How Defensible is Writing as an Objective in Short‐Term Foreign Language Experiences

The overemphasis of writing in foreign language instruction deserves examination. Large segments of time are allotted to writing because, traditionally, grades for written work are often the only ones employed to evaluate achievement. The origins of these practices are to be found primarily in Luther's rejection of the oral tradition of the Church, and in his attempt to transmit the word of God as accurately as possible by returning to the original sources in his bible translation. Luther considered the salvation of the soul to be the most compelling objective of education. The subsequent coincidence of the founding of public schools, which later served as models for our own, and the ascendance to primacy of the written word, conceived the writing bias. As modern educators, we must attempt to de‐mythologize writing by scrutinizing the function of writing in society and in the schools. The majority of our students have neither the psychological nor the practical need to learn to write the foreign language. Speech must be promoted by reorganizing classroom activities around oral exercises and tests, making use of the cassette recorder. These practices will result in a greater sense of student achievement and a proportionate decrease in hostility toward foreign language study

Epistemology · Foreign language · Linguistics · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Sociology · Soul · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Linguistic Education and Pedagogy · Philosophy · Psychology · Second Language Learning and Teaching

• Perceived Writing Likes and Needs in Spanish and English as Foreign Languages

  Anthony Bruton, Anthony S Bruton et al.•Hispania•2010

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