Week 8: Self-Correction in Writing

Read article: Online Collaborative Writing Using Wikis TESL-TEFL (Paul Sze)

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Karla Diaz

I did not know the term “Wiki” when I started reading this article. It is a fantastic idea to use another tool to improve our writing skill. It is difficult to motivate students to write about a specific topic and even more if it is about self-correcting. The idea of using a certain program where all students can share their ideas and fix the mistakes by themselves will definitely enhance the writing skill. It was new to me conceiving the idea of writing a paragraph in groups where we have been taught that this task is always done individually. Like a typical expression says: Two heads think better than one. Having a task where groups need to think critically about the proper ideas, it will increase the motivation of students, especially if they realize that anybody can read their written work.

ESL learners use wiki tools not only to improve writing skill but build community. It is true that the learning process took place individually, but I consider necessary to share and ask for help to our classmates. Pair work and group works are a good source of information and self-correction.  The teacher role is always to control what students write and how is the manner they edit mistakes. I think that these practices help to improve your confidence when you write, because it allows that students think better before writing.