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【Abstract】The present study reveals differences in writing strategies among secondary EFL (English as a foreign language) writers by investigating the relationship between the writing strategies and EFL writers’ language proficiency, gender and writing quality. Data was collected from 97 secondary EFL writers from three provinces in China by questionnaire. Data revealed that secondary students used most the compensation strategies while used least the social strategies but no significant difference was found between writing strategies and language proficiency. Females significantly adopt more compensation strategies than males. In addition, results also indicated that writers who produced high quality essays used more cognitive strategies than writers who don’t.
【Key words】writing strategies; EFL writers; secondary education
【作者簡介】郑丽妍,北京科技大学外国语学院。
1. Background of the study
EFL writing strategies have been the important topics in linguistics. In China, however, researches on English writing strategies are in the initial stage (Wen, 2004). Additionally, English education in China neglects the cultivation of writing strategies (Tan, 2019), which causes students’ ignorance of learning techniques for improving writing scores. However, foreign research on the relationship between writing strategies and writing proficiency has shown that writing strategies are closely related to writing proficiency (Chien, 2012; Rui et al., 2014; Sasaki, 2002; Victori, 1999). Thus, it is of vital importance to study EFL writing strategies in China. This study aims to reveal the relationship between writing strategies and language proficiency, gender and writing quality in EFL secondary writing.
Based on the Oxford (1990)’s language learning strategy scale (SILL) and the Petic and Czarl’s writing strategy questionnaire, the present study compiles the questionnaire for the secondary EFL writing strategies. The following three research questions were addressed:
(1) What is the relationship between EFL writing strategies and language proficiency assessed by grade ( Junior high school and Senior high school) ?
(2) Is there a significant difference in EFL writing strategies between males and females?
(3) What is the relationship between EFL writing strategies and writing quality evaluated by English writing scores?
2. Research Design
(1) Measures
The questionnaire consisted of the basic information of the students and three-part writing strategies, pre-writing, while-writing and post-writing strategies. In total, it covered six aspects, memory, cognitive, compensation, meta-cognitive, emotional and social strategies respectively. Five-point scale was used in which 1 refers to never, 2 for seldom, 3 for sometimes, 4 for often, 5 for always. Reliability analysis was conducted on the questionnaire (see Table 1. below). It showed that the questionnaire on writing strategies had high internal consistency. Table 1. The reliability of the questionnaire
Writing strategies Cronbach’s Alpha
Compensation strategies 0.767
Memory strategies 0.606
Emotional strategies 0.880
Cognitive strategies 0.934
Social strategies 0.850
Meta-cognitive strategies 0.875
The whole writing strategies 0.980
(2)Participants
The present study targeted at 34 junior high school students and 63 senior high school students including 51 males and 46 females from Shandong, Hebei, and Tianjin. A total of 97 effective questionnaires were received.
(3)Procedures
The online questionnaire was sent to students and was collected within 10 minutes.
【Key words】writing strategies; EFL writers; secondary education
【作者簡介】郑丽妍,北京科技大学外国语学院。
1. Background of the study
EFL writing strategies have been the important topics in linguistics. In China, however, researches on English writing strategies are in the initial stage (Wen, 2004). Additionally, English education in China neglects the cultivation of writing strategies (Tan, 2019), which causes students’ ignorance of learning techniques for improving writing scores. However, foreign research on the relationship between writing strategies and writing proficiency has shown that writing strategies are closely related to writing proficiency (Chien, 2012; Rui et al., 2014; Sasaki, 2002; Victori, 1999). Thus, it is of vital importance to study EFL writing strategies in China. This study aims to reveal the relationship between writing strategies and language proficiency, gender and writing quality in EFL secondary writing.
Based on the Oxford (1990)’s language learning strategy scale (SILL) and the Petic and Czarl’s writing strategy questionnaire, the present study compiles the questionnaire for the secondary EFL writing strategies. The following three research questions were addressed:
(1) What is the relationship between EFL writing strategies and language proficiency assessed by grade ( Junior high school and Senior high school) ?
(2) Is there a significant difference in EFL writing strategies between males and females?
(3) What is the relationship between EFL writing strategies and writing quality evaluated by English writing scores?
2. Research Design
(1) Measures
The questionnaire consisted of the basic information of the students and three-part writing strategies, pre-writing, while-writing and post-writing strategies. In total, it covered six aspects, memory, cognitive, compensation, meta-cognitive, emotional and social strategies respectively. Five-point scale was used in which 1 refers to never, 2 for seldom, 3 for sometimes, 4 for often, 5 for always. Reliability analysis was conducted on the questionnaire (see Table 1. below). It showed that the questionnaire on writing strategies had high internal consistency. Table 1. The reliability of the questionnaire
Writing strategies Cronbach’s Alpha
Compensation strategies 0.767
Memory strategies 0.606
Emotional strategies 0.880
Cognitive strategies 0.934
Social strategies 0.850
Meta-cognitive strategies 0.875
The whole writing strategies 0.980
(2)Participants
The present study targeted at 34 junior high school students and 63 senior high school students including 51 males and 46 females from Shandong, Hebei, and Tianjin. A total of 97 effective questionnaires were received.
(3)Procedures
The online questionnaire was sent to students and was collected within 10 minutes.