This study seeks to investigate the relationship between text formality and writing quality by quantifying text formality in EFL English writing. In order to conduct the research, 548 English argumentation compositions were evaluated in terms of the five Coh-Metrix text formality dimensions: narrativity, syntactic simplicity, word concreteness,…

While there is no lack of research on student engagement with feedback obtained from teachers, peers, or computers in higher education, scholars have conducted much less research on novice researchers' engagement with reviewers' feedback on the manuscripts submitted for publication purposes. This study examines how two PhD students engaged with…

This study aims to explore the effects of incorporating metacognitive prompts into cooperative learning on students' academic writing and metacognitive awareness. In total, 150 tertiary-level learners were randomly and equally divided into three groups: a cooperative learning group with metacognitive instruction (EG), a metacognitive instruction…

This study investigated the intensity and efficacy of automated corrective feedback (CF) in a tutorial CALL (computer-assisted language learning) environment during form-focused drills as compared with those of instructor CF on free writing in the classroom. The English simple past tense, a previously learned target structure, was selected as the…

Writing is a recording process involving complex dynamic behaviours, which is closely connected with authentic contexts. A free authentic context can form a link with students' life experience and their prior knowledge, so that students' deep writing skills can be stimulated. However, in traditional writing activities, the lack of authentic…

Students completing undergraduate thesis projects rely on supervisory feedback to improve their academic writing and research abilities. Despite its critical role, supervisory feedback on undergraduate theses is under-researched. Adopting a qualitative multiple case-study approach, this study explores how students' motivation for writing the…

Several barriers hinder students from producing clear and impactful written work. Writing assignments are often given on an individual basis, similar to homework, and without any assistance. Students in a classroom context have access to both their classmates and the teacher while they are working in groups or pairs as part of their assignments.…

This study explored the relationship between linguistic features and the rated quality of letters of application (LAs) and argumentative essays (AEs) composed in English by Chinese college-level English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. A corpus of 260 LAs and 260 AEs were analyzed via a confirmatory factor analysis. Latent variables were EFL…

Despite the existing extensive research on stance markers such as hedges, boosters, and self-mention in academic writing, few studies, however, examined the co-occurrence of these stance markers to help authors project their identities in writing. In this study, we examine how self-mention with boosters and hedges are used by writers of different…

Technologically enhanced means and devices in language education and research have enabled an in-depth exploration of the dynamics of writing. This study investigated the pausing behaviour of eight Chinese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners at the tertiary level in performing an online writing task. Quantitative and qualitative data were…

Symbolic competence is integral to intercultural teaching and learning, but limited research and teaching guidance exist in foreign language classrooms. This paper explores the use of critical incidents in developing the symbolic competence of advanced-level English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners at a Chinese university. Mixed methods…

Technology-mediated communication has become ubiquitous and digital multimodal learning has been increasingly integrated into second language education. Drawing on the concepts of transmediation and interpretant in social semiotic theories, this study explores the potential of digital storytelling (DST) in promoting EFL learners' willingness to…

Even small, taken-for-granted words can have a strong influence on the pedagogical effect of a writing conference. In this study, we examined how experienced and trained writing center tutors' use of the discourse marker so helped them to connect ideas and to manage their conferences with students. We examined the extent to which tutors' use of…

This study investigates the effects of three word-focused exercise conditions on vocabulary learning. The exercises were developed based on the involvement load hypothesis. This study also explores how individual differences (e.g. second-language English proficiency level and working memory) affect vocabulary learning outcomes. A total of 180…

Metaphors are known to present both opportunities and challenges for second language learners, but relatively little is known about learners' awareness of them. To investigate this, we analyzed 72 argumentative essays written in English by a group of 37 intermediate Chinese university students of English. We identified metaphors using an…