Letters to the editor: Effecting change through writing

Letters to the editor: Effecting change through writing

The following letters to the editor were part of an assignment
given to year eight students at Ipeka Christian Bilingual School,
with an objective to have them plan, draft, revise, edit and
present a persuasive letter.

The students were first encouraged to think of a problem that
concerns them in Jakarta. They were then asked to frame a letter
that dealt with their personal experience of the problem, what
they perceived to be the background and causes of the problem,
and finally offer some solutions. Structures pertaining to
persuasion techniques were also expected to be utilized by
students in their letters.

Before starting this assignment, students read examples of
persuasion letters and were shown structures and specific
language that should be used in a persuasion letter. Their plans
and drafts were checked by their teacher, and suggestions were
made for improvement.

In sum, the emphasis for this assignment was on producing an
original piece of writing that reflected a student's views on a
matter of social interest while practicing English language
skills associated with persuasion.

All the year eight students are 12 to 13 years old and speak
English as a second language.

-- Luciana Lazuardi, principal;
Douglas Horley, junior high student assistant

Ipeka Christian Bilingual School in Puri Indah is fully
accredited by the National Plus Association. Classes are offered
from seventh to 12th grade, and follows the New South Wales Board
of Studies curriculum, with the New South Wales HSC awarded to
year 12 students upon graduation. Ipeka website: www.ipeka.org.