It is critical to note that the two approaches in teaching writing : The Product and Process approaches, vary in several ways. Below is a brief outline of those differences from my own understanding of literature read:
The Product Approach:
Focuses on the end product not the process used to create it
There is use of imitation of a model piece of writing/ language structure and the type of language which should be used in the piece; that is students are first exposed to the model piece and then must go through a drill and practice routine where they use the important features of that piece
Organising one’s ideas or the structure of the developing piece is given more weighting than the ideas themselves
Students now create a similar piece
The Process Approach:
Places as much emphasis on the writing process as on the final product; students are guided through the series of brainstorming, organising ideas, drafting, sharing and editing activities (which are part of the pre-writing, during writing, post-writing procedures)
The Approach that I think is better suited for Teaching and Learning today.
We educators now have transcended beyond traditional pedagogy, where students are spoon-fed. We now measure a students’ intelligence by more than their knowledge of facts and ability to recall and regurgitate, we now require them to engage in critical thinking and reasoning, to deduce probabilities when making an informed response to a given question. For this reason, it appears to me that the process approach, especially for creative, narrative and argumentative pieces are best suited for the teaching of writing in the classroom. Even where a more structured format is required, like in letter writing, where the product approach should be used to equip students with the skills necessary for appropriately addressing, greeting and ending the letter, it would seem to me a wise idea to incorporate the process approach in order to generate the ideas that should form the body of the letter. Students can be asked to determine what ideas are best suited for a letter seeking employment from a business place or one to a friend relating a recent devastation, then taken through entire process so as to make the experience a more engaging one. In this manner the two approaches can be used together.
I say this because even as an adult, I dread letter writing. The entire process seems so rigid and formal that I can truly say I have hardly ever written a letter that truly reflects who I am. My letter writing instead reflects more often all the rules and regulations of letter writing and says very little about the individual holding the pen and paper. But why should that even matter? I think that unless it is strictly necessary (like in a business setting- where the letter being written is intended to represent a company, organisation or the Government) one should be allowed the opportunity to write in a manner that will give the reader a true idea of who you are, or a true idea of what your thoughts are. We have all become so accustomed to one style of writing a job application that many offices are filled with thousands of letter applications all saying the very same thing; none giving the employer a true view of the individual’s work ethic and character. These “standardised job letters” do not reflect what we truly believe but rather what we think employers want to hear.
From the onset, we can teach students the rules of the writing game as well as show them how to make something their own if we include the process approach when teaching writing.
