The Study On The Effects Of Written Languaging On Grammatical Accuracy In Junior High School Students' English Writing

According to the framework of Sociocultural Theory(SCT)proposed by Vygosky,language performs a crucial function in learning.On the basis of the theory,Swain put forward the concept of languaging in Second Language Acquisition(SLA)in 2006.As a cognitive tool,languaging(speaking and writing)is a thinking activity to accomplish complicated cognition through language and a dynamic cognitive process of understanding meaning and constructing knowledge.In 2009,Suzuki took the lead in introducing written languaging into the field of SLA.In this study,written languaging is defined as an act of language,presented in written form,though.By written languaging.the subjects are able to translate their thoughts and ideas into written words,so as to reflect and deliberate on the difficulties they encounter in English writing.The present study explores the effects of written languaging on grammatical accuracy in English writing.Based on the previous research results and the purpose of this study,here are three research questions:(1)What are the effects of written languaging on grammatical accuracy in junior high school students' English writing?(2)What is the relationship between type of written languaging episodes(WLEs)and revision,as measured by the number and type of WLEs?(3)How do learners view the role of written languaging in boosting the efficiency of direct written corrective feedback(WCF)and consequently enhancing writing accuracy?In this study,quantitative and qualitative approaches were adopted to explore the effects of written languaging on grammatical accuracy in English writing via pretest and posttest and interview.The subjects of this study were 80 Chinese junior high school students who use English as a foreign language and have been enrolled merely for one month,including 32 boys and 48 girls with an average age between 12-13.Coming from two parallel classes,they were divided into two sides as the experimental group and the control group respectively,with 40 students each.The experimental group received direct written corrective feedback and produced written languaging and the control group solely received direct written corrective feedback without producing written languaging.In the pretest,both groups were requested to write a composition on the same topic.The experimental group was required to write down their explanations and reflections on their linguistic errors.The control group was merely required to read the corrective feedback without producing written languaging.In the posttest,the two groups would revise the composition they wrote in the pretest.At the same time,in order to further explore the effects of written languaging on the grammatical accuracy of English writing,the author interviewed 12 students in the experimental group after the posttest.Through the analysis of quantitative and qualitative data,the following findings were obtained:First,both groups made significant progress in grammatical accuracy in their English writing.However,the experimental group achieved better results than the control group.Second,the students in the experimental group could actively participate in the written languaging activities.In types of written languaging episodes,students tended to produce grammar-related written languaging episodes,followed by lexis-related written languaging episodes.Third,according to the interview data,most of the learners held an optimistic attitude towards the role of written languaging in boosting the efficiency of direct written corrective feedback and consequently enhancing writing accuracy.These findings support the argument that written languaging improves learners'grammatical accuracy in English writing.Therefore,English teachers may encourage students to reflect on the linguistic problems they have encountered in English writing after class.