There are both pedagogical and theoretical grounds for asking second language writers to plan before they start writing.The question then arises whether pre-task planning(PTP)improves written output.To address this qu...There are both pedagogical and theoretical grounds for asking second language writers to plan before they start writing.The question then arises whether pre-task planning(PTP)improves written output.To address this question,this article reviewed 32 studies by comparing the effect of PTP either with no planning or with unpressured online planning(OLP).These studies also investigated the moderating effect of variables relating to the writer participants,the nature of the planning,and the writing tasks.The main findings are:(1)There is no clear evidence that PTP leads to better overall writing quality when this is measured using rating rubrics,(2)PTP generally results in more fluent writing,(3)its impact on syntactical and lexical complexity is inconsistent and negligible,(4)OLP does sometimes result in increased linguistic accuracy,and(5)there is insufficient evidence to reach clear conclusions about the role that moderating variables have on the impact of PTP,but the results suggest that collaborative(as opposed to individual planning)can lead to increased accuracy and that PTP tends to lead to more complex language when the writing task is a complex one.The article concludes with a set of principles to ensure better quality research and three general proposals for the kind of future research needed.展开更多
This paper studies the effect of different lengths of pre-task planning time on the frequency and accuracy of self-repairs for Chinese intermediate and advanced English learners.The findings reveal that the increased ...This paper studies the effect of different lengths of pre-task planning time on the frequency and accuracy of self-repairs for Chinese intermediate and advanced English learners.The findings reveal that the increased pre-task planning time strongly improves fluency and accuracy of self-repairs for both lexical and syntactic errors in the advanced group,but enhanced fluency and accuracy are not witnessed in the intermediate group as planning time increases.The differences are mainly due to the fact that some intermediate learners are not well equipped with the appropriate way of preparation for oral presentation tasks since some write down their ideas in Chinese.Thus errors will increasingly emerge in the transfer.Besides,they usually give priority to accuracy while neglecting fluency.展开更多
Task-planning studies have mostly been conducted using quantitative methods, not qualitative. However, the actual planning behaviors by learners could be overlooked by quantitative research which focuses mostly on pla...Task-planning studies have mostly been conducted using quantitative methods, not qualitative. However, the actual planning behaviors by learners could be overlooked by quantitative research which focuses mostly on planning outcomes rather than the processes. This study aims to bridge this gap by exploring learner behavioral patterns in pre-task planning as well as the under-investigated area of topic familiarity by drawing upon interview data. This consists of a comparison between the task-external and task-internal readiness constructs proposed in Bui＇s （2014） task-readiness framework. Eight undergraduate students in Hong Kong completed two speaking tasks （a familiar and an unfamiliar task）, followed by retrospective interviews. Though largely confirming previous （but parsimonious） research on task planning behaviors, this study discovered three major findings that had not been covered well in previous literature. First, while past studies focused on the psycholinguistic processes of task planning, these participants extensively reported its affective influences. Next, most participants reported their overall intended emphasis was on accuracy. These reports contradict general quantitative research results which suggest that task planning often leads to complexity, not accuracy. Finally, the lack of planning time as task-external readiness can be partly compensated for by topic familiarity as task-internal readiness. These issues along with their relevant implications in teaching and learning are discussed in this study.展开更多
文摘There are both pedagogical and theoretical grounds for asking second language writers to plan before they start writing.The question then arises whether pre-task planning(PTP)improves written output.To address this question,this article reviewed 32 studies by comparing the effect of PTP either with no planning or with unpressured online planning(OLP).These studies also investigated the moderating effect of variables relating to the writer participants,the nature of the planning,and the writing tasks.The main findings are:(1)There is no clear evidence that PTP leads to better overall writing quality when this is measured using rating rubrics,(2)PTP generally results in more fluent writing,(3)its impact on syntactical and lexical complexity is inconsistent and negligible,(4)OLP does sometimes result in increased linguistic accuracy,and(5)there is insufficient evidence to reach clear conclusions about the role that moderating variables have on the impact of PTP,but the results suggest that collaborative(as opposed to individual planning)can lead to increased accuracy and that PTP tends to lead to more complex language when the writing task is a complex one.The article concludes with a set of principles to ensure better quality research and three general proposals for the kind of future research needed.
文摘This paper studies the effect of different lengths of pre-task planning time on the frequency and accuracy of self-repairs for Chinese intermediate and advanced English learners.The findings reveal that the increased pre-task planning time strongly improves fluency and accuracy of self-repairs for both lexical and syntactic errors in the advanced group,but enhanced fluency and accuracy are not witnessed in the intermediate group as planning time increases.The differences are mainly due to the fact that some intermediate learners are not well equipped with the appropriate way of preparation for oral presentation tasks since some write down their ideas in Chinese.Thus errors will increasingly emerge in the transfer.Besides,they usually give priority to accuracy while neglecting fluency.
基金supported by an RGC grant that the first author received from the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong (Ref. No: UGC/FDS14/H01/14)
文摘Task-planning studies have mostly been conducted using quantitative methods, not qualitative. However, the actual planning behaviors by learners could be overlooked by quantitative research which focuses mostly on planning outcomes rather than the processes. This study aims to bridge this gap by exploring learner behavioral patterns in pre-task planning as well as the under-investigated area of topic familiarity by drawing upon interview data. This consists of a comparison between the task-external and task-internal readiness constructs proposed in Bui＇s （2014） task-readiness framework. Eight undergraduate students in Hong Kong completed two speaking tasks （a familiar and an unfamiliar task）, followed by retrospective interviews. Though largely confirming previous （but parsimonious） research on task planning behaviors, this study discovered three major findings that had not been covered well in previous literature. First, while past studies focused on the psycholinguistic processes of task planning, these participants extensively reported its affective influences. Next, most participants reported their overall intended emphasis was on accuracy. These reports contradict general quantitative research results which suggest that task planning often leads to complexity, not accuracy. Finally, the lack of planning time as task-external readiness can be partly compensated for by topic familiarity as task-internal readiness. These issues along with their relevant implications in teaching and learning are discussed in this study.
