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The aim of this paper is to analyse the development of the written production of six groups of learners (N=520) in a formal instruction setting and to investigate the effects of onset and age on the levels of attainment in writing performance. The written production was measured after 200, 416 and 726 hours of instruction. Both intragroup and intergroup analyses were carried out (a) to analyse the long-term effects of an earlier start in second language writing in a school setting, (b) to analyse the patterns of development between the four writing component measures depending on learners’ age, and (c) to test whether the relationships found between the measures in the four areas of writing differ depending on learners’ age group. This study concludes that (a) at the end of the instructional period Early Starters still have not surpassed Late Starters, (b) there seem to be two patterns of writing performance depending on learners’ age, and (c) the correlations found between the writing component indicators change depending on learners’ age group.

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