Toward an Empirical Model of L2 Writing Process

本研究采用多个数据源，包括书面语篇、刺激回忆法、每分钟写的字数和录像“修改”行为，对二语学习者的写作过程进行了研究。本研究比较了三对日本英语写作者（专家组与新手组、高效率学生与低效率学生组、新手组在六个月的教学前后）在写作策略使用和写作风格方面的差异。结果表明：（a）专家组在开始写作之前花了较长的时间来规划一个详细的整体组织，而新手组花了较短的时间来制定一个不那么全面的计划;（B）专家组一旦制定了一个全面的计划，他们就没有新手组那样频繁地停下来思考;（c）第二语言水平似乎可以解释专家组和新手组在策略使用上的部分差异;（d）经过六个月的指导，新手学会了使用一些优秀作家的策略。还有人推测，专家的总体规划是基于他们设定目标和评估特定任务特点的能力。在此基础上，作者提出了二语写作过程的初步模型。

The present study investigated L2 learners' writing process using multiple data sources including written texts, stimulated recall protocols, number of words written per minutes, and video-taped "revising" behaviors, The study adapted the research scheme that has been successfully used for building models of Japanese L1 writing. Three pairs of Japanese EFL writers (experts vs. novices, more vs. less efficient student writers, novices before and after six months of instruction) were compared in terms of their strategy use and writing styles. The results revealed that (a) the experts spent a longer time before starting to write planning a detailed overall organization, whereas the novices spent a shorter time making a less global plan ; (b) once the experts made their global plan, they did not stop and think as frequently as the novices ; (c) L2 proficiency appears to explain part of the difference in strategy use between the experts and novices ; (d) after six months of instruction, novices learned to use some of the good writers' strategies. It was also speculated that the experts' global planning was based on their ability to set goals and assess the characteristics of the given task. On the basis of these results, a preliminary model of the L2 writing process was proposed.