| English writing is an essential part of language learning.The release of the Chinese Compulsory Education Curriculum Standards(2022)has set higher requirements for English writing for upper elementary school students in China,including writing structure and language expression.The traditional teaching method of English writing in China mainly aims at test-taking and therefore focuses more on teaching model texts.However,this teaching method cannot give students sufficient writing structure and language guidance.It also puts pressure on students,which may affect students’ motivations in English writing.Wang(2012)proposed the continuation task of writing(hereafter CTOW)teaching method,which provided a new way of writing teaching.It aims to integrate reading and writing by asking students to complete the missing part of the reading material to improve their writing competence.The facilitative effects of CTOW on writing quality and motivation have been proved mainly in Chinese middle and college students.Nonetheless,only a few studies were conducted in Chinese elementary schools.Therefore,more research needs to be undertaken in this field.Therefore,this study examined the effects of CTOW on upper grades of Chinese elementary students in terms of writing quality and motivation.And then,the following questions were answered.(1)Can CTOW help upper graders of Chinese elementary schools improve their writing quality(in terms of the scores of district standard testing)?(2)Can CTOW affect students’ writing motivation(i.e.,intrinsic,extrinsic,and self-efficacy)?Fortyone students in a sixth-grade class in an elementary school in Xicheng District,Beijing(a district in a northern city of China)were selected as the objects of this case study.The research lasted for seven months.Before the experiment,a writing test and a writing motivation questionnaire were conducted to investigate students’ original level of writing quality and motivation.Then a total of three sessions of CTOW were conducted during the experiment.The writing tasks were designed based on students’ textbooks.After the teaching of CTOW,another writing test and writing motivation questionnaire were arranged to probe into the effect of CTOW.Furthermore,six students at different English levels were randomly selected to conduct semi-structured interviews to supplement the quantitative analysis of the writing tests and questionnaires.The data collection was divided into three parts.First,the results of their writing tests were collected before and after the experiment,from which the changes in their English writing quality were analyzed.Then,the English writing motivation questionnaires were collected before and after the investigation to understand the differences in their writing motivation(i.e.,intrinsic motivation,extrinsic motivation,and self-efficacy).Third,students’ interview transcripts were compiled and analyzed to understand their attitudes toward CTOW and English writing subjectively.This study found that,first,CTOW could improve the writing quality of these experimental students in upper grades of Chinese elementary schools.Second,CTOW positively affected these students’ writing motivations,especially in intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy,while there was no substantial effect on their extrinsic motivation.This study provided a practical way of implementing CTOW in writing teaching in upper grades of Chinese elementary schools.CTOW is an effective learning method that can improve Chinese upper graders’ writing quality and enhance their English writing motivation,especially their internal motivation. |
