Developing young learners' writing skills in informal situations using ICT facilities
Palletier (2008) states that technology plays a big role in developing children’s writing. She claims that the computer is one of the significant forms of technology because of its easy accessibility. Franco (2008) also stresses the importance of ICT in enhancing children’s writing development. He...
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| Format: | Conference or Workshop Item |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2010
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| Online Access: | http://irep.iium.edu.my/10898/ http://irep.iium.edu.my/10898/1/278-279.pdf |
| Summary: | Palletier (2008) states that technology plays a big role in developing children’s writing. She claims that
the computer is one of the significant forms of technology because of its easy accessibility. Franco
(2008) also stresses the importance of ICT in enhancing children’s writing development. He examines
the use of different teaching methods in order to help young students improve their writing skills. This
paper explores children use of ICT devices outside the classroom. It discusses the ICT facilities used by
young learners to develop their writing skills. Each has its strength in developing these skills. Powerpoint
and word processors are the two obvious tools that can be explored for this purpose. Strong parental
support and guidance can help very young learners to develop their writing skills using these devices. A
longitudinal study (four years) on one nine year old child shows that power-point alone provided an
interesting tool for the child to develop various aspects of writing. The bigger children preferred sites
which are more interactive. It was, however, found that the social networking sites did not necessarily
improve their writing skills. The real audience, however, made these sites a suitable medium for
developing their communication skills. Those who were serious about developing their writing skills
often went for other facilities. This included the use of blogs. Others utilised other means such as
disguising themselves as the speakers of the target language. All these reflect the potential these facilities
have in producing independent learners particularly in developing writing skills. |
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