From the classroom to the corporate world: Moving beyond “filling in the blanks” in writing development
Copying and completing sentences doesn't prepare anyone to write an email. A study in northwestern Mexico proposes another way to teach writing.
Main topic: writing teaching methodology, instructional resources, and formative assessment.
A mixed-methods case study conducted in northwestern Mexico found that writing activities in the education system tend to center on mechanical drills (doing exercises) and copying vocabulary or isolated sentences, with a strong focus on syntactic form rather than meaning or communicative purpose.
This focus has a direct impact on professionals’ performance: they often struggle to write continuous texts, express reasoned positions, or compose analytical emails in their working lives. To counter this inertia, the research suggests:
- Gradually moving toward guided and collaborative writing, reducing the individual correction load and encouraging peer feedback.
- Designing simulated real-world communication tasks (such as professional instant messaging or filling out service forms) that reflect current writing styles.
- Assessing the effectiveness of the message, the achievement of communicative goals, and suitability to the context over mere neatness or memorized grammar.
Corporate application tip: bring collaborative drafting into Business English workshops, with work teams co-writing business proposals using collaborative digital tools.
Study reference
Ríos-Higuera, & Ruiz-Esparza. (2023). Teaching Writing in English in Public Secondary Schools. MEXTESOL Journal, 47(4). Escuela Normal Superior / Universidad de Sonora.