The Effects Of Chinese Use On The English Writing Process Of Non-english Majors

Second language (L2) writing is a complicated process. The quality of L2 written products is affected by various factors such as learners'L2 proficiency and their first language (L1) thinking. Previous studies concerning L2 writing focused mainly on the comparison between L1 writing and L2 writing, emphasizing the similarities between the two, and studies exploring the unique features of L2 writing were rare. One prominent characteristic of the L2 writing process is that L2 writing is a bilingual process. On the basis of Wang Wenyu and Wen Qiufang's (2002) study of the English writing process by English majors, this study probed into the effects of L1 (Chinese) use on the L2 (English) writing process by non-English majors, expecting to provide some implications for L2 writing instruction to non-English majors.This study selected 20 second-year non-English majors as the subjects. Data were gathered through the think-aloud method. All the data in the research were obtained from the subjects'written products, think-aloud protocols, questionnaires and later interviews. First, all the subjects completed a writing task with the think-aloud method, and then answered questions in the questionnaire, which was followed by interviews including questions about their responses to the questionnaire. Then, subjects'think-aloud protocols were collected and classified, calculating the proportion of Chinese use in each thinking activity of their writing, and four experienced teachers were invited to score each subject's written products. Finally, all the data obtained were put into a computer and SPSS (16.0) was used to analyze the data.Through the qualitative and quantitative analyses of the data and information obtained, the following findings were reached in this research:In the first place, it is verified that L2 writing is a bilingual process and with the improvement of L2 proficiency, the amount of L1 use in the L2 writing process reduces. In the present study, the percentage of Chinese use in the English writing process reaches as high as 53.24% for non-English majors. Secondly, the use of L1 in each thinking activity of the L2 writing process has various effects on the whole writing process. Through the correlation analysis between the proportion of L1 use in each thinking activity and the final quality of the writing, it is found that the percentage of L1 use in the sentence-forming activity of L2 writing is negatively correlated with the final quality of the writing, while in the editing process the amount of L1 use is positively correlated with the final quality of the L2 writing. Finally, it is reflected in the questionnaires and interviews that students'L1 use in the L2 writing process is mainly due to their low L2 proficiency, their being accustomed to L1 thinking and the lack of L2 thinking, lack of L2 writing practice, and rare contacts with L2 in the L1 environment.The findings in this study are helpful to a better understanding of the effects of L1 use on the L2 writing process by non-English majors, and are hoped to offer theoretical foundations for L2 writing instruction. By this research it is expected that more researchers will be attracted to conduct more thorough and comprehensive studies, to further promote the development of L2 writing theories.