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Writing Development of Second Language Learners of Japanese at an Australian University

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Writing Development of Second Language Learners of Japanese at an Australian University Writing Development of Second Language Learners of Japanese at an Australian University Yuka Kikuchi A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Languages and Linguistics The University of Melbourne October 2017 Declaration of Originality I certify that this thesis does not incorporate without acknowledgement any material previously submitted for a degree or diploma in any university; and that to the best of my knowledge and belief it does not contain any material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the text. Signed: ____________________ On: 23/10/ 2017 ii Acknowledgements The writing and completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the support of many teachers, friends and family. First, I would like to express my deep gratitude to my supervisors, Associate Professor Neomy Storch and Dr Ute Knoch, for their constant support, mentorship and encouragement. I would also like to thank all of my research participants, who generously offered their time to participate in data collection. I am also grateful to the Japanese Department coordinator of the university, where the data collection was conducted, for being supportive throughout the process. Many thanks go to Christine Eastman for her statistical advice and Alicia Chea, Jenetta Haim, Sara Kitaoji (AE) and Larissa Tittl (AE), who have proofread and edited my work during my PhD. This thesis has been edited in accordance with the ‘Guidelines for editing research theses’, developed jointly by the Institute of Professional Editors (Australia) and Australian universities. I also want to thank all my friends and colleagues who have been especially supportive throughout my PhD journey. I am thankful to Marzooq Aldossary, Maki Yoshida and Makoto Abe for inspiring me with ideas. Finally and most importantly, I would like to thank my parents for their unconditional support. iii Contents Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... iii Contents .......................................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ................................................................................................................. ix List of Tables .................................................................................................................. xi List of Extracts .............................................................................................................. xv List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................... xvi Abstract ....................................................................................................................... xviii Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Statement of the Problem ........................................................................................ 3 1.2 Significance of the Study ........................................................................................ 4 1.3 Thesis Chapter Overview ........................................................................................ 6 Chapter 2: Literature Review ........................................................................................ 9 2.1 L2 Writing Development: Theoretical Perspectives ............................................... 9 2.1.1 Dynamic systems theories .............................................................................. 10 2.1.2 Sociocultural theory ........................................................................................ 12 2.1.3 Multi-competence theory ................................................................................ 14 2.1.4 Goal theory ..................................................................................................... 15 2.1.5 Genre theory ................................................................................................... 16 2.2 Theories Informing the Current Study—L2 Writing Development from Second Language Acquisition Cognitive Perspectives ........................................... 19 2.2.1 Noticing hypothesis ........................................................................................ 19 2.2.2 Notion of ‘practice’ in skills acquisition theory ............................................. 21 2.3 Approaches to Investigating L2 Writing Development ........................................ 22 2.3.1 Cross-sectional design .................................................................................... 22 2.3.1.1 Cross-sectional studies in an English a second language and English as a Foreign Language context ................................................................ 23 2.3.1.2 Cross-sectional studies of languages other than English ........................ 26 2.3.2 Longitudinal design ........................................................................................ 30 2.3.2.1 Studies on L2 writing development with/without instruction ................... 31 2.4 Students’ Perceptions of Writing Development .................................................... 39 2.5 Factors that Affect Writing Development ............................................................. 43 2.5.1 Instruction ....................................................................................................... 43 2.5.1.1 Product approach..................................................................................... 43 2.5.1.2 Process approach ..................................................................................... 45 2.5.1.3 Genre approach ....................................................................................... 46 2.5.1.4 Process-genre approach .......................................................................... 48 2.5.2 Feedback ......................................................................................................... 49 2.5.2.1 Teacher feedback ..................................................................................... 49 2.5.2.2 Students’ beliefs about teacher feedback ................................................. 53 2.5.2.3 Peer feedback ........................................................................................... 54 2.5.2.4 Factors affecting the benefits of peer feedback ........................................ 56 2.5.3 Reading and writing ........................................................................................ 58 2.5.3.1 Reading and writing connections ............................................................. 59 2.5.3.2 Vocabulary acquisition and extensive reading ........................................ 63 2.5.4 Motivation and L2 writing .............................................................................. 64 2.5.5 Language background ..................................................................................... 68 iv 2.5.5.1 Background speaker and non-background speaker learners of languages other than Japanese ................................................................ 69 2.5.5.2 Background speaker and non-background speaker learners of Japanese ................................................................................................... 72 2.6 Gaps in the Research ............................................................................................. 75 2.7 The Present Study .................................................................................................. 77 Chapter 3: Discourse Analytic Measures .................................................................... 79 3.1 Features of the Japanese Language ....................................................................... 79 3.2 Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency ...................................................................... 83 3.2.1 Complexity ..................................................................................................... 84 3.2.1.1 Lexical complexity .................................................................................... 84 3.2.1.2 Syntactic complexity ................................................................................. 89 3.2.2 Accuracy ......................................................................................................... 97 3.2.3 Fluency ......................................................................................................... 102 3.2.3.1 Measures of temporal aspects of fluency ............................................... 103 3.3 Other Measures that Examine Writing Development ......................................... 107 3.3.1 Mechanics ..................................................................................................... 107 3.3.2 Cohesion and coherence ............................................................................... 107 3.3.2.1 Cohesion ................................................................................................. 108 3.3.2.2 Coherence .............................................................................................. 110 3.3.3 Desu/masu form and plain form ................................................................... 113 3.4 The Chosen Discourse Analytic Measures .......................................................... 113 Chapter 4: Study 1 Methodology ..............................................................................
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