Arab World English Journal
AWEJ Volume.3 Number 2. June 2012 pp. 148 – 167
The ‘Folder’ Methodology of Improving Writing
Dr. Ronnie Goodwin
Gulf University for Science & Technology,
Kuwait
Abstract:
This paper will examine the use of a folder, manila, for example, that will allow each student to take ownership of his/her prior and recent writing mistakes, serve as a portfolio, and provide some relief for the writing teacher in a real scholastic setting over a period of time. This methodology assesses the reactions and progress of the student participants in order to determine the efficacy of the ‘folder’ methodology demonstrated as a means of improving the writing of both English-speaking and ESL/EFL (English as a Second/Foreign Language) students taking collegiate writing courses. The continuing problems with primary education have eliminated the certainty that a student’s ability to meet the English entry requirements guarantees that the student has acquired the necessary linguistic and academic skills for post-secondary education (Ostler, Sheldrake, Vogel, & West, 2008). The primary goal of this ‘folder’ methodology is to help to stimulate my students intrinsic motivation by allowing them to track and take responsibility for their own progress by increasing student autonomy, goal setting, and student reinforcement (Albrecht, Haapanen, Hall, & Mantonya, 2009). For the purpose of this analysis, I have used a qualitative study method that included a pool of 457 students of different nationalities attending my university’s Composition 2: Research Writing classes. I used this methodology over a period of four years, August 2007-August 2011. Out of a four year study of 457 students, seventy-eight percent (78%) stated that the folder was useful to them during their English class with me and beyond.
Keywords: Composition, Portfolio, Methodology, Learning and Teaching Methodologies, and New Learning/Teaching Models
