Combining brainstorming and modelling to improve students writing skill

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES ********* PHẠM THỊ NGỌC BÍCH BẢN TĨM TẮT LUẬN VĂN COMBINING BRAINSTORMING AND MODELLING TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILL: AN ACTION RESEARCH AT PHU THO CENTRE FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INFORMATICS (Nghiên cứu hành động việc kết hợp hoạt động tìm ý với viết mẫu nhằm nâng cao kỹ viết tiếng Anh cho học viên Trung tâm Ngoại ngữ - Tin học Phú Thọ) M.A MINOR THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60.14.10 Hanoi – 2011 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES ********* PHẠM THỊ NGỌC BÍCH BẢN TĨM TẮT LUẬN VĂN COMBINING BRAINSTORMING AND MODELLING TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILL: AN ACTION RESEARCH AT PHU THO CENTRE FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INFORMATICS (Nghiên cứu hành động việc kết hợp hoạt động tìm ý với viết mẫu nhằm nâng cao kỹ viết tiếng Anh cho học viên Trung tâm Ngoại ngữ - Tin học Phú Thọ) M.A MINOR THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60.14.10 Supervisor: Dr NGUYỄN HUY KỶ Hanoi – 2011 iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration………………………………………………………………………………………i Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………………… ii Abstract……………………………………………………………………………… .iii Table of contents……………………………………………………………………………….iv List of abbreviations………………………………………………………………… vii List of figures, tables and charts…………………………………………………… .viii PART A: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………1 Rationale…………………………………………………………………………………… Objectives of the study……………………………………………………………………….2 Research questions………………………………………………………………… .2 Scope of the study………………………………………………………………………… Method of the study………………………………………………………………………….2 Significance of the study…………………………………………………………………… Design of the study………………………………………………………………… PART B: DEVELOPMENT………………………………………………………………….4 CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW……………………………………………………….4 1.1 Definitions of writing…………………………………………………………… 1.2 The role of writing in language teaching and learning…………………………………….4 1.3 Approaches to teaching writing……………………………………………………… 1.3.1 Product approach……………………………………………………………………6 1.3.2 Process approach…………………………………………………………………….7 1.4 The pre-writing stage ………………………………………………………………….10 1.4.1 Definition………………………………………………………………………… 10 1.4.2 Types of pre-writing techniques………………………………………………… 10 1.4.2.1 Brainstorming…………………………………………………………… 11 1.4.2.1.1 Definition……………………………………………………….11 1.4.2.1.2 Rules of brainstorming……………………………………… 12 v 1.4.2.2 Modelling………………………………………………………………….12 1.4.2.2.1 Definition…………………………………………………… 12 1.4.2.2.2 Rules of modelling…………………………………… 13 1.4.2.2.3 Some arguments against modelling………………………… 13 1.5 Related studies and fitness of the present study into the field……………………………14 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY…………………………………………………………….16 2.1 Rationale for the use of an action research……………………………………………….16 2.2 The context of the study………………………………………………………… 18 2.2.1 An introduction of Phu Tho Centre for Foreign Languages and Informatics………18 2.2.2 The English Language Teacher Group…………………………………………… 18 2.2.3 The writing program for the English supplementary training course at PTCFI……19 2.2.4 Participants…………………………………………………………………………19 2.3 Action research procedures……………………………………………………………….19 2.4 Data collection……………………………………………………………………………22 2.4.1 Instruments for data collection…………………………………………… .22 2.4.1.1 Pre-test and post-test……………………………………………………… 22 2.4.1.2 Pre- and post- questionnaires……………………………………………….23 2.4.1.3 A collection of students’ writing……………………………………………23 2.4.2 Data collection procedures………………………………………………………….23 CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS…………………………………… 25 3.1 Data collected before the action plan implementation………………………………… 25 3.1.1 The results of pre-test……………………………………………………………….25 3.1.2 The results of pre- questionnaire………………………………………………… 26 3.2 Data collected from analysis of students’ writing during the action plan implementation…………………………………………………………………… 30 3.3 Data collected after the action plan implementation…………………………… .31 3.3.1 The results of post-test…………………………………………………….…… 31 3.3.2 The results of post-questionnaire………………………………………………….32 3.4 Action research evaluation……………………………………………………………… 35 vi 3.5 Some major findings and discussions………………………………………………… 36 PART C: CONCLUSION………………………………………………………………… 39 Recapitulation …………………………………………………………………………… 39 Implications for classroom practice……………………………………………………… 40 Limitations of the study…………………………………………………………………….40 Suggestions for further studies…………………………………………………………… 41 REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………… 42 APPENDICES…………………………………………………………………………………I vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS PTCFI: Phu Tho Centre for Foreign Languages and Informatics EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESL: English as a Second Language Ss: Students viii LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND CHARTS Figure 1: Action research cycle Table 1: Students’ writing performance in pre-test Table 2: Students’ attitudes towards writing and their interests in writing lessons Table 3: Students’ writing habits Table 4: Students’ difficulties in writing lessons Table 5: Students’ writing performance from Unit to Unit 12 Table 6: Students’ writing performance in post-test Table 7: Students’ attitudes towards writing and their interests in writing lessons Table 8: Students’ writing habits Table 9: Students’ opinions about the combination of brainstorming and modelling activities Chart 1: Students’ writing performance at average to excellent level from pre-test to post-test via the action plan implementation (Pre-test, Unit 8, Unit 9, Unit 10, Unit 11, Unit 12 and post-test) PART A: INTRODUCTION Rationale Nowadays, the goal of teaching and learning foreign languages in general and English in particular is providing learners with the communicative competence To acquire the communicative competence, four language skills: reading, speaking, listening and writing need to be officially taught at any universities, colleges and schools, among which writing skill is very important because it is one of the two productive skills It is also because of the fact that besides speaking, people frequently have to communicate with each other in writing Moreover, writing serves as an aid to learning “First, writing reinforces the grammatical structures, idioms, and vocabulary that we have been teaching our students Second, when our students write, they also have a chance to be adventurous with the language, to go beyond what they have just learned to say, to take risks Third, when they write, they necessarily become very involved with the new language; the effort to express ideas and the constant use of eyes, hand, and brain is a unique way to reinforce learning As writers struggle with what to put down next or how to put it down on paper, they often discover something new to write or a new way of expressing their idea They discover a real need for finding the right word and the right sentence The close relationship between writing and thinking makes writing a valuable part of any language course” (Raimes, 1983: 3) Actually, because of the above mentioned reasons, writing is important for any language course with no exception for language courses at Phu Tho Centre for Foreign Languages and Informatics However, writing skill poses great problems for the students at the centre Particularly, students recognize “the characterization of writing periods as times of sighing, pencil-chewing, foot-shuffling agony” (Hedge, 1988: 5) They find it difficult to generate ideas and organize ideas in a logical sequence but “ideas should arguably be seen as the most important aspect of writing” (Ur, 1996: 163) This fact has inspired the researcher to find out the way to help them overcome difficulties in generating and organizing ideas when writing in English In this regard, brainstorming and modelling are possibly effective activities which provide learners with ideas in writing Thus, the author has conducted a research on combining brainstorming and modelling with a view to helping the students improve their writing skill 2 Objectives of the study This study is designed to improve the students’ writing skill by combining brainstorming and modelling Thus, it has two objectives: - Exploring the possible reasons for students’ weak writing competence - Justifying the effects of the combination of brainstorming and modelling on students’ writing skill Research questions In order to achieve the objectives mentioned above, the study seeks to answer three following questions: What are the reasons that lead to students’ weak writing competence? How does the combination of brainstorming and modelling affect students’ writing skill at PTCFI? What are the students’ opinions about the combination of brainstorming and modelling? Scope of the study The research was carried out in an English supplementary training class with 30 students at Phu Tho Centre for Foreign Languages and Informatics Regarding its scope, the research focused on justifying the effects of the combination of brainstorming and modelling at the pre-writing stage on the students’ writing performance in terms of content, organization, vocabulary, language use and mechanics Method of the study The method employed in this study is an action research, with the use of a number of instruments, namely pre-questionnaire, post-questionnaire, pre-test, post-test and a collection of students’ writing Action research has proved to be the best choice for this study because the study has the aim of improving the students’ writing skill within a certain context Significance of the study Being one of the two productive skills, writing plays an important role in language teaching and learning Nevertheless, how to teach and learn writing effectively often poses great problems to both teachers and students The study is carried out in terms of both theory and practice with the hope that teachers can improve their teaching methods and students can adjust their ways of learning this skill to have better results Design of the study The study is composed of three parts Part A is the introduction in which the rationale, the objectives, the scope, the method, the significance and the design of study are presented Part B consists of three chapters Chapter is the literature review In this chapter, the literature on brainstorming and modelling techniques as well as on writing English as a second or foreign language is reviewed Chapter presents the methodology in which the information about action research, the context of the study, participants, research procedures and data collection is provided Chapter deals with the results and discussions of the study Part C is the conclusion which presents the major findings of the study Also in this part, the implications for classroom practice, the limitations of the study and suggestions for further studies are provided 40 Implications for classroom practice With the purpose of putting the findings of the study into practice of English writing and improving the writing competence of the students at PTCFI, some major implications for combining brainstorming and modelling at the pre-writing stage can be drawn as follows In the first place, preparation in brainstorming is essential Teachers should pay attention to the ways of grouping students during brainstorming It is a good idea that teachers group good students with weaker ones in groups of four or five students, especially take much care of anxious and less able students to encourage them to discuss and give ideas among their own group In addition, teaching aids and facilities should be carefully prepared in order to make students feel more eager to participate in brainstorming Secondly, towards modelling, it is necessary for the teachers to ask students focus on the textual organization of the model In addition, language use of the model, for instance, useful expressions should be paid attention to Limitations of the study Despite some positive findings, the study exposes some limitations Firstly, the size of the study is rather small, consisting of only 30 participants, all of whom are female Therefore, to some extent, this limits the generalization of the research under different conditions However, as this is an action research, such a limitation is unavoidable The second limitation is the length of the research It seems that a twelve-week writing program is not long enough for students to make significant progress This explains for the fact that most students only make significant progress in terms of content, organization and vocabulary If the research lasts longer, the result is expected to be much better The third limitation lies in the focus of the study, which is the combination of the two techniques at the pre-writing stage A question raised to be considered is that whether the combination of other techniques at the pre-writing stage would help students make progress in writing or not 41 Suggestions for further studies Given the limitation of the study, it is highly recommended that further studies should be conducted to gain a better understanding of how effective combining brainstorming and modelling is on students’ writing skill The small size of the study is a big limitation Therefore, it is almost impossible to generalize the effect of combining brainstorming and modelling over a wide range of subjects It is highly recommended that the research be applied to a larger number of students both male and female so as to gain better input for the research Regarding the limitation about the length of the research due to the limited time, it is suggested that further study should be conducted in a longer period of time to confirm students’ writing proficiency improvement Last but not least, with many techniques at the pre-writing stage, the combination of other techniques should be examined in further study to help students make more progress in their writing performance 42 REFERENCES Abe, M (2008), Exploring the Role of Model Essays in the IELTS Writing Test: A feedback tool http://www.asian-efl-journal.com/Thesis_M_Abe.pdf Brookes, A & Grundy, P (1990), Writing for Study Purposes: A teacher‟s guide to developing individual writing skills, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Brown, H.D (1994), Teaching by Principles: an Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy, Prentice Hall, Inc, New Jersey Byrne, D 1988), Teaching Writing Skill, Longman, London and New York Clark, I.L (2003), Concepts in composition: Theory and practice in the teaching of writing, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers, London Cullen, B (1998), “Brainstorming before Speaking Tasks”, The Internet TESL Journal, 4(7) http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Cullen-Brainstorming/ Doff, A (1988), Teach English: A Training Course for Teachers, Cambridge University Press in association with the British Council Ferrance, E (2000), Action Research, Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory at Brown University http://www.lab.brown.edu/pubs/themes_ed/act_research.pdf Gould, E, DiYanni, R & Smith, W (1989), The Act of Writing, Random House, New York 10 Goby, V.P (1997), “Arguments Against Providing Model Answers in the Writing Skills Classroom: The Singaporean case”, TESL Reporter 30(2), pp.28-33 https://ojs.lib.byu.edu/spc/index.php/TESL/article/viewFile/3617/3391 11 Harmer, J (2001), The Practice of English Language Teaching, 3rd edition Longman, Malaysia 12 Harris, J (1993), Introducing Writing, Penguin English, London 13 Hasan & Akhand (2010), “Approaches to Writing in EFL/ESL Context: Balancing Product and Process in Writing Class at Tertiary Level”, Journal of NELTA, Vol 15, No1-2 http://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NELTA/article/view/4612 14 Heaton, J.B (1988), Writing English Language Tests, Longman, London and New York 15 Hedge, T (1988), Writing, Oxford University Press, Oxford 43 16 Hutchinson, T (1999), Lifelines Elementary, Oxford University Press, Oxford 17 Ibnian (2011), “Brainstorming and Essay Writing in EFL Class”, Theory and Practice in Language Studies, (3), pp 263-272 http://ojs.academypublisher.com/index.php/tpls/article/view/4317 18 Kees, D (2009), Teaching IELTS writing: Keeping it simple, http://davekees.blogspot.com/2009/05/teaching-ielts-writing-keeping-it.html 19 Master, P (1997), “Using models in EST”, English Teaching Forum, 35 (4), p.30 http://eca.state.gov/forum/vols/vol35/no4/p30.htm 20 McKay, H & Tom, A (1999), Teaching Adult Second Language Learners, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 21 Nunan, D (1991), Language Teaching Methodology A textbook for teachers, Prentice Hall, New York 22 Nunan, D (1992), Research Methods in Language Learning, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 23 O’Keefe, J (1991), Reading to Writing: Form and Meaning, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publisher, San Diego 24 Raimes, A (1983), Techniques in Teaching Writing, Oxford University Press, Oxford 25 Scrivener, J (2005), Learning Teaching: A Guidebook for English Language Teachers, 2nd edition, Macmillan, Oxford 26 Steege, S (1999), What is brainstorming? (http://www.buffalostate.edu/orgs/cbir/readingroom/html/Steege-99.html) 27 Tangpermpoon, T (2008), “Integrated Approaches to Improve Students’ Writing Skills for English Major Students”, ABAC Journal, 28 (2), pp.1-9 http://www.journal.au.edu/abac_journal/2008/may08/01(1-9)_article01.pdf 28 Tham Bich Phuong (2008), Idea-generating activities in teaching writing for high school students, M.A Thesis, Vietnam National University – University of Languages and International Studies, Hanoi 29 Tribble, C (1996), Writing, Oxford University Press, Oxford 44 30 Troyka, L.Q & Nudelman, J (1994), Steps in Composition, 6th edition, Prentice Hall, Eaglewood Cliffs, New Jersey 07632 31 Ur, P (1996), A Course in Language Teaching, Cambridge University Press, Great Britain 32 Veit, R, Gould, C & Clifford, J (2001), Writing, Reading and Researching, 5th edition, Allyn and Bacon, Boston 33 White, R & Arndt, V (1991), Process Writing, Longman, London and New York 34 http://language123.blogspot.com/2008/07/describe-house-you-living-in.html I APPENDIX 1: PRE-QUESTIONNAIRE The following questionnaire is designed to explore your attitudes towards writing, your interests in writing lessons, your writing habits and your difficulties in learning writing skill Your assistance in completing the questionnaire is highly appreciated Thank you very much for your cooperation! Instruction: Please put a (√) in the appropriate box  to answer the following questions What you think of writing skill? Very important  Important Somewhat important Not important Not important at all How you find the writing tasks in the textbook?  Interesting Suitable All right Boring Unsuitable How you feel when writing in English? Very confident Confident Somewhat confident Not confident Not confident at all What are you concerned about most when writing?  Ideas Vocabulary Grammatical structures Organization of ideas II Which of the following activities you often at the pre-writing stage? (You may tick more than one option) Make an outline for writing Brainstorm to find ideas for writing Brainstorm to get vocabulary for writing Pick up useful expressions and structures for writing from a model text Discuss in pairs or groups to exchange ideas Discuss in pairs or groups to exchange vocabulary  Learn the way to organize ideas for writing from a model text Do you often complete your writing tasks in class? Yes, always Yes, often Yes, sometimes Yes, but rarely No, never Do you often the writing assignment at home? Yes, always Yes, often Yes, sometimes Yes, but rarely No, never In a writing lesson, which stage you find the most difficult? Pre-writing While-writing Post-writing What are your difficulties in writing lessons? (You may tick more than one option)  Unable to find ideas  Unable to find words  Unable to find structures  Unable to organize the ideas  All III APPENDIX 2: POST-QUESTIONNAIRE The following questionnaire is designed to explore your attitudes towards writing, your interests in writing lessons, your writing habits and your opinions of the combination of brainstorming and modelling activities at the pre-writing stage Your assistance in completing the questionnaire is highly appreciated Thank you very much for your cooperation! Instruction: Please put a (√) in the appropriate box  to answer the following questions How you find the writing tasks in the textbook?  Interesting  Suitable  All right  Boring  Unsuitable How you feel when writing in English?  Very confident  Confident  Somewhat confident  Not confident  Not confident at all What are you concerned about most when writing?  Ideas  Vocabulary  Grammatical structures  Organization of ideas Which of the following activities you often at the pre-writing stage? (You may tick more than one option) Make an outline for writing Brainstorm to find ideas for writing Brainstorm to get vocabulary for writing IV Pick up useful expressions and structures for writing from a model text Discuss in pairs or groups to exchange ideas Discuss in pairs or groups to exchange vocabulary  Learn the way to organize ideas for writing from a model text Do you often complete your writing tasks in class? Yes, always Yes, often Yes, sometimes Yes, but rarely No, never What you think of the combination of brainstorming and modelling activities? (You may tick more than one option) Enable me to participate in in-class activities Stimulate my creativeness and activeness Provide me with ideas for writing Provide me with vocabulary for writing Help me learn how to organize ideas Provide me with expressions/ grammatical structures for writing  Others………………………………………………………………… V APPENDIX 3: PRE-TEST Name:…………………………………………… Class:…………………………………………… Topic: Write a description of your house or your ideal house (100-150 words) …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………… VI APPENDIX 4: POST-TEST Name:…………………………………………… Class:…………………………………………… Topic: Read the following model of describing house and write a description of your house or your ideal house (100-150 words) The house we are living in is situated in the suburb of HCM city, within thirty minutes’ drive off the central city We have lived there for more than twenty years This is a fairly large house surrounded with a luxuriant garden My house consists of four bed-rooms, a living-room, a bathroom with a shower, a dinning-room, a kitchen and a toilet It is air-conditioned and well-furnished The living-room is decorated beautifully Paintings by famous artists are on the walls At night, the color neon lights increase the beauty and coziness of the room There, on Sundays and holidays my father usually spends his time playing chess or drinking tea with his friends My mother and my two sisters are diligent and hard-working women They often keep the house clean and tidy I love my house very much because it is the place where I was born and have grown up in the education of my father and in the tender loving care of my mother I have spent my whole childhood in the love and affection of my dear ones with so many sweet memories (http://language123.blogspot.com/2008/07/describe-house-you-living-in.html) …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………… VII APPENDIX : SCORING CRITERIA (Adapted from “Writing English Language Tests” by Heaton, J.B, 1988: 146) Content 30-27 EXCELLENT TO VERY GOOD: knowledgeable – substantive – etc 26-22 GOOD TO AVERAGE: some knowledge of subject – adequate range – etc 21-17 FAIR TO POOR: limited knowledge of subject – little substance – etc 16-13 VERY POOR: does not show knowledge of subject – non-substantive – etc Organization 20-18 EXCELLENT TO VERY GOOD: fluent expression – ideas clearly stated– etc 17-14 GOOD TO AVERAGE: somewhat choppy – loosely organized but main ideas stand out - etc 13-10 FAIR TO POOR: non-fluent – ideas confused or disconnected – etc 9-7 VERY POOR: does not communicate – no organization – etc Vocabulary 20-18 EXCELLENT TO VERY GOOD: sophisticated range – effective word/idiom choice and usage - etc 17-14 GOOD TO AVERAGE: adequate range – occasional errors of word/idiom form, choice, usage but meaning not obscured 13-10 FAIR TO POOR: limited range – frequent errors of word/idiom form, choice, usage – etc 9-7 VERY POOR: essentially translation – little knowledge of English vocabulary Language use 25-22 EXCELLENT TO VERY GOOD: effective complex constructions – etc 21-19 GOOD TO AVERAGE: effective but simple constructions – etc 17-11 FAIR TO POOR: major problems in simple/complex constructions – etc 10-5 VERY POOR: virtually no mastery of sentence construction rules – etc Mechanics EXCELLENT TO VERY GOOD: demonstrates mastery of conventions –etc GOOD TO AVERAGE: occasional errors of spelling, punctuation – etc FAIR TO POOR: frequent errors of spelling, punctuation, capitalization – etc VERY POOR: no mastery of conventions – dominated by errors of spelling, punctuation, capitalization, paragraphing – etc VIII APPENDIX 7: SAMPLE OF COMBINING BRAINSTORMING AND MODELLING AT THE PRE-WRITING STAGE Topic: Write a description of your last holiday (Unit 10 – Lifelines Elementary) Time Procedures Teacher’s activities Students’ activities 8’ - Give each group one big sheet of paper and - Work in groups to Brainstorming marker brainstorm to get - Ask Ss to work in groups to brainstorm ideas ideas about a and vocabulary about a holiday for minutes holiday E.g: travel by train/car… Stay in hotel, check in/check out of hotel Weather Food Beach Go sightseeing Sunbathing Do the shopping Visit famous places Good time Relax Memorable ………………… - Choose one group with the most ideas and - Look at the board vocabulary and stick the paper on the board and check ideas - Check with the whole class with the whole class 10’ Modelling - Give a writing model of the holiday - Read the model description and ask Ss to analyze the textual and work in pairs or IX format of the model “Julia and her husband went to Scotland groups of three to analyze the for one week It rained for the first couple of organization of the days but after that it was cloudy and dry They model went by train and the journey took about hours They did not stay in a hotel They stayed with some friends who had a new flat in the city centre While they were there they visited the castle and they did a lot of shopping They got back days ago” (Adapted from Unit 10 Extension, p.75) -Ask Ss some questions about the organization - Work in groups to of the paragraph answer the teacher’s questions + What is the purpose of the first sentence? + To give the general information about the holiday: the place and the length of the holiday + What are the purposes of the following + To give the sentences? specific information about the holiday: the weather, transport, journey time, stay and activities + What is the purpose of the last sentence? + To present the ending of the X holiday: when to get back + What tense is used to describe your last + Past simple tense holiday? - Draw a table with the organization of the - Look at the table description of the holiday from the model on on the board and the board fill in the blanks Your last holiday with the Where? information about How long? their last holiday Weather? Transport? Journey time? Stay? Do? Get back? ... generating and organizing ideas at the pre -writing stage As a result, this gap has intrigued the researcher to conduct the study ? ?combining brainstorming and modelling to improve students? ?? writing skill: ... study is designed to improve the students? ?? writing skill by combining brainstorming and modelling Thus, it has two objectives: - Exploring the possible reasons for students? ?? weak writing competence... distributed to investigate students? ?? attitudes towards writing and their interests in writing lessons, their writing habits and their opinions about the combination of brainstorming and modelling