New Maltese writing textbook: K-T-B: Il-Ktieb li jgħinek tikteb pass pass

For the new generations, most often, written Maltese remains an unmasterable skill. The proficiency levels of written Maltese are plummeting; Maltese language exam results are, sadly, wonting. And unfortunately stu- dents are giving up on the written exam even before they sit for it.

For this reason, Merlin Publishers have just published KTB, a textbook on writing skills with the aim of giving students from the first to the last form of secondary school, a no-panic, simple to use, step-by-step manual towards effective writing.

KTB is, in fact, the first book of its kind about writing skills in Maltese at secondary level and breaks down what students see as a daunting and complex skill - writing - into manageable lessons. It makes writing in Maltese as masterable as any other learning outcome, as long as it is broken down into intelligible and approachable pieces.

The book covers all writing forms required by the Maltese syllabus at secondary level in detail and, crucially, in a fun and engaging manner: Il-kitbiet ittwal (which include narrative, descriptive, argumentative, expository texts); Il-kitbiet ilqosra (which include letter and report writing); reviews; biographies and autobiographies; instructions; dialogue; adverts; invitations; captions and more.

Moreover, it also has separate chapters on how to write effective introductions and conclusions which, as we all know, are the main elements that attract the examiner’s eye and can be a source of high marks.

Among the elements that make KTB such a modern textbook is that it takes into consideration the age of social media. No texty, bulky layouts for the new Instagenerations. Instead, topics are tackled concisely, in a very fresh, irreverent layout, propped up by Francesca Grech’s sketchy, diary-like illustrations. A speedometer next to each exercise indicates the difficulty level - both in terms of which year of secondary it’s appropriate for, as well as the different abilities of the students

KTB also carries plenty of examples from contemporary fiction, such as the bestselling Sqaq l-Infern and Irvin Vella series, and is dotted with references to reallife contemporary icons from Harry Potter to Mark Zuckerberg, from Brad Pitt to our national treasure, Ira Losco.

Of course, all throughout students are constantly reminded not to replicate the lazy shorthand we are all getting used to in social media writing. Examiners do not want to see smileys or BRB or THX abbreviations in formal writing ;) KTB can be purchased from all leading bookshops or directly online from merlinpublishers.com Written by Shanna Spiteri and Clifford Zahra Illustrations by Francesca Grech