microsoft powerpoint - thieu nang - session 1

7/27/2019 Microsoft PowerPoint - Thieu Nang - Session 1

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ENGLISH WRITINGhiu nn

Session 1

All ModulesInstructor: H L V

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OVERVIEW

Language of instruction Warm-up activities The linking issue

Contrastive Rhetoric Course Overview

Theoretical component Application component

Course benefits & limitations vs. test preparation courses

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LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION

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WARM-UP 1

How many different meanings does thefollowing sentence have?

The boy saw a man with a telescope.

Which version came to your mind first?

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WARM-UP 2

Watch a short clip (taken from That '70 show) Scene: a high school coffee shop

Context: When confronted by a customercomplaining about the service, Frank, thebartender, says that being a Vietnam war veteran,

he does not think its worth his while serving foodto teenagers.

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THE LINKING ISSUE

Why this clip is funny? I did not lose a leg in Vietnam, so that I could serve hot

dogs to teenagers.vs.

I did not lose a leg in Vietnam. the linking issue

a sentence or clauses meaning should be determined fromthe context (i.e. its relations to other sentences/clauses)rather than on its own

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THE LINKING ISSUE

The principal unit for language learning istraditionally the sentence. Non-native speakers may be uncomfortable with English

writing if they are not taught to look at the text as a whole orat those features that provide links between sentences in

ex

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THE LINKING ISSUE

Different languages may link sentences or ideas indifferent ways

An armed robber shot the sister of the actor who was onthe balcony

Who was on the balcony? The actor or the sister? English speakers: tend to link who was on the balcony witht e actor

Spanish speakers: tend to link who was on the balcony withthe sister

Try to avoid linking ambiguities in your writing L2 writing problems are not necessarily due to vocabulary

and grammar limitations

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FUN ACTIVITY

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CONCEPTS OF CONTRASTIVERHETORIC

Contrastive rhetoric (CR): examines differences andsimilarities in writing across languages Kaplans seminal article (will be discussed in Session 3)

Discuss the anecdotal examples Spanish speakers tendency of over-explaining.

The going to the post office situation

Do all these have anything to do with linking?

Food for thought: do Vietnamese behave the same?

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Read a short English text composed by a Vietnamese. What doyou think? Topic: If you could change one important thing about your

hometown, what would you change?

I was born in Gia Lam a small town outside Ha Noi. It always

revives many fond memories of my childhood whenever I come back.

FUN ACTIVITY

to make it better, I will dedicate a large area of land to building greenparks.

Irrelevancy: It always revives many fond memories of mychildhood whenever I come back.

Does this really contribute to the point the author is trying tomake?

Why do you think the author includes it?

When should it be relevant?

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COURSE OVERVIEW

A CR-based course, focusing on English writing,especially academic writing Why academic and not freestyle writing?

Goal: Help Vietnamese learners notice and reduce thea between their own En lish writin and that ofnative speakers.

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FOUR-STEP LEARNING

Awareness Raising Learn about possible L2 writing problems

that are not grammar related

structure (Thiu Nng) voca u ary p c

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FOUR-STEP LEARNING

Discovery Explore important differences in rhetorical structure

between Vietnamese and English Essay comparison

Learn how to analyze the structure of an essay xam ne un es ra e n uences e namese may ave

on the way Vietnamese students write in English

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FOUR-STEP LEARNING

Revision Apply revision techniques Work on a solution for problems of your own Participate in self- and peer-review activities

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A SAMPLE OF REVISION EXERCISES

Why the use of however in the following passage isproblematic? Matt, I know that you have a lot of experience in traveling. However, I am

so disappointed because you behaved in ways that make me feel as ifyou were a child, got angry when cheated by some street vendors.

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FOUR-STEP LEARNING

Application structure translation (Vietnamese to English) argumentative genre (TOEFL/IELTS/GMAT/GRE

essays)

application for overseas studying

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FUN ACTIVITY

watch a video clip and see how meaning changes whenlinking changes

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MODULE 1: ENGLISH RHETORIC

The manner a paragraph is organized across sentenceboundaries

Theme-Rheme concepts

Linking and thematic progression (TP)

6 transition patterns and 3 connection types

Conjunction relationships 10 basic relations

other relations

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MODULE 1: ENGLISH RHETORIC

Thematic progression improvement techniques Linear idea development

Manner of exemplification

Theme-Rheme re-arrangement

Employment of cohesive devices

linking scope

linking distance

linking explicitness

Critical thinking, idea linking & linear development important in tackling GMAT/GRE verbal parts

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MODULE 2: STRUCTURE TRANSLATION

Vietnamese-English translation tasks Why translation? How does it help with your English writing?

How translation exercises in Thieu Nang differ from those in

structure-focused vs. vocabulary-focused

Learn how to detect problems in terms of idea developmentand rhetorical structures

Entrance test solutions?

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A sample task: What would be a problem in terms ofstructure when you translate the following Vietnamesetext into English?

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Another sample task: What would be a problem interms of structure when you translate the followingVietnamese text into English?

LeanTek s cng doanh nghip xy dng nhng tng phong

ca sn phm, doanh nghip Bn, ng thi to c s hng thvi nhm i tng ca doanh nghip Bn. Kt ni thnh cng snphm & dch v ca doanh nghip Bn ti khch hng mc tiuhm nay v mai sau. Cch lm ca LeanTek l: Kinh nghim v s

hiu bit su sc sn phm, ngnh ngh kinh doanh ca doanhnghip; kin thc v kinh nghim chuyn mn ca chng ti tronglnh vc PR l s kt hp nht qun xy dng nhng chinlc, gii php cho ring doanh nghip ca Bn.

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Why argumentative writing? A core text type in (or block building for)

academic writing tested by TOEFL/IELTS/GMAT/GRE writing tasks

problematic both technically and culturally forVietnamese learners

MODULE 3: ARGUMENTATIVE GENRE

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What does argumentative writing entail? structure of argument (claim-support-warrant-qualification-

rebuttal) important in tackling GRE/GMAT argument essays

writer intentionality

audience awareness


watch a sample of two-way conversation. Should we do it?

argument validity and logical errors argument fallacies

claim qualification and rebuttal strategiesAppraisal resources

differences between TOEFL/IELTS vs. GMAT/GRE essays interms of argument skills

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Modal verbs, e.g. would, could, should, must Why modal verbs?

heavily used in academic writing, especially argumentativegenre, to qualify your claims

basic meaning (social world) vs. extended meaning (logicalworld)

incorrectly used and underused by Vietnamese learners


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Modal verbs Could I borrow you pen?

Yes, you can v. Yes you could What is the non-tense-related difference?

Youve heard someone knocking at the door. Youdont know for sure but you think that is Nam. What


s ou you say Itcouldbe Nam? Itshouldbe Nam? Itwouldbe Nam?

Why the cognitive method of teaching modals? the ineffectiveness of the traditional method

Hanu modal verb experiments

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Prepare application for studying abroad Resume (CV) Personal statement (PS)/Statement of Purpose (SOP) Letters of recommendation (LORs) Writing sample (e.g. research proposal) Application package

MODULE 4: APPLICATION PREPARATION

Professor contact Scholarship interview

Think about a specific scenario self-assessment template (session 2)

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Beginning of a lesson End of a lesson

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FUN ACTIVITIES

A sample of video-based activities Teamwork: read the following dialogue and guess the minimum

number of people involved. Write down your response in a pieceof paper. Youll earn 2 points if you get it right.

I apologize for that. To you, not you. I thought we were

friends. Again, not you and me. Me and him. Anyway, have an ce ay. ou. o you. or you.

Construct a scenario in which the dialogue makessense. Iapologize for that. To you, notyou. Ithoughtwe were

friends. Again, notyou andme. Me andhim. Anyway, have anice day. You. Notyou. Noryou.

Watch the solutionWhat is the point of this activity?

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FUN ACTIVITIES

Team competitions Class Solidarity Day Other activities

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FUN ACTIVITIES

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FUN ACTIVITIES

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THIEU NANG VS. TEST PREPARATION CLASSES

Advantages Non-template-based

Long-term goal seeking

Problem-oriented

Full of fun

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COURSE LIMITATIONS

This is NOT a full writing class. It does NOT focus on basic English grammarin writing

It is NOT a class specifically about composing TOEFL/IELTS/GRE/GMATessays but it does focus on the same underlying skills tested by standardized tests

It is a BIG class

NOT man chances for full essa com osition ractices You may want to take the Thieu Nang Practicum class

NO simplified materials: Unless you are an advanced learner, you will encounter tons of new lexical items

(especially in readings and Module 2) to simulate the ESL learning environment

abroad It may take some time for you to get it.

Will you have yourEureka moment?

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HOMEWORK

Read the piece on Blog vs. Academic writing

Read two given samples of academic writing. Tip: you should start with Stephen Krashens article first.

compare them in terms of target audience

vocabulary choice

level of difficulty

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FINAL WORDS

You will Loveeee it

You will Laugh

You will Learn

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LAST LAUGH

Watch a short comedy. Pay close attention to the following dialogue.What caused the misunderstanding?

Sissy guy: I'm here to buy a dress to bury Crystal in.Woman: I think maybe you should wear men's clothes for that.

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microsoft powerpoint - thieu nang - session 1

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