In language acquisition, writing is the most challenging skill that English learners must master. Students often struggle at the beginning of their writing process with idea generation. Due to students' low academic achievement and their struggles, online mind mapping is suggested as a useful tool to support language students' brainstorms and idea…

The aim of this study was to determine why, although rigorous standards in English language arts (ELA) have been adopted in a northwestern state and were designed to build toward college readiness, high school students graduating from a college readiness curriculum are not college ready in the area of writing. The purpose of the research was to…

Many factors revolve around scholarly writing, especially in an RN to BSN program. Many nursing leaders have reported scholarly writing as an area students struggle with during their academic careers. Online writing orientations can help aid in this dilemma, yet few universities are currently using this option. There is little research to support…

This dissertation examines how the transmission of language ideologies on a US campus shapes Chinese international students' experiences regarding English academic writing. The study is motivated by past research that demonstrates the challenges of mastering English academic writing, particularly for people who did not speak English early in life.…

This study is an investigation of the effects of linguistic features on quality of second language (L2) writers' essays for writing course placement at Indiana University Bloomington (IUB), and by implication at other universities and colleges. This study addresses the following research questions: (1) To what extent do selected linguistic…

Multilingual college students often struggle with writing and revising for academic purposes. This dissertation explored the effectiveness of a Concept-Based Language Instruction (C-BLI) approach to teaching revision processes to college-level multilingual writers. Although a significant body of research exists on effective feedback on…

Transitioning into civilian life after military service is a challenging prospect. It can be difficult to find employment and maintain good mental health, and up to 70 percent of veterans experience homelessness or alcoholism. Upon discharge, many veterans pursue higher education as a way to reintegrate into civilian society. However, many studies…

While research demonstrates the importance of vocabulary knowledge for reading comprehension (Anderson & Freebody, 1981; Guo, Roehrig, & Williams, 2011), many studies suggest wide reading exposure for vocabulary acquisition (Nagy, Herman, & Anderson, 1985; Stahl & Nagy, 2006). However, there is compelling evidence for the benefits…

Although studies in higher education have paid attention to the complexities of learning disciplinary language and discourse, little attention has been given to learning professional discourse in a second language (L2). Recent studies on language socialization have addressed this gap by focusing on L2 students' emerging communicative competence in…

This dissertation is an ethnographically-oriented, 18-month study of four Latinx students' experiences across the high school to college writing transition. It contributes to a growing body of empirical research in writing studies that seeks to better understand the school writing experiences of students from historically underrepresented…

This doctoral dissertation explores diverse facets of online research and comprehension among college students with English as a second or foreign language (L2 students). The research involves three distinct investigations within this overarching theme. Firstly, the study delves into the online reading and writing practices employed by Korean L2…

Through using the framework of sociocultural theory, this study examined the ways in which students were initiated into an academic discourse community at a public college through the required courses of first year composition (FYC). The purpose of the study was to see how instructors assisted students to become part of the academic discourse…