Substantial research indicates that students' beliefs mediate learning strategies. Nevertheless, students' strategy-related beliefs about feedback and their mediation on strategies to act on feedback are insufficiently addressed. This case study aimed to examine: (1) students' strategy-related beliefs about feedback in L2 writing and (2) how beliefs mediated students' actions when a feedback intervention was implemented to facilitate students' use of feedback strategies. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews and reflective journals from 10 Year-1 participants who studied in an associate degree programme at a higher education institute in Hong Kong. Students' strategy-related beliefs about feedback encompass the evaluation of strategies about: (1) understanding feedback, (2) addressing areas for improvement, (3) seeking feedback, and (4) implementing feedback. Nine participants adopted a more comprehensive range of strategies to act on feedback consistent with their strategy-related beliefs. One participant, however, did not appreciate and use feedback. Pedagogical implications are discussed. Copyright © 2023 Routledge.

Self-regulated reading-to-write (R2W) can be portrayed as learners' proactive learning of useful elements (e.g. content, rhetorical features, and conventions) from reading by using strategies, which is an effective mechanism connecting reading and writing, to improve their writing competence. In the present study, six major types of self-regulated R2W strategies, i.e. mining reading, writerly reading, cognitive strategies, purposive reading, recalling while writing, and peer revision reading that can contribute to writing competence were included in the proposed self-regulated R2W framework. Importantly, a self-regulated R2W scale was established to understand the impacts of four types of strategies. Participants were 458 primary students (9 to 13 years old, M = 10.12, SD = 0.62) in Hong Kong. They completed the self-regulated R2W questionnaire along with motivational variables and a writing competence test. The motivational variables (i.e. self-efficacy and perceived task values) were positively related to self-regulated R2W strategy use. Important differences in self-regulated R2W strategy use among the high, average, and low achievers were identified. Results indicated that self-regulated R2W strategy use had positive impacts on writing competence. This is the first time that reading-to-write is proposed from a self-regulated learning perspective in ESL/EFL school contexts. The self-regulated R2W framework, scale and positive impacts of strategy use on writing have important implications for future research and practices. Copyright © 2023 SAGE Publications.

This paper extends our understanding of agency in second language (L2) students' academic English socialization by reporting on an investigation into how two mainland Chinese doctoral students enacted their agency in feedback-seeking for improving academic English writing during their studies in an English-medium university in Hong Kong. The findings show that the ways in which they exercised their agency to seek language feedback from socializing agents varied between individuals and in different feedback-seeking contexts. In particular, their enactments of feedback-seeking agency are found to be differentially shaped not only by their academic writing goals, but also by the habitus derived from their past experiences and the forms of social and cultural capital they accumulated prior to and during their doctoral studies. The findings also reveal that their language ideologies regarding the role of native-speaker norms in academic English writing mediated their feedback-seeking agency by exerting influence on their academic writing goals and their perceptions of different socializing agents as affordances for their language socialization. Overall, this paper offers more nuanced understandings of agency in L2 students' academic English socialization and illustrates the complex and dynamic interplay between agency, goal, habitus, capital and language ideology in shaping their feedback-seeking behaviour. Copyright © 2023 Routledge.

Natural language generation (NLG) is a process within artificial intelligence where computer systems produce human-comprehensible language texts from information. English as a foreign language (EFL) students’ use of NLG tools might facilitate their idea generation, which is fundamental to creative writing. However, little is known about how EFL students interact with NLG tools to generate ideas. This study explores strategies adopted by EFL students when searching for ideas using NLG tools, evaluating ideas generated by NLG tools and selecting NLG tools for idea generation. Four Hong Kong secondary school students attended workshops where they learned to write stories comprising their own words and words generated by NLG tools. After the workshops, they answered questions to reflect on their writing experience with NLG tools. In a thematic analysis of the written reflections, we found students may have existing ideas when searching for ideas and evaluating ideas with NLG tools. Students showed some aversion to ideas generated by NLG tools and selected NLG tools that generated a greater quantity of ideas. The findings inform our understanding of EFL students’ concerns when using NLG tools for idea generation and can inform educators’ instruction to implement NLG tools for classroom creative writing. Copyright © 2023 The Author(s).

Purpose: This study adopted a mixed-method approach, including a classroom experiment and 24 in-depth interviews, to investigate the effects of two feedback techniques (coded focused and unfocused written corrective feedback) on ESL learners' writing in a self-financed tertiary institution in Hong Kong. Methodology: Three intact classes of 47 students served as the experimental and control groups; the control group only received feedback on content and organization, whereas the two experimental groups also received focused and unfocused linguistic feedback, respectively. The feedback intervention was conducted over an eight-week intensive summer course, focusing on three grammar errors (articles, singular/plural nouns and verb forms). Altogether, students wrote seven pieces, four of which were analysed for the present research. Results: The study found that students who received focused written corrective feedback (WCF) significantly outperformed the other two groups, though the effects varied across error types. Meanwhile, no significant differences were found between the unfocused and control groups. In-depth interviews explored how individual learners' metalinguistic understanding and engagement affect their intake of WCF. The results revealed that learners who received focused feedback developed a deeper understanding of the linguistic nature of specific error types. Learners with limited English proficiency were less likely to apply their linguistic knowledge to revise a task or write a new one. Conclusion: Because not all errors deserve equal attention, teachers and students should consider how feedback can be used more effectively, particularly in areas where comprehensive feedback is considered obligatory. When teaching students with limited language proficiency, it is recommended that, rather than providing a wide range of error corrections, teachers provide focused feedback complemented with carefully designed metalinguistic support. Copyright © 2022 National

The present study reports on the effects of a self-regulated (SRL) writing strategy-based intervention supported with e-learning tools on SRL strategy use in English writing with 468 Hong Kong primary school students. The changes to the students’ motivation in English writing, and their e-learning acceptance were also measured. The study adopted a pretest and posttest design and the data was collected through a questionnaire, which consisted of three measures, i.e. SRL writing strategy use, motivation in English writing, and e-learning acceptance. The SRL writing strategy use measure included four types of strategies, i.e. planning, text-generating, monitoring, and revising. The motivation measure had two scales, i.e. interest and self-efficacy, and the e-learning acceptance measure included four scales, i.e. perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude and continuance intention. The intervention saw significant improvements on the students’ use of all four types of SRL writing strategies. Positive changes also took place to one scale of motivation, i.e. interest, and three scales of e-learning acceptance, i.e. perceived usefulness, attitude and continuance intention. There was no significant improvement to self-efficacy and perceived ease of use. Additionally, the correlations between all the scales became stronger after the intervention. Important implications for teaching ESL/EFL writing through e-learning are drawn. Copyright © 2022 Taylor & Francis.

This paper provides a taxonomy of errors in the use of English articles by Hong Kong Cantonese ESL learners. A study was conducted with 387 Hong Kong Cantonese ESL learners, including 65 students from three local universities and 322 students from five local secondary schools. They did two free writing tasks of about 200–300 words. Over 600 pieces of free writing were obtained. The use of English articles was analyzed and errors were identified. Irrespective of learners' proficiency levels, similar types of article errors have been observed. While over-extension errors and under-extension errors are both quite common, co-occurrence errors are nearly non-existent. Intended generic reference triggers most problems, although this reference has been least attempted. The function of the noun phrase in which an article error occurs may play a part in error severity, with Object creating most problems for learners, yet the precise effects of noun functions are yet to be determined. It is suggested that more emphasis be put on the teaching of English articles to learners at different proficiency levels. Advanced learners, such as university students, should be engaged in metalinguistic analyses uncovering the subtle differences between the use of different articles in the same linguistic context. Copyright © 2022 De Gruyter.

Diagnostic assessment (DA) has its objective in generating fine-grained diagnostic profiles for effective treatment or intervention. Most existing DA studies on English academic writing focus on developing diagnostic tools to identify problems or difficulties within written texts. Rarely are there studies that design and implement a treatment or intervention phrase following the diagnosis. Moreover, despite of its importance, few studies have examined the construct of discourse competence. This thesis project, therefore, firstly diagnosed EFL learners’ development of discourse competence (DC) as indicated by their academic writing in university, and then based on the diagnostic results, designed and implemented an intervention study.The project involved six Chinese EFL learners studying in a university in Hong Kong, nine individuals studying in mainland, and their 277 peers pursuing their first degree in an international degree program based on a comprehensive university in mainland China. In both contexts, the participants need to write academic assignments in English. Methodologically, the project adopted a mixed-method approach and was conducted via four inter-linked studies, namely, a text analysis study, a comparative multiple-case studies, a survey, and an intervention study. The diagnosis phrase, consisting of text analysis, multiple case study and a survey, examined student writers’ textual features, composing strategies, and academic writing knowledge status. The intervention phrase was designed to resolve students’ problems and difficulties identified in the first phase.The results showed that the cyclical diagnostic assessment procedure was effective in identifying specific lacks, problems and difficulties in learners’ written products, composing process and knowledge status, and the diagnosis could inform the design of intervention measures in teaching and learning of EFL academic writing. Specifically, contextuality was found to be a critical element for

This multiple-case study investigated the experience of three preservice teachers who attempted formative assessment (FA) strategies in their English as a second language writing class during their teaching practicum in a secondary school in Hong Kong. Based on data from 17 lesson observations and 24 interviews, the study examined the three teachers' implementation of FA strategies during cycles of pre-, while- and post-writing stages. Also analyzed are the teachers' reflections on and their mentors' and students' evaluation of their FA implementation. The study found the teachers could translate their understanding of FA principles into teaching and assessment strategies appropriately, but the school's accountability culture worked against their innovation. School mentors' open-mindedness and support to their FA attempts were found to be crucial. The findings are discussed centering on key issues in the relational, developmental and contextual dimensions of the teaching practicum and their impact on preservice teachers' practice and attitude. Copyright ©2021 Elsevier.