The Importance of Dictation in Developing Language and Literacy Skills

What is Dictation?

Dictation in English is referred to as the speaking or reading aloud of words for someone else to write down. It is also called the process of transcribing the spoken text. The aim of this process is to fully understand and then to re-convey the meaning of a passage that you heard with the correct grammar and spelling.

How is Dictation Used?

One person who is dictating speaks and another who is taking dictation writes down the words as they are spoken. It is widely used in phonics to help children develop their language and literacy skills. Dictation is also defined as the action of giving orders authoritatively or categorically.

Importance of Dictation in Education

From the perspective of a teacher, dictations can be done at any level and can easily be altered to make them more or less challenging according to the learning level of their class. It is used as a basic test to evaluate the language skills of the students.

Based on what you know about the root dict, what does the word dictation mean?

The root "dict", means to say, or to speak. So dictation would mean saying, or speaking words to be written down. Hope this helps! :)