The Implementation of Writing through Technology-Mediated English Course to Enhance Thai University Students Writing Skills

Abstract

Integrating technology into classroom has been proven to be effective, through the existing literature, by providing a better understanding of the language content and features with more authentic language experience. Along with the classroom writing, online-writing was also incorporated into the course to explore the efficacy of either one of these writing sessions through the participants’ performance. The participants, 50 pre-intermediate Thai university students, were divided into a number of small groups during the class period, in which they were asked to work together to both brainstorm and provide mutual feedbacks for their peers. However, writing through online platform at their convenience was an individual performance. The accuracy, lexical complexity, and adverbs only with –ly ending, of their writing samples were considered as the main data in current study. The results, analyzed through a quantitative experimental design, proven to be fairly significant for the lexical complexity whereas their improvement in accuracy was significant, meanwhile during the online writing episodes, the participants experienced less stress with greater focus. Due to lack of pressure, they could apply the writing skills they learnt in the class which led to a significant improvement is accuracy. The students’ perception about the classroom and online writing episodes as well as their effect of the participants’ self-assessment were also investigated.