Politeness Strategies in Wiki-mediated Communication of EFL Collaborative Writing Tasks

Informed by the theory of social constructivism and computer-mediatedcommunication (CMC), wiki-mediated collaborative writing has beenincreasingly implemented in second or foreign language classes.However, to date, no research has addressed students’ interaction andnegotiation of their social relationship during wiki-mediatedcollaboration. Drawing on politeness theory, particularly Brown andLevinson (1987)’s taxonomy of politeness strategies, this studyanalyzed the wiki-mediated discourse of one collaborative writinggroup in a Chinese EFL context. This particular writing groupconsisted of three EFL college students at a southwestern university inChina. This article examined specifically how this small group activelyengaged in social interaction by adopting politeness strategies duringasynchronous communication in a wiki “Discussion” module. Resultsrevealed that this small group used three types of politeness strategies,i.e. positive, negative, and bald on record skillfully, to establishfriendship, solidarity and respect while completing their collaborativewriting tasks smoothly and efficiently. This study validates the value oflinguistic politeness strategies in the analyses of social interactionoccurring in computer-mediated discourse and also suggests somepedagogical implications

Individual novices and collective experts: Collective scaffolding in wiki-based small group writing

This article reports on a case study that explored the process of wiki-based collaborative writing in a small group of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at a Chinese university. The study examined the archived logs from the group wiki ‘Discussion’ and ‘History’ modules with a focus on the group members\u27 scaffolded interaction when co-constructing texts in the wiki space. The analysis revealed that the participants were actively engaged in reciprocal communication in terms of content discussion, social talk, task management, technical communication and language negotiation. They were also found to have scaffolded each other\u27s writing efforts during co-constructing the product via multiple writing change functions, including addition, deletion, rephrasing, reordering and correction. This study explicated a distinct case of ‘collective scaffolding’ (Donato, 1994) in collaborative writing activities, where group members were simultaneously individual novices and collective experts as they pooled their knowledge and mutually guided each other through problem solving as to writing tasks. This study has important implications for instruction and future research on computer-mediated collaborative writing

Use of Wikis in Second/Foreign Language Classes: A Literature Review

Wikis, as emerging Web 2.0 tools, have been increasingly implemented in language classrooms. To explore the current state of research and inform future studies, this article reviews the past research on the use of wikis in second/foreign language classes. Using Google Scholar and the ERIC database, the researcher examines twenty-one empirical studies published in fourteen peer-reviewed journals from 2008 to 2011. Specifically, the researcher takes a holistic review of this body of literature, including theoretical frameworks, research goals, contexts and participants, tasks and wiki applications, and research methods and instruments. The researcher identifies four main research themes investigated in the current body of literature: collaborative writing process, writing product, perceptions of wiki-based collaborative writing, and effects of tasks. Each of the four themes is sub-categorized into different research strands, and the synthesized findings regarding these strands are further discussed. In addition, the researcher indicates pedagogical implications, identifies the research gaps, and addresses potential research directions for wiki use in second/foreign language classes

Mediated Processes in Writing for Publication: Perspectives of Chinese Science Postdoctoral Researchers in America

Sociocultural theory provides an explanatory framework for understanding human activity in the community of practice. This paper aims to address science researchers’ scholarly writing for publication processes from a sociocultural perspective. The author conducts a study via in-depth reflective interviews with three Chinese science postdoctoral researchers in America in an attempt to find their specific mediated actions and dynamic processes in writing for publication. In light of Engeström’s (1987, 1999) activity system, this paper, drawing on the interview data, explores the four mediating factors: objects/goals, artifacts, community, and roles, which afford and constrain the goings-on in the researchers’ writing for publication activity. Results reveal that in order to achieve their publication goal, the three researchers comply with the publication norms, mediate with a diversity of cultural artifacts, socialize with different people from academic and editorial communities, and fulfill their dual social roles. All these mediated actions are essential components of their writing processes that contribute to their international-refereed publications. The current study, exploring the link between writing for publication and activity theory, will inform L2 writing research in more encompassing ways

Politeness strategies in wiki-mediated communication of EFL collaborative writing tasks

Informed by the theory of social constructivism and computer-mediated communication (CMC), wiki-mediated collaborative writing has been increasingly implemented in second or foreign language classes. However, to date, no research has addressed students’ interaction and negotiation of their social relationship during wiki-mediated collaboration. Drawing on politeness theory, particularly Brown and Levinson (1987)’s taxonomy of politeness strategies, this study analyzed the wiki-mediated discourse of one collaborative writing group in a Chinese EFL context. This particular writing group consisted of three EFL college students at a southwestern university in China. This article examined specifically how this small group actively engaged in social interaction by adopting politeness strategies during asynchronous communication in a wiki “Discussion” module. Results revealed that this small group used three types of politeness strategies, i.e. positive, negative, and bald on record skillfully, to establish friendship, solidarity and respect while completing their collaborative writing tasks smoothly and efficiently. This study validates the value of linguistic politeness strategies in the analyses of social interaction occurring in computer-mediated discourse and also suggests some pedagogical implications

Turnitin and peer review in ESL academic writing classrooms

Despite the benefits of peer review, there are still challenges that need to be addressed to make it more effective for L2 students. With the development of technology, computer-mediated peer review has captured increasing attention from L2 writing researchers and instructors. While Turnitin is known for its use in detecting plagiarism, its newly developed module, PeerMark, aims to facilitate peer review. In this article, we share our experience of using Turnitin for peer review in an ESL academic writing course and discuss its advantages, its limitations, and how different features of PeerMark may be used to address some of the challenges identified in previous research on peer review in the L2 writing classroom. Throughout a semester, the students were required to complete three peer review tasks through Turnitin. Based on the instructor’s experience and the students’ reports, we found that Turnitin could help shift students’ attention from local to global issues in writing, scaffold students in their effort to provide more helpful comments and to make connections between specific suggestions and holistic advice for writing, and facilitate classroom management during peer review

Explaining dynamic interactions in wiki-based collaborative writing

This article reports a case study that examined dynamic patterns of interaction that two small groups (Group A and Group B) of ESL students exemplified when they performed two writing tasks: a research proposal (Task 1) and an annotated bibliography (Task 2) in a wiki site. Group A demonstrated a collective pattern in Task 1, but switched to an active–withdrawn pattern in Task 2. In contrast, Group B exhibited a dominant–defensive pattern in Task 1, but switched to a collaborative pattern in Task 2. These patterns were substantiated by group members’ ongoing task approaches in terms of equality and mutuality, reflected via the analyses of language functions, writing change functions, and scaffolding occurrences over the course of joint wiki writing. The dynamic interactions within small groups were explained from a sociocultural theory perspective. Participants’ emic perspectives from interviews and reflection papers supplemented with wiki discourse revealed that three sociocultural factors help account for the variations of interaction patterns: dynamic goals, flexible agency, and socially constructed emotion. This study reinforced the role of sociocultural theory in exploring and explaining peer interactions in the online writing task environment. Implications of the study for research and pedagogy are also discussed

Patterns of Computer-Mediated Interaction in Small Writing Groups Using Wikis

Informed by sociocultural theory and guided especially by “collective scaffolding”, this study investigated the nature of computer-mediated interaction of three groups of English as a Foreign Language students when they performed collaborative writing tasks using wikis. Nine college students from a Chinese university participated in the wiki-mediated collaborative writing project. Analyses of data from the wiki “Discussion”, “Page”, and “History” modules on each group tab revealed that the three small groups displayed three distinct patterns of online interaction: collectively contributing/mutually supportive, authoritative/responsive, and dominant/withdrawn. These patterns were substantiated by the roles group members assumed and members’ task approaches in terms of equality and mutuality. Also, findings from semi-structured interviews suggested that the different patterns of interaction influenced the students’ perceived learning experiences. The collectively contributing/mutually supportive group reported themost learning opportunities. This study not only fills a gap in current collaborative writing literature but also makes a theoretical contribution to research on computer-mediated interaction in collaborative learning. Pedagogical implications on how to conduct computer-mediated collaborative writing are also addressed

The augmented convention offering: the impact of destination and product images on attendees' perceived benefits

In order to benefit from the significant dual spending of meetings, incentives, conventions/conferences, exhibitions/events (MICE) attendees, destination marketers have attempted to identify key success criteria that enable increased convention and exhibition participation. Given the significant growth of the MICE industry in Asia, this study examines the role of destination and product images on Chinese attendees' perceptions of the benefits acquired through convention and exhibition participation in the regions of Macau and Hong Kong. Data were collected using an intercept survey and a systematic random sampling procedure. Structural Equation Modeling was used to test a model that integrates two strands of literature from the fields of marketing and international business: Product–Country Image (PCI) and the Augmented Service Offering (ASO). Results show that a favorable overall destination image positively impacts the image of the MICE product of the destination, which, in turn, leads to a greater perception of personal and professional benefit acquisition. Based on these findings, the authors propose the Augmented MICE Offering as a theoretical framework that can serve as a foundation for more comprehensive inquiry into the decision-making process of the MICE attendee and postattendance behavioral impacts. The study also provides important positioning and communication implications for MICE destinations

The performance of Leland's option pricing models in the presence of transaction costs: evidence from the Australian index option market

This study examines the performance of a few option pricing models with transaction costs in valuing call options on S&P/ASX 200 index. The option pricing models of the original Leland model as well as its two variations are tested and contrasted with the Black-Scholes-Merton (BSM) model across moneyness and maturity. Our empirical results reveal that the two variations of the original Leland model appear to perform well in pricing call options except short-term out-of-the-money calls. The pricing performance of Leland models appears to improve as rebalance becomes more frequent (from quarterly to daily) except for short-term and medium-term out-of-the-money calls. Moreover, the prices generated from the Leland models are subject to fewer and weaker pricing biases than are the prices from the BSM model. Overall, this paper demonstrates that it is important to consider transaction costs in option pricing that may lead to a more effective pricing of call options