Test-takers’ Application Of Writing Strategies And Its Influences On Their Writing Performance

Second language writing ability is an essential manifestation for learners to comprehensively use language.And the effective use of second language writing strategies cannot only improve the writing performance,but also promote learners’ autonomous learning ability.By the analysis of previous studies related to writing strategies,most of them are in the context of second language teaching.Specifically,researchers have mainly directed their energies to the comparative studies between successful and unsuccessful second language writers,related studies on the specific type of writing strategies such as metacognitive strategies,and studies on the influence of different factors(e.g.,gender,language proficiency level,affective attitude)on the use of writing strategies.And there are also several studies in the context of test,for example,related studies targeted at test-taking strategies of writing.However,few studies probe into the general situation of writing strategies use in the context of test.Therefore,this thesis aims to establish the classification framework of writing strategies in the context of test,and explore the difference of different groups when using writing strategies,and investigate the impact of different writing strategies use on writing performance.This thesis is in the hope of supplementing current research on writing strategies so as to provide certain suggestions for English writing teaching.To be specific,three research questions were answered: 1)What types of writing strategies do test-takers apply in writing tests? 2)Does test-takers’ application of writing strategies differ across genders and English proficiency levels?If so,what are the differences? 3)Does test-takers’ application of writing strategies influence their writing performance? If so,in what ways influences it? Based on these research questions,this study took 223 sophomores from three universities in southwestern China as research participants who majored in Information and Computer Science,Electronic and Information Engineering,Environmental Design,Chinese Language and Literature,etc.After the collection of data by the method of interviews,think-aloud writing,writing test,and questionnaire,the final analysis was conducted.The research results showed that test-takers applied three dimensional writing strategies in the context of test,including cognitive strategies,metacognitive strategies and test-taking strategies.In the three sub-processes of pre-writing,while-writing and post-writing,three specific writing strategies are included under each dimension,in which cognitive strategies include capturing key points,translating and revising content;metacognitive strategies include mobilizing material,self-monitoring and self-evaluation;test-taking strategies include guessing intention,determining style and confirming details.In addition,it was also found that female test-takers paid more attention to make syllabus and make Chinese draft in writing tests;test-takers with medium/high proficiency level were more inclined to use sophisticated words,advanced sentence patterns to impress raters and obtain higher scores.The results of multiple regression analysis showed that all the writing strategies contributed to writing performance with interpretation rate of 51.5%,and ensuring the correctness of grammar,words,and the neatness of the paper sheet showed the greatest impact on test-takers’ writing performance.Based on the aforementioned findings,the author believes that in the course of writing teaching,teachers should guide students of different genders and language proficiency levels in accordance with their characteristics when using writing strategies,instruct students to use writing strategies reasonably,help students build logical thinking of English writing,and improve students’ English writing ability at the same time as focusing on “scores”.