William Cope
Nithin Kalorth
Jako Olivier
Ida Brandão
Mitchell PetersMultimodal Literacies MOOC’s Updates
Exploring the Process Approach to Writing through Chomsky and Halliday’s Perspectives
One of the most effective and widely used approaches to learning to write is the Process Approach, which emphasizes writing as a recursive and dynamic process rather than a single product. This approach aligns with both Chomsky’s and Halliday’s linguistic theories, though from different perspectives.
Chomsky’s theory of generative grammar suggests that humans have an innate capacity for language, which influences their ability to generate and structure sentences. In writing, this means that learners naturally develop grammatical structures but refine them through feedback and revision. The Process Approach supports this idea by allowing writers to engage in prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing, helping them fine-tune their expression over multiple iterations rather than expecting perfection in a single attempt.
Halliday, on the other hand, views language as a social semiotic system—meaning that writing is not just about rules but about making meaning in different contexts. In the Process Approach, this is reflected in how writers consider audience, purpose, and genre, making choices about structure, vocabulary, and tone based on social and communicative needs. Halliday’s functional grammar emphasizes that meaning is shaped by context and function, which aligns with the Process Approach’s emphasis on revision and adaptation based on feedback and situational demands.
This approach is particularly relevant in multimodal writing environments, where writing is not just about words but also integrates visuals, digital media, and interactive elements. The iterative nature of the Process Approach allows writers to experiment, adapt, and refine their work, making it an ideal method for today’s evolving digital communication landscape.
By understanding writing as both a cognitive process (Chomsky) and a social practice (Halliday), the Process Approach enables learners to become more reflective, adaptable, and effective communicators across various contexts.
Chomsky on Language and Nature: https://newlearningonline.com/literacies/chapter-10/chomsky-on-language-and-nature
Halliday on Meaning: https://newlearningonline.com/literacies/chapter-10/halliday-on-meaning
The Process Approach to Writing: A Pedagogical Analysis through Chomsky and Halliday's Perspectives
Writing is thinking on paper. – William Zinsser
The Process Approach to Writing is a paradigm of instruction that emphasizes the idea of writing as an ever-changing and recursive activity rather than merely as a terminal outcome. This model provides a comprehensive view of building authentic communication skills in both conventional and digital settings, matching Halliday's and Chomsky's theorizing on language.
Successful instruction in writing has incorporated the phases of pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing in a cyclical manner. Yet there is a heavy recursive emphasis in this approach, parallel to the natural developmental processes of language, where students test, modify, and hone their interpersonal skills, relying on feedback and revision rather than an expectation for initial perfection. Unlike conventional approaches that focus on final products, this program allows writers to iterate over their ideas, developing grammar and refining expression over multiple drafts.
This theory embodies both Chomskyan and Hallidayan linguistic principles. Chomsky's theory of generative grammar attempts to explain the human ability for natural language development, whereby authors may develop and construct sentences by means of practice and feedback as an innate ability. Halliday's social semiotic point of view broadens this scope, acknowledging that writing is a contextual means through which meaning is made. The Process Approach maintains that grammatical and structural decisions must, by contrast, take the social-communicative situation into account instead of following rules, thus incorporating audience, purpose, and genre.
It is pretty effective nowadays especially in these kinds of multimodal writing situations where authors are required to have an interactive part or some digital media imagery. Iteratively one can try different modes and changes based on the audience responses. As the Process Approach helps enable students to be reflective, flexible communicators in a variety of traditional and digital contexts by viewing writing as both a cognitive process (Chomsky) and a social practice (Halliday). As they will acquire skills necessary for changing communication environments.
Practical training spoken in the academic language forms with efficiency. The way one may prepare himself or herself against anything dealing with the forms of communication: traditional and digital proving that communication can also take the shape of a contextual social activity and natural cognitive ability as seen in the perspectives of Chomsky and Halliday.