Saturday, March 21, 2009

HOW BLOGGiNG cAN ASSisT LaNGUAGE LEaRnERS TO iMPRoVE anD ENhanCE thEiR wRiTiNG SKiLL??

Do you that blogging can assist language learners to improve and enhance their writing skill? So how..?? The blogging has become the great information medium, enabling anyone with a relatively small commitment of time and resources to make their message available to the world. Because the content and the language used to present it are real and authentic, the blogging is a useful source for language learners. There are many blogs that touch on almost every topic and could cater the needs of people of all walks of life including English language learners, from those at the beginners’ level to the most advanced one. For English language learners, there are sites that contain tips and activities that can be used to add more spice, varieties and creativity in writing. Blogs are not only on-line journals; they can be used also in an interactive way. While most blogs are created and managed by individuals, group blogs are also possible. Blogs are easily linked and cross-linked, to create larger on-line communities. There has been increasing interest in using blogs in education. They are well suited to serve as on-line personal journals for students. Language learners could use a personal blog, linked to a course, showing development over time. By publishing the blog on the Internet, the student has the possibility of writing for readers beyond classmates, not usually possible in discussion forums. Readers in turn can comment on what they're read. Self-publishing encourages ownership and responsibility on the part of students, who may be more thoughtful if they know they are writing for a real audience.


I have an article to show how the blog is related with
the writing skill.


Blogs Like All Forms of Writing Are an Art Form That Takes Knowledge and Practice to Do Well

By: Balwinder Singh

Writing…Blogs…Blogs are on-line journals where people express themselves through writing. Writing…Writing is the process where one puts down words of a language on a format that others can read. This process has not been around very long, to use one of my writing teacher’s favourite sayings, "Writing has only existed for one day in the one year that humanity has existed." Speaking and thinking come much easier than writing. These processes just flow out naturally like a river of consciousness; sometimes we hardly have to think about doing them. Anyone and everyone can write words down on paper but that doesn’t mean it’s ‘good writing’, myself included. Like most things in life, our society already takes writing for granted which is proving to expose more of our ignorance. Writing is a new form of expression, and if we want to do it in a way that the masses can connect with our ideas, we have to think much more simply and clearly about this art.

Now that was quite a big paragraph, you’ve got to wonder if I really needed to say as much as I just did to introduce this article on the best way to write your blogs on the Web. I didn’t even mention this main idea, and that’s what an introduction paragraph is meant to be for. This is a common mistake in many blogs out there. We try to get too many ideas across in one paragraph, sometimes even in one sentence! The key, as in all things in life-is to keep it simple. Simplicity means that readers won’t get confused about what your journal entry is actually about. Introduce your main general topic at the start, and use the subsequent paragraphs to discuss separate ideas that relate to this topic. Try to tie everything up in the concluding paragraph, your main argument and the reason why you’ve written in the first place.

Grammar and sentence construction are not easy systems to master, especially if you come from a school system that spent more time telling you about historical battles and quadratic equations than on how to read and write. This is a real problem. When we speak we can get messages across to others easily, but if we put these words down on paper, the writing just isn’t interesting and doesn’t connect with people’s curiosities and fascination. When you write you are not talking to a close friend. You can’t use slang and colloquialisms that only your local community can understand. The aim is to connect with all the people in the world, so let’s make it crystal clear and enjoyable to read.

Your computer has spelling and grammar checks, as well as access to a thesaurus. Use them, but remember that the machine can’t decipher all the intricacies of language. Language is a world in itself, and much of its territories are undiscovered by the masses. So, again keep it simple. Short, precise sentences with single ideas are great. Many words in the English language have the same meanings (synonyms). Use the thesaurus so you don’t repeat the same word over and over throughout the text. It keeps the story fresh and doesn’t turn the reader off. There’s nothing more boring than repetition. Using different words can be a lot of fun and a learning experience, just make sure you use a dictionary (also on the computer/Internet) to make absolute sure of the word’s definition.

Readability…Simplicity…Make your blog accessible by all people. You can even take into consideration that many readers will have learned English as a second language. As I’ve said in previous articles, keep to the point-don’t go on tangents. Stick with the article’s topic, and

definitely stay within the realms of your blog’s main area. If your blog is entitled "Jazz music", people who go there don’t want to hear about how your football team won on the weekend! Please be consistent. How irritating is it to visit a blog that hasn’t been written on in months or years?

I hope these little tips will help you on your quest to producing ‘good’ writing that brings new friends and acquaintances of similar outlooks into your world. If you want people to read, the aim is to produce an emotional reaction in your reader. Pretend you are writing to another form of yourself, if it were not readable, interesting and fun…would you stick around?

Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com

Last but not least, I want to tell and share with you the blog that I really enjoy to read is http://www.yoyooh.com. This blog is really suitable for us which is youth generation to search or update the information that we need.

2 comments:

  1. yes hope you will continue blogging> let me know if you change your url

    ReplyDelete
  2. DR DATin..i have continue blogging in the another blog..it is almost like a my life journal,my expression for something in my life..

    http://www.fairysangputera.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete