4.

4 WRITING SKILLS
Ebbinghaus forgetting curve describes the decrease in
ability of the brain to retain memory over time.
The issue was hypothesized by Hermann Ebbinghaus in
1885, which is why it’s called Ebbinghaus forgetting
curve.
The theory is that humans start losing the memory of
learned knowledge over time, in a matter of days or
weeks, unless the learned knowledge is consciously
1 reviewed time and again.
Its well said that one’s writing is equal to hundred times
reading.
 Memory retention
2 is 100% at the time
of learning any
particular piece of
information.

However, it drops
rapidly to 40%
within the first dew
days. After which,
the declination of
memory retention
slows down again.
3

There are various factors that can affect the rate of

forgetting. Some of which are
 Meaningfulness of the information.
 The way it is represented.
 Physiological factors (stress, sleep, etc).
  Writing is primarily a learned art, with students being
4 taught all the formal and technical aspects but relying
primarily on their own creativity to create.

 Writing involves going through a number of stages,

some of which are given below:
 Brainstorming (thinking of everything about the topic).
 Making notes. Writing a draft (a piece of writing that is
not yet finished, and may be changed).

Writing enables the pupil to take down notes, dictation etc.

at later stage; it helps free expression of thoughts.
 THE IMPORTANCE OF WRITING
5

 “Reading makes a full man, conference a ready man,

and writing an exact man”
 In the field of education, writing plays a dominant role
for writing projects, assignments, examinations etc. in
the Indian educational system, assessing academic
abilities is closely linked with proficiency in writing.
 Focusing on teaching writing skills is important to
facilitate all the needs of the learners inside the
classroom as well as in student’s day-to-day life.
  Writing is a skill to be taught and practiced under
6 continuous monitoring, the responsibility of taking
necessary initiatives and employing necessary suitable
strategies to overcome the problems rest heavily on the
shoulders of the teachers.
 To communicate effectively in the written language, one
needs mastery of the two skills of literacy namely
reading and writing.
 Teachers should think writing as a form of
communication that demands interactive skills similar to
those of speaking interaction.
 Before, during and after writing will make learners more
effective writers. The doubts and problems that arise
during the activity of writing are good opportunities for
learning from someone else how to overcome them.
 The Relevance of Teaching Writing

 The goal of writing is to develop the student’s ability to

write up to the point at which written homework can be
given. “The goal in writing is twofold viz.,
 (i) psychologically students are more impressed by
exercises that are to be written and handed by those that
are to be learned and
 (ii) realistically the teacher knows that writing
homework exercises and other written activities help the
students to acquire the vocabulary and the grammar of
the lesson.
8

 The best way to test people’s writing ability is to

get them to write.
 Writing is the most important skill in language
teaching.
 Writing is one of the major literary skills.
 Writing has to be taught to the students even
though it is developed by individuals.