SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO
TRƯỜNG THPT CHUYÊN LƯƠNG THẾ VINH
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SÁNG KIẾN KINH NGHIỆM

The necessity and usefulness of designing course
outlines for Basic Writing and Academic Writing for
gifted students at Luong The Vinh High School

Người thực hiện: BÙI NGỌC XINH
Lĩnh vực nghiên cứu:
Quản lý giáo dục : …………………………………………
Phương pháp dạy học bộ môn: Tiếng Anh
Phương pháp giáo dục : …………………………………..
Lĩnh vực khác:

…………………………………..

Sản phẩm đính kèm:
 Mô hình  Phần mềm

 Phim ảnh

 Hiện vật khác

Năm học : 2015-2016

1


to decrease students’ tense while listening, make them feel more
interested in listening and enrich their vocabulary
3. How to help gifted students find essay writing easy and how to help
them write more effectively
4. How to help gifted students write essays dealing with “Describing
People” more effectively
5. Helping gifted students gain benefits from extensive reading
2


Title

The necessity and usefulness of designing course
outlines for Basic Writing and Academic Writing for
gifted students at Luong The Vinh High School

3


Title: The necessity and usefulness of designing course outlines for Basic Writing
and Academic Writing for gifted students at Luong The Vinh High School
I./ INTRODUCTION
Besides having to study the text book designed by Ministry of Education, gifted students
at Luong The Vinh High school have to learn a great number of other items ( e.g.
practical grammar points, idioms, phrasal verbs, etc. ) and polish up on the four skills
(Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing). As a teacher, I realize that there is a must in
developing a course outline to help students achieve specific academic goals.
A course outline helps students know what they will learn, what they will obtain and
what they will have to do during the course, which enhances their collaborations with the
teacher.

instructors. It is an essential piece when designing any course. Writing it guides
the instructor’s development of the course.”
D ./ How to design a course outline:
According to McGill, “A course outline can be divided into 7 sections.”
1. General information
•

Number and title of course, number of credit

•

Name and title of the Instructor

•

Day, place and time of regular classes

•

•

Prerequisites - particular courses, specific knowledge or skills a student
should know before beginning the course (e.g., use of the computer, ability to
read architectural plans, etc.)
Calendar course description.

5


2. McGill Policy Statements


If appropriate, explain what the course is not about or what topics
will not be covered.

5. Instructional method
•

Provide a brief description of instructional approaches that will be used
during the course (e.g., lectures, seminars, laboratory or clinical activities,
group projects, etc.).

6


•

All instructors are strongly encouraged to conduct mid-course
evaluations. Advising students of mid-course evaluations ahead of time will
likely lead to more constructive feedback.

6. Course materials (Textbooks and teaching aids)
•

Specific information should be provided about required texts, including
title, author(s), edition number and where they can be purchased or
borrowed.

•

Additional materials should be noted if they are part of the required

are presented.
●

E /. The aim of the innovation:

7


- To let students know what they will learn and obtain at the course
- To teach gifted students some basic academic writing skills
- To help them write well and effectively
- To help them find essay writing easy
- To help them develop more confidence in their ability to write
- To help them show their skills in organising their ideas systematically

F./ The participants of the study

52 students of the two English classes (grade 11) of LTV high school were
chosen to take part in the innovation . The innovation was carried out in writing periods
of the two semesters of the school year.
The reason why the students of the two English classes (grade 11) were chosen as
the participants of the study were that:
-

They are gifted students.

-

They usually have to write essays.


different types of paragraphs namely definition, process analysis, descriptive, opinion,
narrative and paragraphs in an essay that students have to master after finishing the
course.
3. Learning Outcomes
Upon the successful completion of the course, students will be able to:
1 Write grammatically correct sentences without common mistakes related to sentence
. structures and punctuation;
2. Work individually or in groups and share ideas through collaborative activities;
3
Edit the texts in writing assignments;
.
4. Write various kinds of paragraphs under time pressure; and
5.

Take advantage of the writing process to write a complete paragraph with cohesiveness
and coherence.

4. Course Content
Outline of Topics to be covered
Period

Topics

1

- Course introduction

References

Home/Class

The Basics of

9, 10,11,

Sentence Construction

12, 13,14

a. Phrases

Teacher will
distribute a set
of copies of
materials on
Grammar.

- Noun phrases

Activities

- Prepositional phrases
- Verbal phrases
- Appositive phrases
- Exercises on Phrases
b. Clauses
- Independent clauses
- Dependent clauses : 3 kinds of
dependent clauses
c. Sentence Structures
- Simple sentences

Paragraph Structures
-What is a Paragraph?
- Example Paragraphs
-The Basic Elements of a Paragraph:
-Four Features of a Paragraph
17

Lesson 4 :
Developing Ideas for Writing a
Paragraph
Brainstorming

Teacher will
distribute a set
of copies of
materials.

Supplementary
Materials on
Grammar for
Further Practice on
Materials learned

Language Focus
18 ,19

Building Better Sentences
Lesson 5 :
Topic Sentences
-Features of a Good Topic Sentence

Additional exercises


TEST 2 : Paragraph Structures
25

(Elements of a paragraph)
Lesson 7 :
Definition Paragraphs
- What is a Definition Paragraph?
- How to write a good definition
paragraph

26

Timed Writing # 1:

27

Teacher’s feed back on

Teacher will
distribute a set
of copies of
materials.

Homework Writing
Assignment #1:
Creative Writing



Descriptive Paragraphs

distribute a set

-What is a Descriptive Paragraph

of copies of

- How to write a good Descriptive

materials

paragraph

-Supplementary
Materials on
Grammar for
Further Practice on
Materials learned
-Homework Writing
-Assignment # 3 :
Descriptive
Paragraph Writing

31

Teacher’s feed back on
Assignment #3



Paragraph
Teacher’s feed back on
Assignment #4
Lesson 11:

Teacher will

Narrative Paragraphs

distribute a set

-Assignment # 5 :

of copies of

Narrative Paragraph

materials

Writing

- What is a Narrative Paragraph?
- How to write a good Opinion
Paragraph
35

Teacher’s feed back on
Assignment #5


Organization
Final Test

5. Instructional method
Various methods are applied to to improve students’ knowledge, to promote students’
participation and collaboration in a supportive learning environment. Lectures

13


( activities that involve teacher-centred transmission models), discussions and taskbased activities ( student-centered constructivist models) will bring a variety of inputoutput procedures to reach the target of quality learning.

6. Course materials
Suggested Textbooks and Materials:
- Bailey,(2003). Academic Writing – A handbook for International Students- by Nelson
Thomas Ltd.
- Folse, K. S., Muchmore-Vokoun, A., & Solomon, E. V. (2010). Great writing 2: Great
paragraphs (3 edn). Heinle/Cengage Learning.
rd

- Folse, K. S.,Solomon E. V. & Palinkas B. S. (2008) Top 20 – Great grammar for great
writing (2 ed.). Heinle/Cengage Learning.
nd

- Boardman, A. C., & Frydemberg, J. (2002). Writing to Communicate (2 ed.),
nd

Longman.
- Hogue, A. (2001),. First Steps in Academic Writing, HCMC Publisher
- Oshima, A., & Hogue, A. (2002). Introduction to Academic Writing (2 ed.), McGrawnd

40%

30%

Below is a table of abbreviated letters teachers can use to point out mistakes when
marking students’ writing.
Symbol
Sp
VT
SV
Pl
Prep
WF
WW
WO
Punc
Pa
Frag
Art
C/U
SS

Meaning
Spelling
Verb tense
Sub-verb agreement
Plural
Preposition
Word form
Wrong word

to short essay structures;

No.

2. Help students to sharpen their ability to write essays effectively;
Acquaint students with the elements that affect the quality of a written product such
as grammar, vocabulary, organization as well as coherence and cohesiveness;
4. Give students many chances for practicing peer-editing;
3.

5. Develop students’ ability to respond in writing to materials read independently;
Improve students’ ability to generate language, synthesize and compile ideas from
6.
different materials.
3b . Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Understand and analyze authentic essays to improve the language and concepts and to

No.

16


enrich vocabulary needed for their own essays;
Know how to use vocabulary precisely and to produce a variety of sentence patterns /
2. structures in order to express ideas in acceptable and comprehensible academic
English;
3. Take advantage of the writing outlines to produce their own pieces of writing;

Review of previous knowledge –

distribute hand-

paragraphs, coherence, cohesion

outs for review

Lesson 1
Essay Structure

Teacher will

The Basics of Essay Structure

distribute a set of

- Introduction

copies of materials

*The basic purpose of the
introduction:
. How to produce General
Statement
. How to produce Thesis
Statement
- Body
What includes in the body of an


and variety of your grammar and
6

vocabulary
Lesson 3
Introduction to Different types

Teacher will

of essays

distribute a set of

- Descriptive Essays

copies of materials

- Comparison Essays
- Cause- effect Essays
- Classification Essays
- Argumentative Essays
- Expository Essays
7,8

- Narrative Essays
Lesson 4
Descriptive Essays

Teacher will


- Focus on Organization
- Making an outline

Teacher will

Essay outline 2

distribute a set of
copies of materials

Suggested topic: Fruits vs.
Vegetables

- Original Student
Essay 2 Suggested
topics :
- Public vs. Private
Transportation

- Connectives and transitional

-Go on vacation vs
Stay at home

phrases
- Language focus : comparatives,
Superlatives, and Parallel
Structures
12



causes of poor water quality for
many people around the world?
-Connectives and transitional
phrases
19


15

- Sample essays
Teacher’s feed back on Original
Student Essay 3

16 ,17

Lesson 7

Teacher will

Classification Essays

distribute a set of

- Organization

copies of materials

- Supporting details
- Brainstorming and outline

- Organization:

copies of materials

A General Plan for the Whole
Argumentative Essay
- Counterargument and
Refutation
- Outlining

- Original Student
Essay 5
Suggested topics :
Is there too much
pressure on

- Connectives and transitional

teenagers to go to

phrases

college?

- Words and Expressions to
Describe Some Basic Concepts
- Suggested topic :
Should cigarettes and other
tobacco products be outlawed.
21


Expository Essay.
- Exposition Texts for Study

Pretend you will live

Pretend that you are a traveler.

till 100 years of age.

Which country would you return

Describe what the

to?

world will be like

- Sample essays
Teacher’s feed back on Original
Student Essay 6

25, 26

Lesson 10

when you turn 100.

Narrative essays


TESTS

- Essay outline 7

Something

Skills

27

- Original Student
Essay 6
Suggested topic:

Suggested topic:

24

- Essay outline 6

different types of

21


essays

5. Instructional method
Various methods are applied to to improve students’ knowledge, to promote students’
participation and collaboration in a supportive learning environment. Lectures

Word choice, comprehensibility, sentence construction, grammar and mechanics

-Below is a table of abbreviated letters teachers can use to point out mistakes when
marking students’ writing.
Symbol
Sp
VT
SV
Pl
Prep
WF
WW
WO
Punc
Pa
Frag
Art
C/U
SS

Meaning
Spelling
Verb tense
Sub-verb agreement
Plural
Preposition
Word form
Wrong word
Word order
Punctuation

65%
what your teacher expects you to
learn during the course.
3. The course outline contains
information about the structure of 67 %
the course and its requirements.
4. The course outline is like a
roadmap with directions for
12 %
succeeding in the class
5. You gain more confidence in
56 %
writing

2
A

3
N

5%

4%

19 %

16 %

25 %


The writer of this piece of writing
24


Bùi Ngọc Xinh

VI. / REFERENCES
- Bailey, (2003). Academic Writing – A handbook for International Students
- Morley –Warner, T. 2000. Academic Writing is . . . . CREA Publications.
- McGill. CA, Teaching and Learning Services, Teaching McGill @/ Course
Preparation and Design
- Oshima, A. & Hogue, A. 1997. Introduction to Academic Writing. Addison
Wesley Longman.
- Insider Writing – 2006-2007 LinguaForum, Inc
- The

Course booklet. Teaching Reading and Writing. Regional

Centre Singapore.

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Language