critical thinking

Writing Arguments: Understanding Warrants

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Teach English Writing

One way to help ESL students learn English writing is to teach them how to write arguments following a simplified version of the Toulmin model. When students learn how to write claims with evidence and warrants, they are able to create clear arguments that sound persuasive.

The ability to construct a clear argument is a skill that can serve students well beyond the writing classroom. It can help them in ESL conversation classes, and in the workplace. For example, writing arguments can be very helpful for students who work in a foreign company and need to communicate with buyers and suppliers.

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Teaching Argument Writing: Capture the Idea

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Teach English Argument Writing

This one hour lesson helps ESL students improve their English writing skills by learning how to identify, articulate and judge arguments using a simple critical thinking framework.

The lesson has four parts:

  1. a quick review of the critical think framework
  2. a 5 minute TED video ideal for this type of writing exercise
  3. a ten minute pair work discussion that helps students flush out the main ideas and allows teachers time to provide personalized feedback while circulating around the class
  4.  student writing time

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Sophomore ESL Writing, Week 9

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Learn English writing

This is week 9 of the semester. Here is the basic plan for this week.

  1. Quickly review mid term exam answers and scores.
  2. It is time to start fresh with new writing assignments.
  3. Improve the students’ ability to think critically (leadership analysis)
  4. More practice with a text analysis (Steve Jobs speech)
  5. Even more practice thinking and writing critically (TED Talk video analysis)
  6. Improve writing style by understanding how to write sentences with nominalizations.

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Teach English: Correlation and Causation

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Teach English Writing Concepts

This lesson helps ESL students improve the quality of their writing, speaking and thinking by understanding the differences between correlation and causation.

Learning these vital concepts helps students write logical stories and essays by avoiding post hoc fallacies. It also helps them develop critical thinking skills and an ability to express complex ideas in writing and conversation classes.

Developing an ability to identity and evaluate cause and effect relationships is not easy for students, especially those coming from an education system that emphasizes rote memorization. Finding causality requires a degree of imagination and a willingness to inquire, to dare and explore ideas.

In that sense, imagination fosters understanding.

Lesson Purpose

By the end of this lesson, ESL students will:

  • define correlation and causation
  • explain the differences between the two concepts
  • demonstrate that knowledge in practice exercises
  • apply that knowledge in a writing assignment

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