ProcessWriting: Model
The writing process, according to White andArndt, is a cycle of generating ideas, structuring, drafting,reviewing, focusing, and evaluating (figure 1). As we can see fromthe directions shown by the arrows, writing is not a linear process(that is, it does not go in a straight line from start to finish),but one which involves a constant cycle of thinking, drafting, andreviewing.
Figure 1. The writing process(From: Process Writingby Ron White and Valerie Arndt, Longman, 1991.)
The many parts of this process cannot operateat the same time, even if the writer is skilled and the writing taskis easy, as this would involve using more information than humanshort-term memory can hold. Just as a person learning to juggle doesnot start with a large number of objects of various sizes and shapes,so an ESL/EFL writer cannot simultaneously "juggle" all of the partsof the writing process. There are two ways of solving thisproblem:
1. making parts of the process automatic sothey require little thought (for example, few writers think about theformation of each individual letter, although when they first learnedto write they did); 2. using a range of strategies over time whichallow the writer to think about each of the important parts of thecomposing process separately. In order to do this, outline carefullyfor students the skills involved in each of the stages of thecomposing process. These skills are best learned in the context ofproblem-solving writing assignments.
What is involved in each of thesesub-processes? According to White and Arndt, the following skillsmust be mastered within each sub-process.
| 2.Planning/Generating Ideas |3.Focusing | 4.Structuring | 5.Drafting | 6.Evaluating | 7.Reviewing/Revision | Printerfriendly version of these seven pages
