Among the three approaches to developing writing skills which are currently popular in language teaching, the genre approach is gaining the most popularity as it can help students overcome these difficulties. While the process approach focuses on the writer and their actions, and the product approach focuses on the text itself, the genre approach focuses on the readers and what they expect from a specific type of text (Tribble, 1996) and hence creates more persuasive and more confident writers who produce more well-rounded texts.
When we adopt this approach, we shift the focus from more traditional features of writing, such as grammar, lexis, cohesive devices and punctuation, and draw attention instead to the purpose of the text; its intended audience and their expectations; the structure of the text; and sometimes less common elements such as typographical features and images. This way, our writing lessons become richer and more relevant to students because students walk away with a better understanding of how to produce an effective text which meets the purpose with which the reader will approach this text.
Stages of a writing lesson
Let’s look at the steps involved in a typical writing lesson within the genre approach by thinking about how we could teach students to write an Instagram post with personal reflections on a specific topic, such as going freelance (for adults) or choosing a future job (for teenage learners).
1. Introducing the genre
A traditional lesson would start with a lead-in in which students would be encouraged to talk about the topic of the lesson, i.e. choosing a job. In a genre-oriented writing lesson, the lead-in would be also focus on the genre, i.e. we could get our students to talk about how often they use Instagram, what they use it for, what posts they like and then narrow it down to asking them what they think of posts with personal reflections. Ideally, the teacher should already know that this topic is relevant to the students, possibly from a needs analysis done at the beginning of the course, or from observation.
In the next stage, we would show students some examples of Instagram posts with personal reflections on various topics. The students would read the posts and decide which of them they can relate to and why. Here it would be important to show the posts without any adaptations, to preserve all the features of the genre including layout and organization.
2. Analyzing examples
After we have received a personal response to the texts, we can dive into the actual work with the features of the genre. One of the main questions to ask here is the purpose of the text and what the reader would expect to see. In our example, the purpose of an Instagram post with personal reflections would most probably be to share an opinion on a subject and possibly to engage followers in a conversation; hence the reader would be expect to see elements such as a powerful visual, catchy details to respond to, and/or a controversial statement they could challenge. It’s always helpful if students are already familiar with the genre and can recall some of the characteristics.
However, . Here students can be encouraged to focus on elements such as the text structure, layout, organization, tone, content, grammar, vocabulary and cohesive devices.
For an Instagram post with personal reflections, this would include some of the following:
- an attractive photo which catches the attention of the followers
- an enthusiastic but contemplative tone of voice
- narration from the first person
- use of personal examples or a witty story
- an absence of formatting (bold font/italics are not possible on Instagram)
- use of capitals, or an absence thereof, depending on the desired effect
- use of emojis to liven up the post
- a maximum length of 2200 characters (between 315 and 500 words)
Note that the maximum length cannot be inferred by students, and this should be stated as part of the genre analysis, and that many Instagram posts are kept much shorter than 2200 characters to keep the reader’s attention.
Having the question What does a reader expect from this text? in mind helps students focus on the limitations suggested by a specific genre. For instance, students may be able to produce an Instagram post of 500 words, but it is unlikely that readers will read a post that long all the way to the end, and respond. This means that even if the post contains varied and accurate grammar and lexis, it will not achieve the communicative goal.
As teachers, we research these features before the lesson, and make sure we have a list of the ones we think are important so that we can help the students if necessary.
To conclude this stage, students are often given a handout which contains a list of features typical of this genre, with examples, sometimes highlighted and labeled in the sample text. This can then serve as a checklist for students to use when writing their own text of this genre.
3. Practice writing
Once the students have identified the key features and summarized them in a checklist, they can practice writing a text. This may involve writing a shorter piece, such as a paragraph, or producing a full text. When setting the task, it’s important to reinforce the purpose of the text and who it is being written for (in other words, the target reader), and choose several features which should be included. It’s important to prioritize here, because if we ask students to show too many features in one text, they will lose focus and their writing will be of a lower quality. Once students have produced the first draft, they will be able to look at it again and refine it, which is when we can ask them to focus on and add some more features.
4. Feedback and revision
Within the genre approach, a useful writing lesson will include the stage of feedback and an opportunity for students to refine their product based on this feedback. The importance of this stage can’t be overemphasized, as research shows that getting immediate feedback helps undergraduate students perform better on final exams (Chickering and Gamson, 1987). This is when the checklist we created at the analysis stage will come in handy.
Typically, students would read each other’s pieces and, instead of looking for mistakes in their peers’ texts, they would decide how well the features of the genre have been maintained. Students can be encouraged to include written comments on features which have been used well, as well as suggestions about how a text could be improved. In the genre we’re using as an example, students could comment on whether the beginning is catchy enough or whether the tone is enthusiastic, or they might suggest some lexical items to liven up the post.
While this is happening, the teacher can look at the students’ work and give their comments too. The teacher can, of course, correct some errors. However, this correction should be limited to the linguistic points which have been taught on the course or those which have significant impact on communication, and feedback on language should not outweigh feedback on features of the genre.
At the end of this stage, students take some time to rewrite their pieces into the final version.
5. Publication and sharing
When students are ready with their final product, they can share it with the teacher, their peers, and sometimes a wider audience if possible. In our example, students could publish their posts on their Instagram account and possibly get some responses from their followers. If students are reluctant to share the post on their own social media, the teacher could create a class Instagram page and publish posts produced by the class there. Students could then comment on each other’s posts. This will encourage students to read and respond to the primary communicative purpose of the text, rather than seeing the text only as a piece of class work.
A final note on the genre approach
While a genre-based writing lesson may look like one which requires a lot of time and effort, it can help us make learning richer and more valuable. This can be more effectively achieved if we adopt the genre approach in a series of lessons or even for the whole course, because it is crucial to expose students to a variety of genres rather than using one genre (e.g. articles or essays) to practice writing on different topics. With more advanced groups, we can get students to compare different genres, their purposes and how those purposes dictate the features, which, in turn, makes students more reflective and more autonomous learners.
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Let’s make ‘Skills Teaching’ at the core of everything we do
English Book Education, Pearson-ის გამომცელობასთან ერთად გიხდით მადლობას მობრძანებისთვის.
ჩვენთვის ეს დღე იყო განსაკუთრებული რადგან, ვისაუბრეთ, დავგეგმეთ და დავათვაიერეთ ახალი რესურსები თუ მასალები
Below you can see, download and view the presentations, information and contact details.
Conference Partners:
Unique Learning offers a wide range of universities and programmes for those wishing to study abroad.
Sales Team
Zviad Dekanoidze
Vice President of Business Development
E-mail: z.dekanoidze@englishbook.ge
Mobile: +995 577 34 65 89
Direct Line: (+995 32) 200 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Dighomi , Tbilisi.
Demetre Magradze
Senior Sales Manager
E-mail:d.magradze@englishbook.co.uk
Mobile: +995 511 13 13 00
Direct Line: (+995 32) 200 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Dighomi , Tbilisi.
Mariami Lezhava
Sales Officer
E-mail: m.lezhava@englishbookeducation.com
Mobile: (+995 574) 199 199
Direct Line: 0322 00 12 44 Ext. 1060
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Digomi. Tbilisi, Georgia
Nini Sikharulidze
Sales Representative
LTD “English Book Education”
E-mail: n.sikharulidze@englishbookeducation.com
Mobile: (+995 579) 000 190
Direct Line: 0322 00 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Digomi. Tbilisi, Georgia
After two long years we are coming back! Let’s take language learning to the next level, together.
Attended by approximately 200 ELT professionals from more than 5 countries.
Below you can see, download and view the presentations, information and contact details.
Conference Partners:
Unique Learning offers a wide range of universities and programmes for those wishing to study abroad.
English Book Education conducted TOEFL Olympiad at 51st State School
We had over 300 Candidates
ETS TOEFL
Assess the English-language skills needed to succeed in the Global Workplace
Pipplet
No scheduling needed
40+ languages available
CEFR mapped scores
results within 24 hours human examiners
Versant Online Test
Speaking: Ensure your new hires and students can be easily understood when they communicate with customers, co-workers or other students.
Listening: Check that job candidates and students can understand what they are hearing on the phone with customers, or in class during a lecture.
Reading: Confirm that staff and students understand what they are reading, whether it be customer or co-worker emails, lecture notes or assignments.
Writing: Evaluate how clearly and effectively an employee can write emails or provide real-time chat support to customers.
Level Test
Place new students at the right level, fast.
The Pearson English Level Test removes the time, stress and risk of human error involved in first day testing. It gives you the accurate, at-a-glance data you need to understand your students’ needs, both individually and as a group – so you can start supporting them and target your teaching right away.
With just a few basic set-up requirements, the Level Test can even be taken from home.
Sales Team
Zviad Dekanoidze
Vice President of Business Development
E-mail: z.dekanoidze@englishbook.ge
Mobile: +995 577 34 65 89
Direct Line: (+995 32) 200 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Dighomi , Tbilisi.
Demetre Magradze
Senior Sales Manager
E-mail:d.magradze@englishbook.co.uk
Mobile: +995 511 13 13 00
Direct Line: (+995 32) 200 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Dighomi , Tbilisi.
Mariami Lezhava
Sales Officer
E-mail: m.lezhava@englishbookeducation.com
Mobile: (+995 574) 199 199
Direct Line: 0322 00 12 44 Ext. 1060
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Digomi. Tbilisi, Georgia
Nini Sikharulidze
Sales Representative
LTD “English Book Education”
E-mail: n.sikharulidze@englishbookeducation.com
Mobile: (+995 579) 000 190
Direct Line: 0322 00 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Digomi. Tbilisi, Georgia
Conference Gallery | 2023
After two long years we are coming back! Let’s take language learning to the next level, together.
Attended by approximately 200 ELT professionals from more than 5 countries.
Below you can see, download and view the presentations, information and contact details.
Conference Partners:
Unique Learning offers a wide range of universities and programmes for those wishing to study abroad.
English Book Education conducted TOEFL Olympiad at 51st State School
We had over 300 Candidates
ETS TOEFL
Sales Team
Zviad Dekanoidze
Vice President of Business Development
E-mail: z.dekanoidze@englishbook.ge
Mobile: +995 577 34 65 89
Direct Line: (+995 32) 200 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Dighomi , Tbilisi.
Demetre Magradze
Senior Sales Manager
E-mail:d.magradze@englishbook.co.uk
Mobile: +995 511 13 13 00
Direct Line: (+995 32) 200 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Dighomi , Tbilisi.
Mariami Lezhava
Sales Officer
E-mail: m.lezhava@englishbookeducation.com
Mobile: (+995 574) 199 199
Direct Line: 0322 00 12 44 Ext. 1060
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Digomi. Tbilisi, Georgia
Nini Sikharulidze
Sales Representative
LTD “English Book Education”
E-mail: n.sikharulidze@englishbookeducation.com
Mobile: (+995 579) 000 190
Direct Line: 0322 00 12 44
Website: www.englishbookeducation.co.uk
Address: #92 Vepkhistkaosani Street, 3 m/r, Didi Digomi. Tbilisi, Georgia
Conference Gallery | 2023
English Book Education is pleased to announce Pearson Live Webinar Series. Join to Pearson’s experts in this upcoming webinar series to discover tips and advice that will support your learners and help their confidence grow.
Tuesday 20 September; Tbilisi Time 19:00;
Being Your True Self in English: Hear how to bring personality and personalisation to English language learning so your learners can truly be themselves in English.
Wednesday 21 September; Tbilisi Time: 19:00;
Boost Your Confidence Teaching STEAM: Explore the ways you can combine English language learning with STEAM teaching and confidently grow your learners’ skills set.
Thursday 22 September; Tbilisi Time: 19:00;
Learning Happens Best When…: Discover the science behind designing successful learning experiences that have confidence-building at their core.
Friday 23 September: Tbilisi Time: 19:00;
The Psychology of Learning Supported by the GSE: Find out how The Global Scale of English (GSE) helps set learners up for success on a confident and life-long learning journey.
All Webinars will be recorded so you can watch them when its suits you!
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English Book Education is pleased to announce Back to School Live Events from Macmillan Education.
This year Macmillan Education is hosting short and practical sessions live on Facebook. Each 20-minute session will look one of the key challenges, such as lost learning or re-building face-to-face connections.
Re-building Connections to face-to-face
Back to face-to-face classes? This webinar will explore ways to promote cohesion in your classes, between teacher and students and amongst the students themselves, with ideas for strengthening group dynamics.
Wednesday, 31 August, Tbilisi Time: 17:00
About the speaker
Jonathan Hadley has worked in English Language Teaching for over 25 years as an English teacher, teacher trainer and curriculum/materials writer.
Helping Learners Manage Pressure
In this short talk we’re going to explore some practical tips and techniques for helping learners identify and manage pressure and stress in a learning environment.
Friday, 2nd September, Tbilisi Time: 17:00
About the speaker
Kateryna Protsenko has been working in ELT for almost 9 years. She’s taught and trained teachers in Ukraine, Turkey, Lebanon and Thailand, and is now working as a Director of Academic and Teacher Training Departments at International Language Centre in Kyiv.
Planning for Hybrid
We will look at lesson planning tips for delivering hybrid lessons. This is for teachers teaching hybrid every day or using hybrid as an emergency measure.
Monday 5th September, Tbilisi Time: 17:00
About the speaker
Russell Stannard is the winner of 3 educational awards including the Times Higher ‘Outstanding Initiative in Technology’ and the British Council ‘ELTons Innovation Award’. Russell writes regular columns in the English Teaching Professional and has published widely in the area of feedback, collaboration and the use of screen capture.
A Letter To My Future Self
We’ll look at how teachers and both their younger and older students can set reading and writing goals for themselves for the coming school year by writing a simple letter.
Wednesday, 7th September, Tbilisi Time: 17:00
About the speaker
Emma Heyderman has been involved in ELT since 1989 as a teacher, teacher trainer, and academic director, most recently for International House, San Sebastián. She runs workshops for local teachers and is a regular speaker at national and international events.
English Book Education is pleased to announce Oxford University Press orientation and onboarding webinar for Insight Second Edition.
This online session will help you get the new school year off to a flying start. Simply register below to receive your link to participate.
Get started with Insight Second Edition Methodology;
Join us on 14 September and learn more about how to use Insight Second Edition’s unique methodology – taking rich, meaningful content to keep your students motivated and involved.
Wednesday, 14 September
17:00 Tbilisi Time
We look forward to seeing you there and starting the school year together!
#Backtoschool2022
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სასწავლო წლის პირველი დღე მრავალფეროვან ემოციებთან ასოცირდება. მოსწავლეები თუ მათი პედაგოგები 3- თვიანი დასვენების შემდეგ სასკოლო რეჟიმს უბრუნდებიან. იმისთვის, რომ სკოლის პირველი დღე ნაკლებად დამღლელი და მეტად სახალისო იყოს, გიზიარებთ თვქენი საკლასო გაკვეთილებისთვის 5 აქტივობას;
Beach Ball Questions
ეს აქტივობა არაჩვეულებრივია გონებისა და სხეულის გასავარჯიშებლად. ამ აქტივობისათვის, მოსწავლეები დააყენეთ წრეზე, ის მოსწავლე, რომელიც ბურთს დაიჭერს, უპასუხებს იმ შეკითხვას, რომელზეც მისი ცერა თითები მოხვდება. შეკითხვების თემატიკა დამოკიდებულია თქვენს არჩევანზე, შესაძლოა შეკითხვები იყოს: როგორ გაატარე ზაფხული? რომელი წიგნი წაიკითხე? ან რა ფილმს უყურე? ეს აქტივობა დაგეხმარებათ ყველა მოსწავლე თანაბრად ჩართოთ საგაკვეთილო პროცესში.
Holiday Memories
აღნიშნული აქტივობა თქვენი მოსწავლეების მეტყველების უნარს გაავარჯიშებს და უკვე ნასწავლი ლექსიკური ერთეულების გამეორების საშუალებაც იქნება. სთხოვეთ თითოეულ მოსწავლეს საზაფხულო არდადეგების პერიოდიდან გაიხსენონ 3 ყველაზე დასამახსოვრებელი ფაქტი და მათ შესახებ თანაკლასელებს მოუთხრონ. აღნიშნული აქტივობის ჩატარება შესაძლებელია, როგორც ინდივიდუალურად, ისე წყვილებში.
I Wish My Teacher Knew…
ეს აქტივობა მეტყველებისა და წრითი უნარების გაუმჯობესებისთვის არის. მოსწავლეებს დაურიგეთ ფერადი ფურცლები და სთხოვეთ დაწერონ ის, რაც სურთ რომ იცოდეთ მათ შესახებ. გარდა იმისა, რომ ეს აქტივობა წერით უნარსა და ლექსიკას ავარჯიშებს, პედაგოგი, უფრო კარგად ეცნობა საკუთარ მოსწავლეებს, მათ ინტერესებსა და სურვილებს.
All About Me: “I..”
მეტად სახალისო აქტივობაა “All about me”, რომელსაც სკოლის პირველ დღეს მასწავლებლები აქტიურად იყენებენ. აღნიშნული აქტივობა ახალი მოსწავლეების გაცნობისა და მათთან დაახლოების საშუალებას იძლევა, ასევე, ამ აქტივობით შეგიძლიათ მათი ინგლისური ენის დონისა და სალაპარაკო უნარის განსაზღვრა.
Set Goal
Set Goal ახალი სასწავლო წლის დაგეგმვისა და განხორციელებისთვის ერთ-ერთი აუცილებელი აქტივობაა. მოსწავლეებს სთხოვეთ ფერადი ქაღალდებისგან დაამზადონ ისეთი თოჯინები, როგორებიც ფოტოზეა გამოსახული. ამის შემდეგ ფურცელზე ჩამოწერონ ის მიზნები, რომლებიც უნდა განახორციელონ მიმდინარე სასწავლო წელს და ეს ფურცლები მოათავსონ თოჯინზე. გააკარით თითოეული მოსწავლის თოჯინა საკლასო ოთახის კედელზე, რათა მთელი წლის განმავლობაში ყველას ახსოვდეს საკუთარი მიზანი.
Summer is almost over, so Pearson is back with Pearson Educational Forum. If you liked the spring 2022 edition, we are sure you will like the autumn one even more!
Join us on 24-25 August and discover easy and practical ways of making your students confident in English and life.
Latest trends in ELT psychology
Practical ideas to take away to the classroom
Integrated approach to teaching and learning
24 August – 12:00 Tbilisi Time
25 August – – 12:00 Tbilisi Time
The attendance is free of charge.
All participants will receive a certificate of attendance and a digital conference pack.
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English Book Education, Macmillan Education-თან თანამშრომლობის ფარგლებში, იწყებს ვიდეოკონკურსს: Summer Reading Challenge;
22 ივნისიდან 1 თვის განმავლობაში ჩაერთეთ საზაფხულო გამოწვევაში, მოსწავლესთნ ერთად შეარჩიეთ საკითხავი ლიტერატურა და შექმენით წიგნის ახალი დასასრული.
Summer Reading Challenge-ში მონაწილეობა შეუძლიათ ინგლისური ენის პედაგოგებსა და მათ მოსწავლეებს, რომლებსაც მხატვრული ლიტერატურის კითხვა უყვართ და მზად არიან, ცოტა ხნით თვითონ გახდნენ ავტორები.
როგორ ჩავერთოთ გამოწვევაში?
სად შევიძინოთ საკითხავი ლიტერატურა?
როგორ შეფასდება ნამუშევრები?
ამ და სხვა დეტალებზე ინფორმაციისთვის, ეწვიეთ ჩვენს ვებგვერდს:
ვიდეოკონკურსში მონაწილეობისთვის, პედაგოგმა უნდა აირჩიოს ჩვენ მიერ შემოთავაზებული ადაპტირებული ინგლისურენოვანი ლიტერატურა და წააკითხოს თავის მოსწავლეს, მოსწავლესთან ერთად მოიფიქროს წაკითხული ტექსტის ალტერნატიული დასასრული, რომელსაც ვიდეოს სახით მოგვითხრობს მოსწავლე ინგლისურ ენაზე;
ვიდეოკონკურსში მონაწილეობის მიღება შეუძლიათ ინგლისური ენის პედაგოგებსა და მათ მოსწავლეებს (ასაკი არ არის შეზღუდული) მთელი საქართველოს მასშტაბით; ვიდეო შეგიძლიათ გადაიღოთ თქვენთვის მოსახერხებელი ნებისმიერი მოწყობილობით.
კონკურსის წესების დეტალურად სანახავად მიჰყევით ბმულს:
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