College English Writing, Volume (3)

Author: Ding Yanren (Editor)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1997-02-01
Features: To ensure this textbook truly assists in teaching, we would like to address the following points.
1. For the teaching of English professional writing courses, the syllabus has clear stipulations and requirements. However, due to differences in specific circumstances, implementation varies across schools. This set of textbooks is generally designed for university students in their first, second, and third years, with the fourth volume intended for the fourth year, spanning one semester. For schools that offer writing courses in the second semester of the first year or throughout the entire fourth year, parts of the first volume can also be used for the second year, and the second and third volumes can be used for the third and fourth years, respectively. To help students adapt to the writing requirements of the CET-4 and CET-6 exams, we have included exercises on rapid writing in the second and third volumes.
2. Generally speaking, English writing at the undergraduate level involves two stages and four key milestones. The first stage involves writing narrative, descriptive, and general argumentative essays. Students must use English to write the various genres they have already mastered in Chinese writing during their secondary education. Here, the two key milestones are overcoming the fear of writing in English and learning to write well in English. The second stage involves writing argumentative essays, research reports, and academic papers required for undergraduate studies. Similarly, there are two key milestones here: the courage to write and the ability to write effectively.
3. Due to the diversity of teaching situations, instructors should have considerable flexibility in selecting content from the textbook. There is no need to use every chapter, section, or exercise in this set. First, students have different interests at different times and places, and teachers should tailor instruction to their specific interests and needs. For the exercises in the book, some can be explored in depth, some can be approached more superficially, some can be done repeatedly, while others can be omitted—all should be guided by teaching objectives and the goal of engaging students. Second, writing is an ongoing process of deepening understanding, continuous revision, and improvement. If every exercise in the textbook must be completed, it may consume too much time and hinder the deepening and enhancement of a student's writing.