BLOGGING FOR 26 OCTOBER WEDNESDAY

While mining sources for my bibliographic list, I was not really sure yet of my focus for this study. However, after my conference with Dr. Blair, I became more comfortable (and a bit confident) with my topic and with the direction I wanted to take. After I wrote my lit. review (and after digesting it for the nth time), I realized that I need to orient myself more with ‘key figures’ emphasized in a number of the articles I’ve read – Weaver, Connors, Bakhtin – and see how I could situate my research design theoretically. At this point, I know that one of my purposes for this study would be to answer Weaver’s challenge to Composition teachers to experiment with unique ways to teach important grammar points “in less time” during the revision process in order for students to produce rhetorically effective pieces. Since there is a dearth of studies on ESL composition pedagogy with regard to its use of technology-based (and contextualized) grammar instruction, I thought this is where I would like to posit my plan. As part of my ongoing research, I will continue to mine more sources on studies/researches done on ESL composition practices and grammar instruction using technology so that I could be assured that there really is an existing gap in this area. Another concern for me at this point is to search for sources that would pinpoint which specific grammar points are needed by ESL students in composition classes so that I could start planning/designing mini-lessons that would target their deficiencies (this time, by using technology). Beth gave me a li’l anecdote earlier (ethnographic bit!) on a possible focal point for grammar instruction. Otherwise, I would just have to implement in my experimental design a strategy to measure which grammar points are necessary to focus on in both my experimental/treatment group and my control group.

More to come as am picking up speed and moving forward. As always, your kind advice would keep me from getting lost.

Florence :)
Researcher05

MY BLOG POST FOR 10/5 WED

Based on the articles/other sources I found, it seems that there really was a dearth of dissertations (from ProQuest) when it comes to ‘grammar improving writing’ – a category I assigned for articles which relate the benefits of teaching grammar in composition classes as well as some of its effective rhetorical pedagogy. I surmised that this could signal what has been a movement away from grammar prevalent in the mid-80s, what with NCTE’s resolution that teaching mechanical grammar is not relevant to students at all. Conversely, I found a lot of journal articles that argue FOR the effectivity of grammar instruction in writing. I thought there seems to be ‘something going on there’, a ‘gap’ that reflects differing opinions about this subject so that absolutely doing away with grammar seems easier said than done. My sampling of bibliographic lists on this subject might indeed signify something about current pedagogical composition practices.

I am entertaining a shift in my focus for this study. Though I still want to work on grammar and its integration with rhetorical pedagogy (a la Bakhtin), I want to explore more on how technology could help usher in a comeback of grammar instruction (or does it actually ‘worsen’ students’ writing proficiency because of the proliferation of technological practices like emails, blogs, etc?). Could it be that most compositionists, writing instructors, etc leave out grammar because it proves to be inconvenient or too traditional in this postmodern age? By investigating more on the role of technology in grammar instruction in composition classes, I might be led to a more promising direction for this research. As always, your suggestions and insights are valuable.

At this point, am willing to take a stab in search for the Holy Grail…

florence
researcher05