| The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of computerized text analysis and peer tutoring on the revising behavior of 48 students at the City Polytechnic of Hong Kong. During the ten-week term in which the study was conducted, 24 students in the text analysis group revised first and second drafts of five assignments after receiving feedback from two text analysis programs, while 24 students in the peer tutoring group revised assignments after receiving peer feedback.; Effects of these two approaches were compared for significance on gains in writing performance on pre- and post-study essays; on the number of words, sentences, and paragraphs written on pre- and post-study essays and on three drafts of five assignments; and on the number and types of revisions students completed. A questionnaire and personal interviews examined student attitudes, while analysis of selected drafts illustrated differences in revising behavior.; Analysis showed significant growth in writing performance across both groups, though neither group showed significantly greater gains. However, the number of words written on post-study essays by peer tutoring students was significantly greater than the number written by text analysis students. Across drafts of five assignments, peer tutoring students wrote significantly more words, sentences, and paragraphs and made significantly more content-level revisions. Responses to the questionnaire showed that peer tutoring was rated significantly higher than text analysis for its general level of helpfulness and its helpfulness in improving content, making the writer's purpose clearer, and considering the needs of the reader. Interviews revealed that students found text analysis only minimally helpful, while analysis of selected drafts illustrated the surface-level focus of most revisions completed by text analysis students.; Results of the study indicate that text analysis limited the number of words written and revisions made across drafts compared to peer tutoring. Results also suggest that extended use of text analysis may have influenced the number of words written on post-study essays by text analysis students, who wrote significantly fewer words than peer tutoring students, although students were not given access to text analysis or peer tutoring during the test. |
