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But the traditions and rules for writing well in German are different
from English... English writing traditions are also different from those
in writing Russian, Turkish, Spanish, Italian Persian, French, Arabic,
etc etc etc..
Goal #1
Learn the game-play,
rules, strategies and
goals
for writing well in
English...
"Writers need to develop "automaticity", the ability to
automatically juggle the many physical and cognitive
aspects of writing without consciously thinking about
them. The only way to develop this automaticity in writing is to
practice, practice, practice."
- University of North Carolina, writing department
Writing instruction is just
like learning any other skill;
MODEL:
Over half a century ago I grew up in Lewiston, a small town in
western New York, a few miles north of Niagara Falls on the Canadian
border.
BREAKDOWN:
Over fifteen years ago I was/did/grew up something/somewhere,
[which was] a something detail, a something more detail.
MODEL:
Harry leaned forward to see Hagrid, who was ruby-red in the face and
staring
down at his enormous hands, his wide grin hidden in his black beard.
BREAKDOWN:
Someone#1 did something to do someone#2, who-relative clause
(someone#2) was something and doing something, with something
done in/with something.
Style modeling -- what is it, how is it used?
Model breakdown:
I know the series Batman very well... Ive [done, read, seen, known,
etc]... and/however Vanhorsts claims in her argument / article show
that ...
Possible Sentence:
I know a lot about Germany and Germans. I've lived in Germany all my
life and the author, who is American, clearly knows very little about
Germany.
Model sentence:
German comedian Jan Bhmermann hits the internet with his latest
stroke of genius. With heavy metal sounds and an aggressive-looking
video, he will turn you into a muesli-loving European liberal - come what
may.
Possible Sentence:
Floid, the German Youtube sensation, has produced a new video that,
unfortunately, does not match the best of his other videos. With rapid-
fire editing and short staccato sentences, his video left me feeling
annoyed and disappointed in his discussion of the refugee situation in
Europe.
"An effective piece of writing establishes a single focus and
sustains that focus throughout the piece. A writer
needs to focus on a single topic or main idea in order to
produce an effective piece of writing."
- University of North Carolina, writing department
ORGANIZATION IS AS IMPORTANT AS
CONTENT (or more so!)...
"The writer should establish a well-organized
composition, which exhibits a constancy of purpose
through the development of elements forming an effective
beginning, middle, and end. The text should
demonstrate a clear progression of related ideas
and/or events that is unified and complete."
English, main topic first: People should sort and recycle their
trash in order to help preserve the environment. Defined sub-
topics: people/responsibility, sort, recycle, environment...
[note: some specific writing styles may differ from this]
Rewrite
In the article the author discusses German, English and
French writing styles and traditions. The German writing
style, which is called "Teutonic" focuses on theory development.
The English or "Saxonic," however, focuses on...
Original
The narrator says that Mr. Kelada is always interfering and
acts like he knows everything. The people on the ship give
him the nickname Mr. Know-All. This reinforces the readers
negative way of thinking about Mr. Know-All.
Rewrite
#1 The narrator describes Mr. Kelada negatively and says
that he is always interfering and acts like he knows everything.
Like the people on the ship, he calls him by the nickname "Mr.
Know-All."
Rewrite
The Stadtwerke Mnchen has committed to switching from traditional
to renewable sources within the next 15 years. To this end it has
bought a 30% share in an offshore wind farm off the coast of North
Wales.
-- from Staatsinstitut fr Schulqualitt Mnchen website
Analysis: define the topic
Englisch, Mittelstuffe Beispiel
Private households consume only 2 billion kilowatts of the
total 7.5 billion kilowatts the city uses per year. Three quarters
are needed by corporate clients like industries, businesses, the
underground, hybrid cars.
Rewrite
The city uses 7.5 billion kilowatts per year, of which private
households consume only 2 billion. The remaining three-
quarters are used by corporate clients like industries,
businesses, the underground and hybrid cars.
- from Staatsinstitut fr Schulqualitt Mnchen website
Paragraph coherency analysis...
"It was
January 2009, I had just returned from my holidays in Spain,
where I had visited my big sister for 2 weeks, and I was waiting
for my father who had told me on the phone that he would pick me
up at the airport in Dsseldorf. The holidays, which were the last
chance for me to relax and get away from it all before the Abitur
examinations, were beautiful! Tenerife, which lies in the Atlantic
Ocean near the Maroccan Coast, is a really exciting place to visit.
On the one side there are numerous volcanos with mighty
eruptions and on the other side wonderful beaches with an
incredible view of the wide ocean. Also the architecture of the
buildings, which are quite different from Germanys, fascinated me."
-- student text, 2016
Sentence construction - stay on topic, be
direct...
Nevertheless she knows he will not leave her because she knows no
other woman wouldmarry someone weak likehim, which makeshim
sad and desperate.
Rewrite
She believes he will never leave her because he is sad and desperate
and could never find another woman who would marry him.
Important information at the end vs. at
beginning of sentence
"In German-language writing instruction it is the transmission of
knowledge that is given the greatest emphasis. "
Rewrite:
1. "German-language writing instruction emphasizes the transmission
of language."
2. "The transmission of knowledge is most emphasized in German-
language writing instruction. " [passive voice]
Negative aspects of using English in the
university
from the Landesbildungsserver Baden-Wrttemberg
Discuss...
2. "Many people think they can speak English correctly, but misuse
many words and are not skilled enough to make grammatically
correct sentences, which might lead to misunderstandings."