Writing in a Second Language

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• the social contexts of writing
• the particular issues involved in developing second language literacy
• the nature of text and the written product
• the nature of cognitive processes in writing

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• analyse the processes involved in writing in a second language
• apply theoretical models to case studies.

This module will examine the major issues concerning writing, written language, and literacy in a second language. It typically provides a linguistic analysis of written text structure and takes on areas of theoretical concern in second language writing. Throughout the module you will be encouraged to reflect on your own experiences as writers, to examine the strategies you use in text production and to examine the place of writing in your own language learning.

The main body of the module is in four parts which typically examine process, product, context, and instruction of writing in a second language. The first deals with composing and the writer in relation to the text; the second deals with the text produced, its structure and organisation; the third with the text and the writer in relation to their social context; and the fourth with the assessment, teaching, and acquisition of writing in a second language.

Teaching methods include

seminars

workshops

Learning activities include

individual study

preparing presentations and discussions in small groups

conducting observations/interviews and small research projects

reading and critiquing academic papers

Innovative or special features of this module

weekly readings feed into sessions

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.