Part C: How to Encourage & Improve Wrting Skills through Word Processing & Desktop Publishing

People learn how to write by writing, and you must write to improve writing. Furthermore, one must read in order to write. The Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI) strategy, Read-Write-Think, is an excellent way to incorporate reading and writing. This strategy allows students to read a topic, summarize the topic, and then discuss the topic with the class. The students are engaged in a topic and learn different ideas from other students on the same topic. In other words, sharing your writing with others gets feedback. In addition, the student learns how to expand or condense a topic by writing. Also, the more you write the more you improve and the more you are motivated to write. Moreover, this strategy can be used in all disciplines. Lastly, Read-Write-Think is a way to improve and encourage writing.

ARI allows students the opportunity to write and improve writing skills. However, lab time should be utilized to incorporate technology skills. Students can use their samples from class to type their work into a word processing or desktop publishing software. Also, the students writing should improve from each writing sample.

The Internet is a great source to view plays, essays, and poetry. After the students have selected a story of interest, have the students type their thoughts in a word processor or desktop publisher. In other words, teachers can allow Internet usage as an incentive for students to write their thought. Furthermore, this will encourage students to write. Moreover, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) suggests that the best way to improve writing is to encourage writing.

In conclusion, teachers must remember that everyone can improve writing skills. In addition, teachers should incorporate strategies that place an emphasis on reading and writing. Lastly, teachers need to allow student to use different formats and as many real situations as possible when writing in a word processing or desktop publishing software.