A REVIEW ON PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS’ NARRATIVE ESSAY WRITING SKILLS: A FOCUS ON AN INTERVENTION BASED ON THINKING MAPS

Abstract

In this study, the researchers reviewed the current literature of Malay essay writing that highlighted most students were lacking the essential skills to write good narrative essays, with most of their works lacking depth, elaborations, strong contents, coherence, and grammatical integrity. Against this backdrop, the researchers proposed a teaching and learning intervention with the use of thinking maps as a learning tool for the teaching and learning process of Malay narrative essay writing based on the year-five Malay Language curriculum by focusing on three principles of the writing of children’s stories, namely curiosity, challenge, and suspense. With such a thinking tool, teachers can help their students to search for and organize ideas for their essays in a structured, systematic fashion, the infusion of which can help them create interesting, moving stories. From a grammatical standpoint, students’ essays will consist of cohesive sentences and coherent paragraphs, which makes reading a smooth, enjoyable experience to the reader.