This research investigates the changes in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' psychological attributes in relation to awareness of the lexicogrammatical features and generic structures of a discussion genre essay. This was achieved by implementing a genre-based approach to text-based writing lessons during a 15week course. The following lesson procedure was implemented: stage (1): modeling and deconstruction of a text, stage (2): writing of target texts, stage (3): genre analysis of peers' essays, and stage (4): writing of an analysis reflection. The results indicated specific improvements in genre-based writing, particularly among lowproficiency English learners. Results suggest that their understanding of "interpersonal meaning" such as modal verbs improved. Improvements in the use of modal auxiliaries were also noted, in that the word "should" did not appear in prewriting texts; however, the frequency improved in post-writing texts, especially in the final paragraph, which comprised the writers' opinions and suggestions.
This study explored how 14 foreign-language writers at a university in Japan changed their genre awareness of discussion genre texts (particularly argumentative essays) during a 15-week systemic functional linguistics course consisting of text-based writing lessons assigned as part of a teaching and learning cycle. To obtain in-depth quantitative and qualitative insights into changes in the students' awareness of genre and writing skills, pre-and post-surveys and self-reflection written texts were administered and analyzed. Twelve previously proposed criteria (covering generic structure, lexicogrammar, and multidimensional analyses of attitudes and performance) were used to analyze the self-reflection texts. The preliminary results showed that the students' understanding of generic structure and lexicogrammar improved, especially their comprehension of the second and third paragraphs of the target genre text. The preliminary results of the correlation analysis illustrated that the increased understanding of lexicogrammatical features, such as textual meaning, interpersonal meaning, and experiential meaning, was related to their self-efficacy and confidence in their writing skills. The preliminary analysis results indicated that that applying a teaching and learning cycle and a genre-based approach to writing instruction has the potential to enhance EFL students' awareness of generic structure and interpersonal meaning in writing argumentative essays.
In light of contemporary pedagogical methods, the flipped classroom has been recognised as an effective pedagogy in English as a Foreign Language (EFL). This study employed a quasi-experimental one-group research design to investigate the impact of flipped learning on Omani EFL learners’ grammar and to examine students’ perceptions on the flipped classroom. An intact group of students (n=28) enrolled at the foundation programme in Arab Open University-Oman was randomly selected. Seven videos on English grammar were developed and shared with the students prior to the class. A varaiety of activities were conducted in the class following task-based language teaching. Students met for 8 lessons over the period of 8 weeks. Pre-test, post-test and semi-structured interviews were used in the study. The findings indicated that flipped learning had a positive impact on students’ understanding and usage of English grammar. Students’ perceptions on the flipped approach were positive. The study also provided pedagogical insights for the flipped classroom and recommendations for future research.
The concept of Communities of Practice (CoPs) has attracted interest for over two decades and has been actively reexamined from a variety of perspectives, especially in the field of education. However, limited research has been conducted into the concept of one EFL classroom-based teaching and learning community constituting one CoP. This paper discusses the potential applicability of the concept of CoPs to the EFL classroom and investigates the following question: "Can a certain number of students and their instructor participating in a group population be defined as a CoP?" The results of the study showed that considering an EFL classroom in its entirety as a CoP is possible, and an expansion of the definition of CoPs to include EFL pedagogical communities is necessary.
This study examined the progress of English as a foreign language (EFL) writers using the instructional framework of systemic functional linguistics (SFL) and the communities of practice (CoPs) model. The study participants comprised 11 first-year undergraduate students in Japan with intermediate-level English proficiency who were exposed to SFL in a single EFL classroom (CoP). The participants' genre understanding and meaning-making decisions when writing discussion essays were studied over two semester-long courses. To do so, their developmental changes were analyzed using pre-and post-instructional writing tasks. In particular, their ability to convey interpersonal meaning, such as through the use of modal verbs, was examined and compared between the pre-and post-tasks. To triangulate the findings, participants' genre awareness in relation to discussion essays was also examined using in-depth qualitative analysis of their self-reflective texts and peer assessments, based on a grounded theory approach. In the pre-writing task, it was apparent that the learners lacked understanding of the components of discussion essay writing. However, analysis of their post-instructional tasks revealed that most had begun to apply the language components required to convey interpersonal meaning in their discussion genre texts. These results suggest that the changes in learner's genre awareness and knowledge affected the lexicogrammatical features they used when writing discussion essays. Thus, this study concludes that applying the SFL framework to writing instruction enhanced EFL learners' awareness of textual meaning and their understanding of the function of discussion essay texts.
This mixed-methods study explored the effects of employing a genre-based approach (GBA) to descriptive report writing on the understanding of text structure and ideational, interpersonal and textual meanings among Japanese university students of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) over a 15-week course divided into three units. Applied within a systemic functional linguistics (SFL) framework, the GBA allowed micro- and macro-analyses of essays from 23 first-year university students with low/high proficiency in English and limited/extensive second-language writing experience. Quantitative analysis collected general impression scores from all students’ essays at three time points using the SFL rubric. Qualitative investigation applied clause structure annotations to identify and analyse the functional parts of the clause from three metafunctional perspectives—ideational, interpersonal and textual—on descriptive genre essays by EFL learners. Lower-proficiency and novice EFL students demonstrated an improved understanding of the content, events and background information of the essay topics (ideational), and the social and power relationships between readers and writers (interpersonal). By comparison, high-proficiency and experienced students demonstrated a better understanding of the structure and coherence of the essay. This study was limited in developing an understanding of the use of pronouns and auxiliary verbs, which should be addressed in future studies.
This study used a genre-based approach within a systemic functional linguistics (SFL) framework to assess the development of English learners' understanding of the discussion genre. Fifty-two undergraduates participated in a semester-long course, divided into three groups by English proficiency level. They were administered surveys at the beginning and end of the semester to assess their choice of appropriate lexicogrammatical features. A structural move analysis of their pre-and post-discussion genre writing task was conducted, and the frequency of-ly adverbs was analysed. The results indicated that learners' understanding of discussion genre structure improved regardless of English proficiency. Depending on English proficiency, different features of lexicogrammatical functions, especially related to interpersonal meaning improved. The post-survey showed that higher-English-proficiency learners' use of auxiliary verbs such as should, will, and can dramatically improved.
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