Environment Construction For Writing Learning

At present, the teaching of the writing skills in elementary and secondary schools in China is mired in problems and difficulties which are reflected in every level of curriculum, textbooks and instruction. If we transfer our perspective from "teaching" to "learning", a fundamental problem will then be disclosed, that is, students'learning of the writing skills is not supported by effective learning environment. To solve this core problem, the dissertation applied the Activity Theory as the theoretical framework and explored the topic of how to construct a learning environment which is conducive to the students'learning of writing skills.The dissertation is composed of three parts, namely, the theoretical part, the construction part and the application part.The first part is about the theoretical framework and exploration of the practical basis. In Chapter One and Chapter Two, related theories were analyzed and the direction of the research was made clear. Based on the practical nature of learning of writing skills, the research selected Activity Theory as the analyzing perspective and then put forward three basic strategies to construct a conducive writing learning environment. First is to integrate the writing skill learning content into specific task-based context; Second is to utilize the intermediate function of different tools and the role of teacher; Third is to construct a learning community of writing skills. The basic strategies can get additional support from related learning theory, instruction theory and linguistic theory. In Chapter Three, the investigation of the writing teaching reality in China was conducted with a aim to target the research. According to the basic strategies mentioned above, the investigation was organized and conducted in16elementary and secondary schools in east, middle, and west China. The investigation result provided reliable evidence for the research and the application of strategies.The second part is about construction of learning environment. It tried to construct a conducive writing learning environment which is infused with the support from contexts, the support from tools and teachers, and the support from learning community.Based on the first strategy, Chapter Four tried to answer the question of how to design a writing learning task. This chapter discussed the restore of writing function, the returning of authentic text and the orientation in the development of writing learning content in the writing process. As for the task context design, the research proposed the basic approaches and styles to set the context.Based on the second strategy, Chapter Five aimed to answer the question of how to design and utilize multiple-tools. This chapter analyzed the thoughts on categorization of scaffolding functions and the approaches to scaffold based on the text styles, process and functions. As to the utilization of related resources, the chapter discussed the strategy of how to present "Change Vs. Not Change" and the strategy of interacting different scaffoldings. The chapter also discussed the two orientations in the design of scoring rubrics and the thought of how to integrate. Students are encouraged to take part in the design of rubrics which can as a result lead their writing learning process. At last, the chapter analyzed the multiple functions teachers can make, and proposed that teachers should apply their help based on the characteristics of each stages in the writing process.Based on the third strategy, Chapter Six tried to answer the question of how to construct a writing learning community. According to the nature of writing learning, the chapter emphasized that learners should be "readers" for each other,"providers" for each other's writing content,"prompters" for each other's expression of experience, and "raters" for each other's writing product. The four aspects should be interrelated and integrated. The chapter disclosed that the premises for interacting writing learning are the expression of learners' knowledge and experience, and the mechanism for making it happen is to provide support and to cause cognitive conflict. To make the mechanism work, assignments should be allocated and rules should be set up. At last, the chapter elaborated that the interaction between learner should be organized according to the needs in different stages of writing learning.The third part is about application of the research. A case study was conducted. Chapter Seven applied the collective case study method to verifying the feasibility and effectiveness of the framework of environment construction for writing learning. An urban school in Shanghai was selected to conduct the research. Three writing teaching units were planned:"the Growing-up Story","Understanding about the Biographies of the Celebrities", and "the Creative Pen". The data from the single class case study and the feedback from the overall case study all reflect that the writing learning environment construed by the researchers effectively supported the students during their writing learning processes. By its successful implementation in practice, the case study also enriched the framework construction theory. That is the elements in the learning environment should be coordinated collectively to bring out the overall effects in supporting the writing learning.The research aimed to pursue the dual purpose of "exploring the new knowledge" and "serving the practical world", and to connect and integrate theory and practice of writing learning.