The Teaching of Writing at the University Level

The assignment writing courses at the university level offered several challenges to the teacher. In some contexts, as a requirement to obtain a university degree, students have to take and pass essay writing or assignment writing or academic writing courses. In most cases, there are many issues that make these courses difficult to teach. However, it is offer that precisely these courses students the opportunity to develop their linguistic competency as well as their written abilities, also offering the teacher the opportunity to create a variety of teaching and learning scenarios. In this article, some useful and relevant principles of socio-cultural theory will be used to organize a writing course, and to design teaching and learning activities with the aim of Improving and develop developing students’ writing skills.

For many teachers, writing courses taught at the university level represent a difficult subject to teach. In almost all studies directed toward thoughts of obtaining a college degree, these courses are practically mandatory. There are many factors that contribute to the writing course is a difficult subject for both teachers and students. For some teachers, the difficulty lies in how to set the course objectives and the choice to do write texts appropriate to be discussed and subsequently write about them; as well as, the treatment should be given to the different levels of writing skills that students possess. One of the biggest obstacles for both teachers and students, is the difficulty that many students when they try to write coherent and concise compositions.

However, due to its problematic nature, writing courses offer students a valuable opportunity to develop their language and writing skills, while teaching requires the creation of situations and educational activities aimed at optimizing the development students. Socio-cultural theory, in particular, provides the theoretical to better understand the learning process framework and to create activities that help students to work and progress through the stages of learning to write and writing competence development.

Socio-cultural theory offers a different and useful perspective on writing. We provide a theoretical framework with which we can begin to understand the cognitive difficulties of writing for our students. This theory also shows us a way to understand the learning process and the way how we can help students not only to write, but also to develop the written competition. This theory helps teachers to realize that you cannot expect to have students write with clarity or precision right from the start of the course.