The Role of Writing in EFL Students’ Learning from Texts: A Case Study in a Thai University
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
This article reports research findings from the study which explored how writing may foster EFL (English as a Foreign Language) students’ learning of content and language from English texts. The focus of this article is on language learning through writing associated with reading. The first phase of the study involved naturalistic observations over 4 months of 1 Thai EFL instructor and 15 female undergraduate students in a reading class at a major university in Thailand, interviews with the instructor and her students, then examination of samples of class materials and students’ writing. In addition, for one month the students kept written logs of their uses of writing in connection with reading. In the second phase of the research, the students performed reading and writing tasks while thinking aloud, then I interviewed them about their uses of writing in their reading.
Analyses of the oral and written data indicate that their writing contributed to the students’ text-based learning through combinations of: (a) writing allowing students to notice gaps in their knowledge; (b) writing prompting students to assume the role of writers; (c) writing involving careful thinking; (d) writing urging students to review, rethink, think further about, and use information in the source texts and, sometimes, study related texts; and (e) whatever was written down being available for review, reflection, and revision. Writing before and after reading as well as self-initiated writing while reading showed the potential to enhance students’ learning from texts by drawing their attention to text language forms and other related forms, so they could use them strategically and familiarizing students with text characteristics. The descriptions in this article may help guide EFL policy makers, curriculum designers, material developers, and instructors to make informed decisions about the benefits for students’ learning from their incorporating certain types of writing into EFL reading lessons.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms: Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).References
Bernhardt, E. (1991). Reading development in a second language: Theoretical, empirical, and classroom perspectives. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation.
Carson, J. (1990). Reading-writing connections: Toward a description for second language learners. In B. Kroll (Ed.), Second language writing: Research insights for the classroom(pp. 88-107). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Cumming, A. (1990). Metalinguistic and ideational thinking in second language composing. Written Communication, 7, 482-511.
Cumming, A. (1992). Instructional routines in ESL composition teaching: A case study of three teachers. Journal of Second Language Writing, 1, 17-35.
Elley, W. (1991). Acquiring literacy in a second language: The effect of book-based programs. Language Learning, 41, 375-477.
Ferris, D., & Hedgcock, J. (1998). Teaching ESL composition: Purposes, process, and practice. Mahwah, NJ: L. Erlbaum.
Foucault, M. (1977). What is an author? In D. Bouchard (Ed.), Language, counter-memory, practice: Selected essays and interviews (pp. 113-138). Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Goldman, S. (1997). Learning from text: Reflections on the past and suggestions for the future. Discourse Processes, 23, 357-398.
Harley, B. (1992). Patterns of second language development in French immersion. French Langauge Studies, 2, 159-183.
Harley,B. (1993). Instructional strategies and SLA in early French immersion. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 15, 245-259.
Harley, B., Allen, P., Cummins, J., & Swain, M. (Eds.). (1990). The development of second language proficiency. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Harley, B., & Swain, M. (1978). An analysis of the verb system by young learners of French. Interlanguage Studies Bulletin, 3, 35-79.
Harley, B., & Swain, M. (1984). The interlanguage of immersion students and its implications for second language teaching. In A. Davies, C. Criper, & A. Howatt (Eds.), Interlanguage(pp. 291-311). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Hawkins, R., & Towell, R. (1992). Second language acquisition research and the second language acquisition of French. French Language Studies, 2, 97-121.
Izumi, S., Bigelow, M., Fujiwara, M., & Sarah, F. (1999). Testing the output hypothesis: Effects of output on noticing and second language acquisition. Studies in Second Langauge Aquisition, 21, 421-452.
Kachru, B. (1985). Standards, codification and sociolinguistic realism: The English language in the outer circle. In R. Quirk & H. G. Widdowson (Eds.), English in the world: Teaching and learning the language and literatures(pp. 11-30). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Kasper, L. (1996). Writing to read: Enhancing ESL students' reading proficiency through written response to text. Teaching English in the Two-year College, 23, 25-33.
Katznelson, H., Perpignan, H., & Rubin, B. (2001). What develops along with the development of second language writing? Exploring the "by products". Journal of Second Language Writing, 10, 141-159.
Kowal, M., & Swain, M. (1997). From semantic to syntactic processing: How can we promote metalinguistic awareness in the French immersion classroom? In R. K. Johnson & M. Swain (Eds.), Immersion education: International perspectives (pp. 284-309). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
Langer, J., & Applebee, A. (1987). How writing shapes thinking: A study of teaching and learning. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.
LaPierre, D. (1994). Language output in a cooperative learning setting: Determining its effects on second language learning.Unpublished M.A. thesis, University of Toronto, Toronto.
Lapkin, S., & Swain, M. (1990). French immersion research agenda for the 90s. Canadian Modern Language Review, 46(638-674).
Long, M. (1991). Focus on form: A design feature in language teaching methodology. In K. de Bot, R. Ginsberge, & C. Kramsch (Eds.), Foreign language research in cross-cultural perspective. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Marshall, J. (1987). The effects of writing on students' understanding of literary text. Research in the Teaching of English, 21, 30-63.
Nagy, W., Herman, P., & Anderson, R. (1985). Learning words from context. Reading Research Quarterly, 20, 233-253.
Newell, G. (1984). Learning while writing in two content areas: A case study/protocol analysis. Research in the Teaching of English, 18, 265-287.
Olson, D. (1994). The world on paper. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Pennycook, A. (1996). Borrowing others' words: Text, ownership, memory, and plagiarism. TESOL Quarterly, 30, 201-230.
Penrose, A. (1986). Representing writing tasks: Effects of learning through writing.Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA.
Pica, T., Holliday, L., Lewis, L., & Morgenthaler, L. (1989). Comprehensible input as an outcome of linguistic demands on the learner. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 11, 63-90.
Raimes, A. (1986). Teaching ESL writing: Fitting what we do to what we know. The Writing Instructor, 5, 153-166.
Reid, J. (1993). Historical perspectives on writing and reading in the ESL classroom. In J. Carson & L. Ilona (Eds.), Reading in the composition classroom: Second language perspectives(pp. 33-60). Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle Publishers.
Richards, J., Platt, J., & Platt, H. (1992). Longman dictionary of language teaching & applied linguistics. Essex: Longman Group UK Limited.
Schmidt, R. (1990). The role of consciousness in second language learning. Applied Linguistics, 11, 129-158.
Schmidt, R., &Frota, S. (1986). Developing basic conversational ability in a second language: A case-study of an adult learner. In R. Day (Ed.), Talking to learn: Conversation in second language acquisition.
Rowley, MA: Newbury House Publishers.Scholfield, P. (1997).Vocabulary reference works in foreign language learning. In N. Schmitt & M. McCarthy (Eds.), Vocabulary: Description, acquisition and pedagogy (pp. 279-302). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Spack, R. (1996). Guidelines: A cross cultural reading-writing text. New York: St. Martin's Press.Swain, M. (1995). Three functions of output in second language learning. In G. Cook & B. Seidlhofer (Eds.), Principles and practice in the study of language (pp. 125-144). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Swain, M. (1998). Focus on form through conscious reflection. In C. Doughty & J. Williams (Eds.), Focus on form in classroom second language acquisition (pp. 64-81). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Swain, M., Brooks, L., & Tocalli-Beller, A. (2002). Peer-peer dialogue as a means of second language learning. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 22, 171-185.
Swain, M., & Lapkin, S. (1995). Problems in output and the cognitive processes they generate: A step towards second language learning. Applied Linguistics, 16, 371-391.
Swain, M., & Lapkin, S. (1998). Interaction and second language learning: Two adolescent French immersion students working together. Modern Language Journal, 83, 320-327.
Swain, M., & Lapkin, S. (in press). Talking it through: Two French immersion learners response to reformulation. International Journal of Educational Research.
Swain, M., & Lapkin, S. (2001). Focus on form through collaborative dialogue: Exploring task effects. In M. Bygate, P. Skehan, & M. Swain (Eds.), Researching pedagogic tasks: Second language learning teaching and testing(pp. 99-113). Essex: Pearson Education Limited.
Wongsothorn, A., Sukumolson, S., Chinthammit, P., Noparumpa, P., & Rattanotayanonth, P. (1996). National profiles of language education. Bangkok: Chulalongkorn University Language Institute.
Zamel, V. (1992). Writing one's way into reading. TESOL Quarterly, 26, 463-485.