In EFL contexts like China where research and application of findings in the field of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) is still in its infancy, graduate students are in urgent need of support in developing their academic literacy, especially in terms of academic writing and research article writing skills under the forces of globalization of education. This study sets out to develop a contextualized EAP genre-based approach to scaffold novice academic writers and examine its impact through assessment tasks and analysis of students’ uptake. The theoretical traditions of ESP research article (RA) genre analysis (e.g. Swales, 1990, 2004; Swale & Feak, 2004) and lexical bundle studies (e.g. Biber & Barbieri, 2007; Hyland, 2008)are drawn upon and two dimensions of building blocks of academic discourse are conceptualized: the top-down dimension (i.e., genre schematic structuring) and the bottom-up dimension(i.e. general and move-specific academic lexical phrases). Then, the Sydney School genre-based Teaching and Learning Cycle and corpus-informed explicit bundle instruction were incorporated into the ESP genre-based framework to generate a new theoretical and pedagogical model taking into consideration the needs of the local context. In order to evaluate this innovative course thoroughly in a natural and intact classroom, careful triangulations of data were achieved. A mixed-methods programme evaluation framework was developed with two major components, namely an intervention study and individual case studies. In terms of the average gains of the whole class, there was significant improvement in the receptive test of knowledge of genre and bundles after the course. In addition, the instruction significantly narrowed the achievement gap among the high, mid and low starting level students. Most importantly, the increase in the appropriate use of lexical phrases in rewriting suggests the effectiveness of the course in enabling active production. Regression analysis further indicated a strong relationship between the development of bundle knowledge and that of genre and genre-specific features. The rich descriptions of the two student cases delineate the different learning trajectories of learners of distinct starting levels. Although the low starting level learner showed much slower in-class uptake, her active engagement and integration of knowledge in the rewriting task by drawing on various resources has increased her understanding of the RA genre. The high starting level learner with satisfactory in-class uptake, however, suffered from lots of textual borrowing in writing due to her high expectation of academic content but lack of corresponding genre and linguistic competences. The fact that both learners exhibited a strong lack of basic linguistic resources to verbalize their sophisticated thinking in the rewriting task pointed to the importance of developing the linguistic aspects in the initial stage of genre knowledge development in EFL contexts, which has been neglected in previous studies focusing on ESL contexts. The careful investigation of the instructional context has led to detailed discussions of a few prominent issues in the pedagogical design, in particular, the importance of focusing on the role of “task” in curriculum and pedagogical design in future research of genre-based pedagogy. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

The EAP written multiple trait rubric used in the City University of Hong Kong is believed to be of central importance to formative and high-stakes summative assessment in the institution. Crucial to both of these roles are the perceptions and interpretations of the key stakeholders: teachers and students. The learning and test scores deriving from the rubric are filtered entirely through these stakeholders. Investigating the perceived effects of the rubric on the EAP assessment's validity, reliability and student learning (three key strands revealed in testing literature) is seen as being essential as proof of the rubric's value. This paper presents an analysis of teacher (n=25) and student (n=123) perceptions of an EAP rubric, investigating core elements of both, comparing them, and probing into whether teachers' interpretations of rubrics influence their students. A mixed-methods study seeks to determine perceptions through combining qualitative analysis of interview data with quantitative analysis of questionnaire responses. Key elements of rubrics and how they both impact and are impacted by stakeholder perceptions are discussed. Findings indicate several strong trends in student and teacher perceptions of the rubric, and tentatively illustrate how teachers may affect their students. Arguments are made for a greater focus on standardising the teaching and learning of the rubric, for greater realisation of the learning potential of the rubric, and for investigating the appropriacy of certain domains and wordings. / published_or_final_version / Applied English Studies / Master / Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics

D. Phil. / Presently, in the context of South African higher education, many black students who had previously studied at historically disadvantaged institutions, enter the post-graduate academic context without the necessary language and academic literacy skills required by institutions where the language of learning and teaching is English or Afrikaans. Consequently they do not access their discourse communities optimally and also do not develop into scholars who are able to participate in the conversations of their discipline competently and confidently. In this context, this inquiry focused on the impact of the M. Ed. Community Education programme on students' academic writing proficiency. This programme is presented as a distance education programme in the Department of Curriculum Studies at the Rand Afrikaans University.

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published_or_final_version / Applied English Studies / Master / Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics

Thesis (MTech (Faculty of Education))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2008. / The impact of globalisation on the workplace demands that individuals must be prepared to respond to rapid technological and knowledge changes. While the courses offered by the various Universities of Technology take into account the role of the workplace, very little research exists on the impact of career-focussed programmes and how these meet or do not meet workplace requirements. This thesis discusses a research project conducted with Office Management and Technology students and compares the writing practices of higher education with those of related workplaces. The research problem that is investigated is this thesis is how students transfer knowledge, skills and attitudes learned in higher education to workplaces. In order to address this problem, the research was guided by the questions: 1) what are the business writing practices of 1st and 2nd year Communication students? 2) What are the business writing practices of office managers? 3) What are the ‘gaps’ in the business writing practices between higher education Office Management and Technology programmes and related workplaces? and 4) How can these gaps be addressed to ensure the adequate preparation of Office Management and Technology students for the workplaces of the future? This comparative study used both quantitative and qualitative methods and collected and produced documentary data, questionnaires, observations and interviews at both higher education and workplace sites. The findings show patterns of alignment and non-alignment across the writing practices of higher education and workplaces. Recommendations are made about the alignment of writing practices, for the mutual benefit of students and workplaces. The contribution of this research comprises a theoretical contribution to communication knowledge as well as a number of practical contributions to improve the way in which business writing is taught. A theoretical framework for the analysis and comparison of higher education and workplace communication data has been developed and a comparative study has shown the differences between higher education and workplace communication. Higher education and workplaces are different and their communication practices need to embody these significant differences. This study has shown where there can be constructive alignment between higher education and workplace communication practices to the benefit of both student learning and workplaces. The implementation of the recommendations should result in Office Management and Technology students being better prepared to face the demands and challenges of the different and complex world of the workplace into which they will enter on completion of their studies.

Freshman composition instructors at Christian institutions face a disturbing predicament: competing pedagogies, administrative pressure to prove freshman composition’s merit, public clamoring for greater return on the college investment, technology redefining what “writing” is, a postmodern audience, and most concerning, the challenge to find an instructional model in a sea of pedagogies void of Christian ideology. The field of composition and rhetoric, unlike literature and other disciplines, does not have a pedagogy that successfully reconciles faith and scholarship. The purpose of this Doctor of Education thesis is to ignite a conversation among Christian composition faculty by introducing a prototype Christian freshman composition pedagogy built on a Christian theological, philosophical, and educational foundation rather than maintaining the common practice of overlaying Christian ideas on secular pedagogies. The proposed writing pedagogy is beyond a perfunctory skills and service course because communication through writing is not only divinely modeled, it is essential for human flourishing. The structure of this Trinitarian writing theory is dually aimed at both the writing pedagogue, by providing the resources from which the teacher can develop an instructional pathway, and the student writer, by providing the resources from which the learner develops functional writing strategies encased within a biblically-grounded motivation for writing. Rooted in Kevin Vanhoozer’s Trinitarian Theology of Communication, this Christian writing pedagogical theory unfolds through a series of similarly-shaped triune-based structures that move from theological formation to methodological practice. Chapter 1 argues that composition pedagogy is in crisis, not only at Christian colleges and universities, but secular institutions as well. Providing a context for the aforementioned crisis, chapter 2 historically traces composition instruction trends in America. While Christian scholars have proposed ways to apply faith and learning in other academic fields, no thoroughly Christian writing pedagogy has yet been created. Chapter 3 overviews secular strategies developed in response to the composition instruction crisis and those strategies’ lack of effectiveness. Chapter 4 serves to build the theological and philosophical foundation of a new instructional design theory. Chapters 5-9 provide a detailed progression of the new writing theory from its theological inception to the methodological and practical culmination as an act of worship for the student writer. Craig Bartholomew’s Tree of Knowledge provides the systematic method this project uses to rebuild composition theory; Kevin Vanhoozer's Trinitarian Theology of Communication model is the theological base that provides the key theoretical categories of the new writing pedagogy. Chapters 10-12 examine how the theory’s biblically-based distinctives translate to the classroom.

This study is a deliberation on students who advance from high school to a higher education institution, without demonstrating the attributes required on admission. They are granted formal access, despite being underprepared for tertiary studies. One of the qualities that they noticible lack is academic literacy. In the course of this investigation, academics had to relate what their perceptions were of the academic literacy of their students at higher education level. Initially, being literate meant the ability to read and write, but the term literacy has assumed a more varied form. The term multi-literacies is employed now, as there are several forms of literacy. These include, Information Technology, Technology, pictorial and numerical literacies, to name a few. Academic literacy constitutes more than one literacy, namely, operational or functional literacy, cultural literacy and critical literacy. These literacies are elaborated on and the role of language proficiency, together with the inter-relatedness between students' linguistic competence and their cognitive ability are discussed in depth. Alternatives are examined to assess how this problem of the lack of academic literacy can be circumvented and what mechanisms can be put in place in order that students can be assisted in their pursuit of academic literacy.

Argumentation is widely regarded as both a productive path and a critical objective of education. However, poor performance remains a serious problem at all ages in assessments of expository writing in which students are asked to make an argument in support of a claim. An apprenticeship model is proposed as a mechanism in the development of skill in dialogic argumentation, with this skill serving as a bridge to individual written argument. In a multi-week intervention, young adolescents were paired with a series of both more skilled and similarly skilled partners, anonymously, in conducting one-on-one electronic dialogs on controversial issues. A comparison group was included who engaged in the same intervention and assessments, but their dialogic partners were confined to similar ability peers. The more skilled adult partner displayed skilled forms of counterargument and use of evidence to support claims as well as frequent questioning with respect to the partner’s statements and meta-talk about the discourse itself. Effects on students’ individual argument skill on a new topic were assessed by means of both a (solitary) individually constructed dialog and an individual essay. In both the dialogs and essays, the experimental group showed greater skills in using evidence to support a claim, generating advanced counterarguments, and constructing integrative critical arguments coordinating two contrasting claims, relative to the comparison group. These results lend support to the power of apprenticeship in individual argument skill development. Both groups also advanced in individual dialogic argument skills following their engagement in argumentation, a result thereby demonstrating the passage of higher-order intellectual skills from a social to individual level. Besides their educational implications, the theoretical significance of these results in relation to both an apprenticeship model and a dialogical model of argument skill development was discussed.