Abstract:

At Zayed University, using mobile devices is required. How will this affect the students’ writing process? This presentation introduces research on how teachers provide students with corrective feedback in EFL writing using www.quip.com. The presenters will provide theory and empirical evidence of effective practices for correcting student work using a mobile application.

Many EFL teachers have not overcome the challenge of using a mobile device in the classroom for writing assignments. Using traditional pencil-and-paper writing procedures is still the norm. Teachers may still have questions about how to get their students to write using their mobile devices: How do teachers use a mobile app? What apps should teachers use? Why should teachers use an app at all? Isn’t writing better as a tactile process? In this session, we will not only explain why an app can be powerful in teaching writing; but more importantly, we will demonstrate how using www.quip.com can redefine the corrective feedback process for an individual teacher or for teams of teachers who collectively want to improve corrective feedback. There are three streams of research that inform L2 online writing: SLA, English rhetorical writing, and teacher education. In the area of SLA, the process of writing necessarily includes the practice of corrective feedback. In rhetorical writing, the process of writing has been reframed by online writing and its reach has been extended. In the field of teacher education, the discussion of digital literacy has enhanced the topic of second language writing. First, the presenters will give some basic background explaining why teachers should use a mobile app in writing. Then, they will display research results that demonstrate how teachers at Zayed University use the app, Quip.com. Finally, they will give applications for how mobile writing apps can be useful in the classroom.

Keywords:

Writing, MALL, CALL, corrective feedback, rhetorical writing.