normally edit? Ideas? Sentence constructions? Grammar? How do you feel about your edited piece of work? You may begin your reflection by writing: Dear …….., I find writing ... Yours sincerely, ………………….  

Final Examination: MCQ and Structured Questions (All topics but pay particular attention to topics covered from Week 8-Week 13) Identifying sentence problems Identifying and/or writing thesis statement Identifying and/or writing topic sentence Write selected paragraphs (Introductory, body paragraphs or concluding paragraphs) Cohesive devices

Send your Task Portfolio and Reflection Exercise to PPL Send your Task Portfolio and Reflection Exercise to PPL. For any enquiries, contact: Pn Helen Tan Jabatan Bahasa Inggeris Fakulti Bahasa Moden dan Komunikasi Universiti Putra Malaysia 43400 Serdang (helen@fbmk.upm.edu.my) Tel: 03-89468711

What is writing? a complicated cognitive process recursive – involves several activities; setting goals, generating ideas, organising information, selecting appropriate language, making a draft, reading and reviewing it, then revising and editing. Hedge, T. (2003) Teaching and learning in the classroom.

What good writers do? “ They consider purpose and audience. They consult their own background knowledge. They let ideas incubate. They plan. As they write, they read back over what they have written. Contrary to what many textbooks advise, writers do not follow a neat sequence of planning, organising, writing and then revising. For a while a writer’s product – the finished essay, story or novel – is presented in lines, the process that produces it is not linear at all.” (Raimes 1985:229)

Audience Awareness “…successful writers are aware of their readers and seek to produce ‘reader-based’ prose (Flower and Hayes 1980). Successful writers think about what the reader needs to know, how to make information clear and accessible and what is an appropriate style (for example, formal, friendly, or persuasive).

How to begin writing? Meyer,A. (2005) – 6 stages Explore ideas Consider subject, purpose, audience Prewrite Brainstorming, clustering, freewriting Organise Select, Outline

Write a first draft Write quickly to record your thoughts Put notes and new ideas in the margins Revise the draft - Read aloud Add or omit material, and move materials around Produce final copy Edit Copy over, or print a clean copy Read carefully for errors, and then print another clean copy

Stage 1:Exploration of ideas Consider subject, purpose, audience Subject What do I know about the subject? What do I want to say about the subject? Purpose Why am I saying about the subject? Is it to persuade, to inform, etc.

Choosing and Narrowing a Topic Environment Pollution Air pollution Effects on people’s health

Stage 2: Generation of ideas Brainstorming Techniques Listing Clustering Freewriting

Write down the general topic at the top of your paper. Listing Write down the general topic at the top of your paper. Make a list of every idea that comes into your mind about the topic. Keep the ideas flowing. If you write down information that is completely off the topic, don’t worry about it because you can cross it out later. Use words, phrases, or sentences, and don’t worry about spelling or grammar

Freewriting - Write the topic at the top of your paper Simply write about the subject without worrying about sentence structure, spelling, logic, and grammar. Write as if you are speaking so that you can get your ideas down fast.

Clustering Write your subject in the middle of the page and then circle it. Write related ideas around the circle as they occur to you. Circle the ideas and connect them to you subject circle.

Stage 3: Organize/ Outline From your brainstorming notes: Identify relevant point Communication Problems 1. Poor verbal skills 2. Americans difficult to understand lack vocabulary use incomplete sentences new language unclear expressions poor pronunciation Americans talk too fast lack confidence use slang and idioms

Categorize your ideas into sub categories. For example: 1. poor verbal skills - lack vocabulary - poor pronunciation 2. Americans difficult to understand - use incomplete sentences - use unclear expressions - talk too fast - use slang and idioms

Stage 4: Write your draft A Paragraph : What is it? A basic unit of organization in writing Consists of a group of related sentences that develop one main idea

An Extended Paragraph: What does it contain? Introduction -Topic sentence Body -Main Supporting Sentences -Supporting details Conclusion Summary Additional Elements Unity Coherence

What is a Topic Sentence? Presents the main idea Suggests how the remaining sentences will develop that idea Gives the paragraph a direction Is the most general statement Makes a claim about the topic Expresses an opinion/judgement Position of topic sentence in a paragraph - usually but not always at or near the beginning of paragraph

How to write a Topic Sentence? Topic + controlling idea Eg: Learning to outline will improve your writing for three reasons. Topic: Learning to outline Controlling idea: will improve your writing for three reasons

Examples of a Good Topic Sentence 1. People can avoid burglaries by taking certain precautions.  (The precautions for…) 2. There are several advantages to growing up in a small town.  (The advantages of…) 3. Most US universities require a 550 point TOEFL score for a number of reasons.  (The reasons for…) 4. Fixing a flat tire on a bicycle is easy if you follow these steps.  (The steps for…) 5. Effective leadership requires specific qualities that anyone can develop.  (The qualities (or characteristics or traits) of…)

Functions of Supporting Points Develop the topic sentence through: giving explanations and providing examples

Examples of supporting points TS: Learning to outline will improve your writing for three reasons. It will help you organize your ideas. It will help you write more quickly. It will help you improve your grammar Improved organization, speed, and grammar make learning outline well worth the effort.

Examples of specific details TS: Learning to outline will improve your writing for three reasons. It will help you organize your ideas. 1. you will not include irrelevant ideas. 2. You will not leave out important points. 3. Your supporting sentences will be in logical order. It will help you write more quickly. 1. Seventy-five percent of the work is done. 2. You do not worry about what you are going to say. It will help you improve your grammar 1.You will be able to concentrate on writing appropriately. 2. You will have time to self-correct any wrong grammar used Improved organization, speed, and grammar make learning outline well worth the effort.

Functions of a Concluding Sentence It signals the end of the paragraph. It summarizes the main points of the paragraph. It gives a final comment on the topic and leaves the reader with the most important ideas to think about. Eg: In conclusion, improved organization, speed, and grammar make learning outline well worth the effort.

Coherence and Cohesion

“Cohere” (Latin): “hold together” Repetition of key nouns Use of Consistent Pronouns Transition Signals Logical arrangement

Repetition of key nouns Gold Gold, a precious metal, is prized for two important characteristics. First of all, gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for jewelry, coins, and ornamental purposes. Gold never needs to be polished and will remain beautiful forever. For example, a Macedonian coin remains as untarnished today as the day it was minted twenty-three centuries ago. Another important characteristic of gold is its usefulness to industry and science. For many years, it has been used in hundreds of industrial applications. The most recent use of gold is in astronauts’ suits. Astronauts wear gold-plated heat shields for protection outside spaceships. In conclusion, gold is treasured not only for its beauty but also for its utility.

Use of Consistent Pronouns Help establish a clear connection between ideas. Pronouns replaces nouns and refer back to them. Eg: First of all, gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, they are suitable for jewelry, coins, and ornamental purposes. (X) First of all, gold has a lustrous beauty that is resistant to corrosion. Therefore, it is suitable for jewelry, coins, and ornamental purposes. (/)

Exercise 1: Correct the pronouns used to make the use of pronouns consistent Olympic Athletes Olympic athletes must be strong both physically and mentally. First, if you hope to compete in an Olympic sport, you must be physically strong. Furthermore, an aspiring Olympian must train rigorously for many years. For the most demanding sports, they train several hours a day, five or six days a week, for ten or more years. In addition to being physically strong, he or she must also be mentally tough. This means that you have to be totally dedicated to your sport, often giving up a normal school, family, and social life. Being mentally strong also means that he or she must be able to withstand the intense pressure of international competition with its attendant media coverage. Finally, not everyone can win a medal, so they must possess the inner strength to live with defeat.

Important Use of Transition Signals Explains relationships between ideas. (See p. 297-299, Oshima & Hogue) Transition Signals and other Connecting Words Helps to make your prose engaging to the readers

Compare paragraph 1 and 2 Which is easier to understand? Britain withdrew from Singapore in 1971,the tiny island nation at the tip of the Malay Peninsula had no way to support itself. Its resources was people. From the start, the Singapore government determined that the country’s survival would depend on foreign investment and expertise. The government itself would need to play an active role in guiding economic development. Singapore developed one of the most productive economies in the world.

Paragraph 2 When Britain withdrew from Singapore in 1971,the tiny island nation at the tip of the Malay Peninsula had no way to support itself. Its resources was people. From the start, the Singapore government determined that the country’s survival would depend on foreign investment and expertise. Furthermore, the government itself would need to play an active role in guiding economic development. As a result of these strategies, Singapore developed one of the most productive economies in the world.

Logical arrangement Arrange your ideas in logical sequence Types of logical order: Chronological order eg: first, next, after that, finally, before, etc. Logical division eg: The most important…, Another important…, etc. Comparison/contrast eg: in contrast, unlike, different from/ similarly, as expensive as, just like, etc.

A Sample of a Unified Paragraph (TS) A carefully thought out topic sentence will serve two important functions.  First, it will provide you, the author, the means to stay focused on your objective.  It is a lot easier to write if you know what you are going to write about!  Second, a clearly stated topic sentence will provide readers with the tools they need to clearly understand what you have to say.  These are important reasons to carefully consider topic sentences before beginning writing (CS).

Summary of Writing an Extended Paragraph What have you learnt? structure of an extended paragraph process of writing (choosing and narrowing a topic, idea generation, outlining, drafting, editing, redrafting, proof reading) how to write a good topic sentence, supporting details and concluding sentence outlining coherence in writing

Exercise Choose a topic from the list given. In pairs/or groups of three, brainstorm for ideas. Write one topic sentence. From the topic sentence, outline the paragraph. List of topics: custom celebration friends television family computers