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6. Genre-Based Instruction
Genre is defined as social construction through language. It is similar to

what Hyland (2003: 21) said that genre refers to abstract, socially recognized
ways of using language. It is based on the assumptions that the features of a

similar group of texts depend on the social context of their creations and use, and

that those features can be described in a way that relates a text to others like it and
to the choices and constraints acting on text producers.

In foreign or second-language teaching, a genre-based approach refers to
teaching learners how to make use of language patterns to achieve a coherent,

purposeful composition (Hyland, 2003). Hyland adds that the genre-based
approach has largely drawn on the theory of systematic functional grammar

originally developed by Halliday. This theory addresses the relationship between

language and its social functions and sets out to show how language is a system
from which users make choices to utter meanings.

In other words, the genre-based approach focuses heavily on the reader

and on the conventions that a piece of writing needs to follow in order to be
successfully accepted by its readership (Muncie, 2002). Using the genre-based

approach, a teacher is required to get learners to write or produce a text or
composition (that is, an academic essay) on the basis of purpose, organization and

audience (Paltridge, 2001). Thus, a genre-based approach to the teaching of
language skills is one in which language is viewed as both process and product of

the whole process of receptive and productive skills.

a. Principles of Genre-Based Approach (GBA)
There are some approaches that have been applied previously to teach

writing skills. Hartati (2017: 294) suggests that the conferencing approach can be
practiced to promote writing abilities. Aunurrahman, Hamied, & Emilia (2017:

76) suggest that the systemic functional linguistic in a genre-based approach is
able to improve students‘ academic writing competences. The rhetorical

competences give effects toward students‘ writing ability. Therefore, students‘

rhetorical competences should be improved through communicative language
teaching approach (Bian & Wang, 2016: 20) and the genre-based approach

(Nurlaelawati & Novianti, 2017: 160-166).

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