An assessment of the effects of computer-based writing instruction upon the teaching of English as a Second Language

This diachronic study of second language acquisition analyzes the effects of personal computer (PC) use upon English as a Second Language (ESL) students and their compositions. Timed first drafts of compositions were collected from two groups of graduate students enrolled for one semester in the University of Florida's Scholarly Writing Program for International Graduate Students. The first group, 76 students enrolled in 9 different classes, wrote their essays exclusively with pen and paper. The second group, 48 students enrolled in 6 different classes, wrote their essays using PCs. Three essays from each student (written at the beginning, middle, and end of the semester) were analyzed for changes in syntactic complexity using the T-Unit performance variable originally developed by first language acquisition researcher Kellogg Hunt. ANOVA established that the computer students achieved a significant level of improvement in overall essay length and complexity, especially in their use of more and longer subordinate clauses. Their error rate, however, did not show a statistically significant level of improvement, perhaps precisely because they wrote longer and more difficult sentences. The essays were also analyzed at the discourse level based on frequency and correctness of passive voice usage, which is regarded both as an important mechanism of cohesion and as an important feature of academic writing. Again, ANOVA determined a significant advantage for the PC-equipped students. However, critical (non-quantitative) analysis of the two groups' overall discoursal qualities (specifically in terms of coherence) casts doubt upon whether the PC group's essays demonstrated a significant greater rate of improvement during the course of a single semester, suggesting that the effects of PC use upon ESL writing proficiency may be more gradual and require a longer period of use. Also included throughout the study are suggestions for computer classroom management and pedagogy.