LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 22:5 May 2022
ISSN 1930-2940

Editors:
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         T. Deivasigamani, Ph.D.
         Pammi Pavan Kumar, Ph.D.
         Soibam Rebika Devi, M.Sc., Ph.D.

Managing Editor & Publisher: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.

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A Model of English Writing Instruction Using Digital Activities on Smartphones

Arisara Ngamsomjit, M.A. and Prannapha Modehiran, Ph.D.

Abstract

This research aimed to develop a model of English writing instruction using digital activities on smartphones to improve the students’ writing ability in this digital era and to study the effectiveness of the designed model using quasi-experimental design with explanatory mixed methods in the context of English as a foreign language at lower-intermediate level in a private university in Thailand. By amalgamating the research’s findings on the students’ preference for English writing learning with the use of digital activities on smartphones inside and outside classroom (Ngamsomjit, 2021; Ngamsomjit & Modehiran, 2022) with the documentary research, four components of the designed model were proposed including learners’ learning, teacher’s teaching, digital tools and technology for English writing learning, and English writing instruction. The lessons in the instruction comprised nine steps for in-class collaborative writing activities and an outside-class group project as an instructional instrument. The findings from the pretest/posttest revealed the students’ writing scores in the experimental group increased in the posttest at a significance level of .05. The semi-structured interview and the online questionnaire after students’ attending the instruction as the designed model reported their satisfaction towards the teaching as the model. The research concluded that the developed model satisfactorily influenced students’ confidence, motivation, enjoyment, engagement, and interaction in their writing learning, and improved the students’ writing ability in this digital era.

Keywords: Instructional model development, Digital writing activities, smart phones, English writing instruction, English as a foreign language

1. Introduction

Technology has been incorporated into English instructions for many decades; however, the world’s digital transformation and the disruptive technological innovations have changed all aspects of lives including how people write (Electronic Transactions Development Agency, 2019, 2020). In a private university in Thailand, a lower-intermediate English writing instruction in an English as a foreign language context is conventionally conducted with the use of common teaching tools and technology such as textbook, computer and a projector, students seem increasingly inactive in their learning leading to ineffective learning and unsuccessful academic results. One of the possible factors might be that the students’ ways of learning English writing have changed on account of their digital attributes (Ngamsomjit, 2021; Ngamsomjit & Modehiran, 2022); as a result, the traditional English writing instruction currently in use might probably be less suitable. Therefore, a cautious research study is necessary to raise some concerns of the EFL communities to mitigate the impact of the digital transforming on English writing teaching and learning. This current research firstly aimed to develop a model of English writing instruction using digital activities on smartphones to improve the students’ writing ability in this digital era and investigated its effectiveness on significant improvement of the students’ writing ability and their satisfaction toward the writing instruction as the model.

Related Literature Review

The related studies regarding the designing of the writing instruction model included SLA principles, English writing instruction, digital technology for English writing learning, and instructional models as follows.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Arisara Ngamsomjit, M.A.
arisarangm@au.edu

Prannapha Modehiran, Ph.D.
prannapha@gmail.com
Graduate School of Human Sciences
Assumption University, Thailand
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