Word Processing Technology and the Process of Writing

Word Processing Technology and the Process of Writing

Word processors have been in use in our country and across the globe for quite some time. Elementary school students, High school Students, as well as College and University students all use them everyday to produce written texts from many different genres. Pens and paper have been forgotten. Has the formal process of writing also been forgotten? Have word processors changed the way people write – permanently (I misspelled that word and fixed it using spell check)?

The most recognized definition, if there is one, of a writing process was formulated by Flowers and Hayes in 1980. They were two of the first theorists to formally recognize that there are basically three distinct types of cognitive writing processes. The first is the process of planning. This is where the writer will decide what to say and exactly how to say it. The next step is the actual generation of written text. This process occurs when the writer uses their plan to produce an actual piece of writing. The last process in the Flowers and Hayes model is revision. This is where the writer makes all possible revisions to improve the quality of their written work. These three processes do not appear to happen in any specific order. There is no set pattern to follow. The order with which the writer engages in and completes each process, as well as the amount of time each writer spends performing each process, will vary depending upon the organization methods of the writer. The writer will look at their own individual goals and decide how to manipulate the various processes to best meet their agenda. Theoretically, these students could be moving their work forward in a purposeful direction by backtracking through a given process. This model enforced the idea that writing is a recursive process rather than a straightforward linear process incapable of being altered. The Flowers and Hayes model has often been referred to as the “writing process approach.” Of course there are many other credible models for the writing process, but this definition suits my purposes by providing a backdrop for discussing the changes made by word processors on a long accepted, though often debated, definition of the writing process (Barrow 13-18).

Word processors are good for storing data, manipulating and formatting individual characters which make up the text of a final written document, and improving the writing mechanics of student work as a whole.