xxxvii Co t olled Co positio fo uses the stude ts atte tio o spe ifi featu es of the
written language. It is a good method of reinforcing grammar, vocabulary, and syntax in context. In addition, as the students write the passages, they are using the conventions of
written English, such as indentation, punctuation, connecting words, and spelling. Most of the controlled composition textbooks available set up the tasks so that the book can be used for
individualized instruction, with students proceeding at their own pace. One word of warning is necessary here: Before assigning a controlled composition, do it yourself to make sure that the
stude t s fi ished p odu t ill e eal English. A passage of all negative sentences, all passive verb forms, or all parallel structures is just not normal written English. The examples that
follow indicate the variety of materials and tasks that controlled composition offers. There are five examples of model of controlled composition:
a Students work in small groups to agree on each change in the passage.
b The making of one change necessitates other linguistic changes. The students has to be
aware of these and has to make the necessary connections. c
Students are asked to fill in vocabulary words in a passage; the advantage of this over single sentence exercise is that the coherence that the text demands must influence the
choice of words throughout the text. d
Students are provided a structural skeleton outline so that students can construct a parallel paragraph using new information.
e Students are asked to supply synonyms for specific words, to change post-nominal
adjectival phrases into adjectives a life of sobriety a sober life, or to change the focus of a passage by switching it from positive to negative or vice-versa a passage about an
optimist becomes a passages about a pessimist.
2. Question and Answer
The type of controlled composition that uses a question and answer format allows stude ts a little o e f eedo i st u tu i g se te es. The a e ot gi e the a tual te t that
xxxviii they will write; rather, they are given a series of questions, the answers to which form the text.
Carefully constructed questions will produce a coherent text. There are three models of Question and Answer;
a Questions can ask about information which is given in notes or a list or even a picture
sequence. b
Questio s a also se e to d a fo th a d st u tu e the stude ts o esponses. They can elicit personal information, for example, In what year were you born? Where have you
lived for most of your life? Etc. or depend upon a vivid imagination In what month did Sunnyville get its biggest snowstorm ever? How deep were the snow drifts? What things did
the snow bury? Etc. Questions and-answer compositions based on personal information are useful at the beginning of a school year or semester, when teachers and students need
to learn about each other. For the teacher, any info atio a out stude ts likes, dislikes,
interests, and hobbies is useful for devising future topic for discussion and writing. c
A question-and-answer composition is a good follow-up exercise to a reading passage. Students read or listen to a passage two or three times. Then, without further reference to
the passage, they write a composition based on a given set of questions about the material they have just studied. Such tasks provide an excellent opportunity for teachers to tie
language study in with the study of other school subjects.
3. Guided Composition
Guided composition is an extension of controlled composition. It is less controlled than the above examples of controlled composition in that it gives students some but not all of the
content and form of the sentences they will use. Their finished products will thus be similar but not exactly alike. Students are given a first sentence, a last sentence, an outline to fill out, a series
of questions to respond to, or information to include in their piece or writing. As with any free writing task, with guided composition, to students should be able to discuss, make notes, share
xxxix findings, and plan strategies together before they begin to write. There are seven models of
Guided Composition, for example; a
Students look at and discuss the picture and any new vocabulary words or idioms are written on the board. Then the students are given these guidelines for writing.
b Students are provided much looser guidelines for a guided composition. Students could be
asked simply to write three paragraphs about the picture, one describing the setting, one the woman, and one the man. Or they could be given the first sentence of each paragraph.
All of these sample assignments can, of course, be discussed by students beforehand and students can even work in pairs to produce on a piece of writing with their names on it. For
all these tasks, students will need to use the present tense, possessives, and expressions with look she looks strict; it looks like a church, etc., so these can be reviewed during
discussion. c
Guided o positio topi s a also e di e ted to a ds the stude ts o e pe ie e o observation. If an opening sentence is given to the whole class, then the details they use to
explain and illustrate can be compared. Some compositions can be read aloud or written on the board so that students can see how others in their class tackled the same task.
d A simple outline can be the basis for in-class discussion which then leads to writing.
e Students are given the first and last sentence of a paragraph that controls very strictly the
content and many of the grammatical features the students will use, yet the students are fee to compose their own sentences.
f Students are asked to complete the paragraph with information given. Here they can either
be expected to provide the connecting words themselves, or they can be given more explicit guidance.
g A picture sequence provides excellent material for a guided composition. The pictures
provide the subject matter, and class discussion will provide vocabulary and grammatical features needed to write about the sequence. If half of the class is given one set of pictures
xl and the other half another, then the task can be simply to describe the events to each
other. Or they last picture of the sequence can be omitted, and students then finish the story by using their imagination.
4. Sentence Combining
