In the short time that I have been working as an ESL English teacher, I have started to notice some patterns and problems that students have learning the language. One large gap that many students have in their English knowledge is the ability to write, primarily to write formally. It pains me when a student hands in a writing task and their opening line and full introduction reads:
Hello my name is (insert full name here) and today I’m going to talk about (insert question here).
I have compiled a list of the top 5 things I believe intermediate to advanced English learners can do to exponentially improve the standard of their English writing.
1.Contractions
In a formal piece of writing, we should avoid using informal language. Finding essays riddled with contractions is common. I don’t blame them because a lot of ESL learners are first taught English with contractions and never told when is the right time to use them. Contractions are perfect the spoken language, they make things easier and help our speech flow. The fact is that many students have become so accustomed to the use of contractions that they don’t know how to write many of them in their full form.
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