University of Warwick institutional repository: http://go.warwick.ac.uk/wrap A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of PhD at the University of Warwick http://go.warwick.ac.uk/wrap/63025 This thesis is made available online and is protected by original copyright. Please scroll down to view the document itself. Please refer to the repository record for this item for information to help you to cite it. Our policy information is available from the repository home page. B-Learning and the Teaching of Writing in English in an EFL Context An Action Research Study by Jane Spinola A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics CENTRE FOR APPLIED LINGUISTICS UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK JUNE 2014 You gave me my wings, now let me fly. Abstract This action research study, which is composed of three cycles, aims at understanding and helping Portuguese students in an EFL context to improve their writing skills in English through a blended-learning (b-learning) writing module, using Moodle. This research contributes towards a better understanding of a research practitioner’s perspectives of an action research study. A narrative inquiry approach is used to convey the action research process through the practitioner’s eyes. It also contributes to the framework of Communities of Inquiry (CoI). This thesis looks at b-learning, its affordances and challenges and the function of CoI within a b-learning environment and how the different components of a Community of Inquiry framework, namely Social, Cognitive and Teaching Presences, contribute, influence and enrich the learning and teaching experience. The methodology behind the learning and teaching of writing as well as the theoretical and practical development of the research methods are described within the afore-mentioned framework. Communities of Inquiry will be seen as emerging from the data, as this research initially was not designed to include them. However, during analysis of the first action research cycle, data began to show evidence of the Community of Inquiry and it thus became part of the research and an integral part of the remaining two cycles. A Community of Inquiry’s sustenance relies on students’ engagement and interaction with the learning platform and with the people who make up the learning community and this data provides evidence for the framework in this research, which exemplifies and justifies the community of inquiry framework. Data for this thesis has been gathered using a mixed methods approach and thus the sources are varied. Interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, a research diary, class recordings and field notes and online interaction through forums, emails and messages compose the sources of the data for this research. II Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... II Contents ........................................................................................................................................ III List of Figures ............................................................................................................................. VIII List of Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................... IX Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ X 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 2 Brief Account of Research Context, Aims and Questions .................................................... 10 2.1 Overall Research Context ............................................................................................. 10 2.2 2nd Action Research Cycle ............................................................................................. 12 2.2.1 Context .................................................................................................................... 12 2.2.2 Class A ...................................................................................................................... 12 2.2.3 Class B ...................................................................................................................... 14 2.2.4 Class C ...................................................................................................................... 15 I. General Outlook on B-Learning through Moodle ............................................ 15 3 Narrative accounts of ARCs .................................................................................................. 21 3.1 Pre-ARCs ....................................................................................................................... 23 3.1.1 Writing and English in High Schools ........................................................................ 23 3.1.2 Writing at UMa and launching the Writing Module ................................................ 28 3.2 ARC1 ............................................................................................................................. 29 3.2.1 Context .................................................................................................................... 29 3.2.2 Writing Module ....................................................................................................... 34 3.2.3 Collaborative Teaching ............................................................................................ 43 3.2.4 Community of Inquiry .............................................................................................. 45 3.3 ARC2 ............................................................................................................................. 45 3.3.1 Context .................................................................................................................... 45 3.3.2 Writing Module ....................................................................................................... 46 3.3.3 Collaborative Teaching ............................................................................................ 49 3.3.4 Communities of Inquiry ........................................................................................... 52 3.4 ARC3 ............................................................................................................................. 53 3.4.1 Context .................................................................................................................... 53 3.4.2 Writing Module ....................................................................................................... 54 3.4.3 Collaborative teaching ............................................................................................. 57 III 3.5 Post-ARCs ...................................................................................................................... 58 4 Literature Review ................................................................................................................. 63 4.1 B-learning ..................................................................................................................... 66 4.1.1 Reasons for Using Blended-Learning ....................................................................... 80 I. Design .............................................................................................................. 86 II. Interaction ....................................................................................................... 90 4.1.2 B-learning Challenges .............................................................................................. 95 4.2 Communities of Inquiry .............................................................................................. 100 I. Social Presence .............................................................................................. 102 II. Teaching Presence ......................................................................................... 105 III. Cognitive Presence ........................................................................................ 111 4.3 Writing ........................................................................................................................ 114 4.3.1 Teaching Writing Methodology ............................................................................. 122 5 Methodology ...................................................................................................................... 132 5.1 Research Methodology............................................................................................... 132 5.2 Qualitative Research................................................................................................... 133 5.3 Action Research .......................................................................................................... 135 5.3.1 Action Research and its Drawbacks....................................................................... 139 5.4 Collaborative Action Research ................................................................................... 142 5.5 Intervention Methodology ......................................................................................... 143 5.5.1 Background, Motivation and Opportunity ...........................................................