| Studies investigating the effects of L2 written feedback on compositions have employed several devices to draw learners' attention to the feedback provided. The major assumption is that feedback draws learners' attention to the errors made, leading to grammatical accuracy of the errors in subsequent production. However, in addition to inconsistent findings, these studies have several serious methodological limitations that affect the internal validity of the findings. This study attempts to answer whether exposure to L2 input via different types of written feedback has a differential effect on learners' immediate and delayed written production of the uses of the Spanish noun-adjective agreement under a cognitive, attentional framework. Process measures and technological devices are employed to improve the robustness of the research design. The study also investigates whether a relationship exists between the different types of feedback and the level of awareness attained during the interaction with the feedback, and whether the different levels of awareness observed are related to learners' performance. Participants are students in first-year college-level Spanish classes, randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups. A pretest-posttest-delayed posttest design is used in the study. The treatment is comprised of a picture description task in which participants describe a series of pictures with objects of different colors. Implicit group receives feedback in the form of capitalizing the mistakes; explicit group receives feedback by means of a metalinguistic explanation of the mistake; interactive group receives interactive feedback; the control group receives no feedback. Assessment tasks include a controlled and a semi-open production test. Measurement of attention and awareness is addressed by means of think aloud protocols. The results indicate that the provision of written feedback to learners' written production has a beneficial effect on subsequent written production. However, no conclusive assertion can be made about the beneficial effects of one type of feedback over another. Also, the provision of feedback leads to higher levels of awareness of the target form. Higher levels of awareness were substantially more effective than lower levels of awareness in helping learners to produce old and new exemplars. |
