Dictation or composition: questioning spelling instruction in the United Arab Emirates

since spelling in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is taught through dictation and composition, this study explores and compares spelling inventions that occur in students' writing in such contexts. Samples of dictation and composition were collected and data were categorized in three linguistic levels for analyses: (1) phonological level, (2) grammatical level, and (3) orthographic level. This study examines the essence of writing instruction and questions the use of dictation as a writing improvement tool. In practice, this study invites language teachers to rethink the use of dictation as the sole evaluation tool. In addition, it will serve as a resource for Arabic teachers in teaching, evaluating, and understanding invented spelling and the writing process. Many findings emerged from this study. Spelling inventions in both contexts primarily reflected the phonological level; writing composition focused students' attention on the construction of meaning rather than on writing every word accurately; and compositions were found appropriate outlets for students to write spontaneously using their knowledge of information. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]