The Writing Process and Formative Assessment

Abstract

The writing process has been an integral part of writing pedagogy for many years. However, both students and instructors in some contexts might be resistant to writing through the process approach because it is unfamiliar and seems laborious and time-consuming. Teachers in contexts with large classes might be especially resistant to teaching writing as a process. However, the writing process can be carried out in any context though some adaptation might be needed, depending on the context. Many researchers and instructors have written about the writing process, and many have written about formative assessment. However, these two constructs have generally been considered separately when they actually work in tandem. The purpose of this paper is to explain the process approach to writing pedagogy and how it can be implemented along with ideas and techniques for using formative assessment. The paper starts with an explanation of the product approach and the process approach. Then it explains each stage of the writing process and how it can be carried out in the composition classroom along with formative assessments that can be used at each stage in the writing process.