Literacy, Oral Based Practices, and Writing - Essay Example

Literacy, Oral Based Practices, and Writing

Writing and speaking are the two primary means through which that people share information, ideas, opinions, and feelings and beliefs among other intents of communication. Speaking is an inborn process while writing skills are often acquired, developed, and mastered through learning and hard training. Oral language or speaking is the fundamental foundation of learning for students. It involves listening comprehension, vocabulary development, and verbal expressions (Walter & Ong 297-307). Literacy results to ‘IN’ NOT ‘TO’ oral based practices such as the power of speech, which also results in the writing skills. Therefore, this essay aims at analyzing and discussing the connections between literacy and oral based practices.

Development and application of oral language usually vary across students; therefore, students have different abilities in using the existing language to learn different skills and subjects. Despite the variation in the use of existing language, learners are often introduced to same elements of the oral-based practices equally. The elements of oral based practices include listening and comprehension, vocabulary input, and verbal expressions (Walter & Ong 296). Oral base practices are often developed when learners have many opportunities to use language to interact with other people; for instance, a learner may develop these skills may be developed when listening to the news or other oral presentations. This form of learning will only enable the learner to develop a vocabulary for writing activities that stimulate or encourage the learner cognitively and linguistically. Such activities must be related to events describing and building the background knowledge.

English follows the writing of alphabetic letters. This means that the letters used in writing translate the language sound being spoken from the letters (Walter & Ong 300). The knowledge of alphabets and the ability to distinguish sounds within words is the basis of decoding and spelling abilities. Notably, decoding and spelling are interconnected aspects of English language. Thus, it is important for learners to develop the better basis of writing create opportunities that would enable the have a perfect mastery of the underlying language.

Phonemic awareness is a substituent of phonological awareness that enables learners to identify, hear, and manipulated different forms of phonemes. Phonemes are primary constituents of sound that enable learners and language users to differentiate meanings in spoken words. It is also fundamental in writing and reading. Therefore, without the comprehensive relationship between sounds and letters, learners cannot read or even write well. The relationship between reading and writing helps in building interpersonal skills within language learners (Walter & Ong 304). Thus, guardians, parents, and teachers should help children in their early stages of language development so that they can adopt desirable word spelling techniques. These assistances may be aided through spoken words and through reading and writing. Therefore, when a child is introduced to new words, the adult may help the kid with right or sound associated with the new word. The help may follow the phonemes knowledge of the person guiding the child.

Similarly, if a child wants to write any new word, the guardian or teacher should allow them enough time and space to enable them to pick on letters of their choice. Moreover, the teacher should not concentrate on the spelling of words written by younger children, but they should concentrate on the comprehensive relationship between specific sounds and letters. Nonetheless, the youngsters should be helped in spelling when they have adopted perfect or desirable relationships between sounds and letter. In other words, older children should be introduced to comparative writing skills. (For example, quiet "e"), the guardian or teacher is required to encourage the child to utilize that information to think about the spelling of a word. The older children should also be encouraged to practice rewriting their own texts to assist in analyzing the pieces they read. Thus, through immense practice, learners will be able to appreciate the work of other people including an understanding of different writing skills and language done by professional authors.

Extensive reading often affects writing and extensive writing affects the reading. Hence, it is prudent that reading instructions should be coupled with instructive witting. The emerging concept is that writing and literacy are complementary skills that must be learned concurrently or together (Walter & Ong 310). Therefore, learners need to undertake intense practices to perfect their writing skills. Extensive reading also equips the learner with the knowledge to understand varied writing genres that intern help them learn text structures. These skills are likely to enable learners to develop their own writing skills through which they can develop universal applicable language.

In addition, literacy provides the young generation with a good base of knowledge that they can utilize in their daily lives. The primary purpose of reading to gain literacy is to learn (Walter & Ong). A big percentage of what students learn in their school lives usually originate from the books that they read. Writing is transferring gained knowledge to print copy; thus, learners or anyone can only write after acquiring knowledge and information to share. In other words, it is only possible to write when you are equipped with the knowledge or information to write about and when there are skills to write. Therefore, literacy or availability of knowledge plays a major role in writing. Moreover, good writing practice will build the learner’s reading skills including developing phonemic awareness and the phonic skills.

The literacy-rich environment may be considered as a class setting where teachers engage their students in a language and literacy activities. In this an environment, teachers often encourage conversations in which they ask students. Teachers also encourage learners to ask questions in their own words and formulations. For example, a teacher can request the students to prepare a hypothesis, observations, and conclusions from a science practical lesson in both oral and written format. They will also demonstrate writing by noting down class discussions. Another example is dictation. The teacher may opt to dictate notes to learners. This will encourage both writing and language mastery skills. This will allow them to see how the oral language can be translated into written language. The written word will enable the student to write what they hear. Writing will help the students to make sense of what they are learning. What goes into writing is what the person have been thinking and can only come from what the person knows, and this is what is known as the literacy.

Oral language competence supports the development of literacy thereby resulting to educational achievements. People with compromised oral language skills often struggle to learn how to read thereby affecting their overall academic achievement (Walter & Ong 297-310). Learning to write perfectly depends on numerous factor including environmental and social factors among others. Although writing shares a wide range of components with oral production, it needs additional requirements on developing cognitive systems. The relationship between oral and writing communication is necessary to define the subcomponents of the oral language and processes of writing.

Literacy is a key aspect that counts in all aspects of intellectual terms (Scribner and Cole 80-85). The same literacy will affect particular scripts written by learners. Many literate people have positive improved skills and memory towards specific tasks and the same is evident in the scripts writing. Their written scripts are structured and relevant to the context. However, it is very important that every highly ranked individual acquire very good writing skills that are primary in leadership positions and well-paying jobs.

Various experiences and observations prove that excellent skills in writing can be traced from the literacy levels on the writer (Scribner and Cole 71-86). Scribner and Cole continue to say that there is no evidence that writing can promote any general mental capabilities whatsoever, but on the other hand, writing can be improved from the mental capabilities that are literacy. The society builds all its productive culture on the oral communication; nonetheless, writing helps in storing oral data that also provide historical documentation of numerous societal social aspects. This continues to support that writing requires a person to be sensitive to the information they write and be able to comprehend the linguistic practices.

Learning to write perfectly is one of the most important and most powerful achievements in life (Walter & Ong 301). Educators have an especial responsibility to ensure they strive to achieve literacy that they teach through oral language. Literacy is much linked to effective writing. The illiterate people are encouraged to learn writing skills that are very basic requirements in the contemporary world. Writing is a conscious and humanizing technology; thus, find him or herself irrelevant in the society if he or she cannot effective literacy and oral knowledge (Walter & Ong 313). Writing separates the past from oral narratives and the present.

Conclusion

In conclusion, both literacy and oral base are associated with writing skills. People with language weakness usually face difficulties in applying the rules of writing such as punctuations than the language-competent individuals. Literacy has direct effect to what we write since we write what we know or we have read. Therefore, the elements of oral language can be used in the written texts. The more a person is perfect in oral and literacy, the more command that person has in writing.