THE ROLE OF USING MODEL ESSAYS AS A FEEDBACK TOOL ON DEVELOPING GRAMMATICAL ACCURACY OF IRANIAN EFL LEARNERS' WRITING PERFORMANCE

Over the past few decades of research on teaching writing to ESL/EFL learners, a number of issues have appeared, some of which remained controversial in spite of the reams of data on language writing. One of these hotly debated topics is the positive role of using model essays as a feedback tool on developing grammatical accuracy of Iranian EFL learners‘ writing performance. Most of the researchers believe that learners should be encouraged to use model essays so that they can improve their writing performances through creating a relationship between reading and writing. The main purpose of the present study was to investigate the role of using model essays as a feedback tool on developing grammatical accuracy of Iranian EFL learners‘ writing performance. The participants of the present study included 3 rd term English majors of Tabriz Azad University, taking part in two separate classes, one as the control group and the other as the experimental group. Each class consisted of 40 students (80 in general, 15 males and 65 females) from various age groups ranging from 20 to 23. A TOEFL proficiency test was used to ensure homogeneity of the participants. Based on the results of TOEFL test, those participants placed between one standard deviation above and below the mean were selected as the main participants. Then, the scores of grammar section of TOEFL test was taken into account to see whether there was any significant difference between the two groups at the beginning of the study. The two groups were given a writing task in which a topic was given to the learners and they had to write a composition. The students‘ writings were comparedin terms of grammatical accuracy to see if the two groups were equal or different at the pre-test. The results of the Independent samples t-test revealed that the two groups were almost equal in terms of grammatical accuracy. After the pre-test stage, the treatment in the form of model essays was given to the experimental group for a period of time. The treatment included asking the participants to study the model essays chosen and take notes or underline those parts which attracted their attention such as lexicon. A post-test of writing was given to the groups in order to explore if the grammatical accuracy had any significant rise in the experimental group. The independent samples t-test was run to compare the two means obtained from the two groups. Results showed that the mean score of accuracy in the experimental group was significantly higher than that in the control group after the treatment. In fact, using model essays was an effective way for improving the grammatical accuracy in the experimental group. The study had several pedagogical implications for English courses in general and writing courses in particular.

[1]  John M. Swales,et al.  Informal elements in English academic writing: threats or opportunities for advanced non-native speakers? , 2014 .

[2]  Johanne Myles,et al.  Second Language Writing and Research: The Writing Process and Error Analysis in Student Texts. , 2002 .

[3]  Parastou Gholami Pasand,et al.  Process-Product Approach to Writing: the Effect of Model Essays on EFL Learners’ Writing Accuracy , 2013 .

[4]  D. Ferris.  Student Reactions to Teacher Response in Multiple‐Draft Composition Classrooms* , 1995 .

[5]  Rula L. Diab,et al.  EFL University Students' Preferences for Error Correction and Teacher Feedback on Writing , 2005 .

[6]  Jean Chandler,et al.  THE EFFICACY OF VARIOUS KINDS OF ERROR FEEDBACK FOR IMPROVEMENT IN THE ACCURACY AND FLUENCY OF L2 STUDENT WRITING , 2003 .

[7]  John S. Hedgcock,et al.  Feedback on feedback: Assessing learner receptivity to teacher response in L2 composing , 1994 .

[8]  Stephen J. Gaies,et al.  T-Unit Analysis in Second Language Research: Applications, Problems and Limitations. , 1980 .

[9]  Concha Furnborough,et al.  Adult beginner distance language learner perceptions and use of assignment feedback , 2009 .

[10]  A. Tickoo.  Re-Examining the Developmental Sequence Hypothesis for Past Tense Marking in ESL: Transfer Effects and Implications. , 2001 .

[11]  Ilona Leki,et al.  Second Language Writing: Coaching from the margins: issues in written response , 1990 .

[12]  Charlene Polio,et al.  Measures of Linguistic Accuracy in Second Language Writing Research , 1997 .

[13]  Michael Khirallah.  SECOND LANGUAGE WRITERS' TEXT: LINGUISTIC AND RHETORICAL FEATURES , 2004, Studies in Second Language Acquisition.

[14]  Richard K. Johnson.  Open Access , 2005 .

[15]  M. Bagheri,et al.  The Role of Using IELTS Model Essays in Improving Learners’ Writing and their Awareness of Writing Features , 2009 .

[16]  J. Lemke.  Across the Scales of Time: Artifacts, Activities, and Meanings in Ecosocial Systems , 2000 .

[17]  Richard A. Carlson,et al.  Learning to Write in a Genre: What Student Writers Take from Model Texts. , 1995 .

[18]  P. Skehan.  语言学习认知法 = A cognitive approach to language learning , 1998 .

[19]  Estela Ene,et al.  Grammatical accuracy and learner autonomy in advanced writing , 2006 .

[20]  D. Larsen-Freeman.  The Emergence of Complexity, Fluency, and Accuracy in the Oral and Written Production of Five Chinese Learners of English , 2006 .

[21]  P. Robinson.  Attention, Memory, and the “Noticing” Hypothesis , 1995 .

[22]  D. Gentner,et al.  A framework for a cognitive theory of writing , 1980 .

[23]  John M. Swales,et al.  Genre Analysis: English in Academic and Research Settings , 1993 .

[24]  Ken Hyland,et al.  Second Language Writing: Second language writers , 2003 .

[25]  Tricia Hedge,et al.  Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom , 2000 .

[26]  John Bitchener,et al.  The Effect of Different Types of Corrective Feedback on ESL Student Writing. , 2005 .

[27]  Ann M. Johns,et al.  Text, Role and Context: Developing Academic Literacies , 1997 .

[28]  Ute Knoch,et al.  The value of written corrective feedback for migrant and international students , 2008 .

[29]  George Hillocks,et al.  Research on Written Composition: New Directions for Teaching. , 1986 .

[30]  V. Ramanathan,et al.  Cultures of Writing: An Ethnographic Comparison of L1 and L2 University Writing/Language Programs , 1995 .

[31]  Rod Ellis,et al.  Interpretation-based grammar teaching , 1993 .

[32]  Donald S. Qi,et al.  Exploring the Role of Noticing in a Three-Stage Second Language Writing Task. , 2001 .

[33]  Elizabeth A. Stolarek.  Prose Modeling and Metacognition: The Effect of Modeling on Developing a Metacognitive Stance toward Writing. , 1994 .

[34]  Ken Hyland,et al.  Second Language Writing , 2003 .

[35]  Claire J. Kramsch,et al.  Out of the Woods: Emerging Traditions in the Teaching of Writing , 1991 .

[36]  Mariangela Treglia.  Teacher-Written Commentary in College Writing Composition: How Does It Impact Student Revisions?. , 2009 .

[37]  Brian Paltridge,et al.  Genre and the language learning classroom , 2001 .

[39]  V. Goby.  Arguments against providing model answers in the writing skills classrooms : the Singaporean case. , 1999 .

[40]  Carolyn R. Miller.  Genre as social action , 1984 .