Looking at Reading and Writing Through Language

Abstract

Although writing has its own set of characteristics and its psycholinguistic processing follows different patterns, it cannot be seen in isolation from oral language or reading. Indeed, it can be said that oral and written language nourish each other, and this interaction should be borne in mind when they are practised. A first step towards dealing with writing in a meaningful way is proposed here through a language method (Girolami-Boulinier, 1984) and three reading techniques (indirect, semi-direct and silent direct) (Girolami-Boulinier, 1993; Girolami-Boulinier & Cohen-Rak, 1985). The language method trains learners to immediately identify the semantic groups of sentences they hear and produce, as well as the nature and function of the head words — “mots-centres” according to Girolami-Boulinier (Girolami-Boulinier, 1987: 38) — of sentence elements. The logical organisation that the proposed language method implies should also be taken into account. The reading techniques improve speaking and prevent writing errors which have to do with language misunderstandings and misuses, with misperceptions at the level of speaking and listening, and with lack of attention. This approach will benefit orthography in its broadest sense, from mere decoding to language mastery, punctuation and style. Furthermore, it prepares learners to exercise and cultivate the different writing practices required by today’s society.