In this closing commentary, I first briefly recognize areas that have made the dialogue between the fields of second language (L2) writing and second language acquisition (SLA) difficult in the past. I then offer some comments on the interfaces that are brought to the fore by the contributions gathered in the special issue. The themes explored are…

For more than 30 years, different opinions about whether written corrective feedback (CF) is a worthwhile pedagogical practice for L2 learning and acquisition have been voiced. Despite the arguments for and against its potential to help L2 learners acquire the target language and the inconclusive findings across studies that have sought answers to…

The controversies surrounding written error correction can be traced to Truscott (1996) in his polemic against written error correction. He claimed that empirical studies showed that error correction was ineffective and that this was to be expected "given the nature of the correction process and "the nature of language learning" (p. 328, emphasis…

While there has been a proliferation of research on assessment for learning (AFL) over the past two decades, L2 writing assessment has tended to focus much more on assessment of learning (AOL) than AFL. This study seeks to investigate the implementation of AFL for EFL writing within an examination-driven AOL system in Hong Kong, its possible…

This paper presents a critical analysis of two recent studies on error correction, Ellis, Sheen, Murakami, and Takashima (2008) and Bitchener (2008) and argues that neither study constitutes evidence for error correction based on discussion of the comparability of participants, design issues, and analysis flaws in both studies. The paper further…

In the research conducted by Truscott and Hsu (2008), the authors demonstrate that although rewriting corrected drafts results in lower grammar error rates on the rewritten texts, this effect does not carry over to a subsequent new writing task. The authors conclude that the result indicates that there may have been no language improvement from…

This article presents the findings of a study that investigated (1) the extent to which written corrective feedback (CF) can help advanced L2 learners, who already demonstrate a high level of accuracy in two functional uses of the English article system (the use of "a" for first mention and "the" for subsequent or anaphoric mentions), further…

Previous research has shown that corrective feedback on an assignment helps learners reduce their errors on that assignment during the revision process. Does this finding constitute evidence that learning resulted from the feedback? Differing answers play an important role in the ongoing debate over the effectiveness of error correction,…

The extent to which ESL learners benefit from written corrective feedback has been debated at length since Truscott (1996) mounted a case for its abolition. Ten years later, the debate continues, not only because little attention has been given to testing its efficacy over time but also because studies that have investigated the issue have not…

The paper evaluates and synthesizes research on the question of how error correction affects learners' ability to write accurately, combining qualitative analysis of the relevant studies with quantitative meta-analysis of their findings. The conclusions are that, based on existing research: (a) the best estimate is that correction has a small…

Using a case study approach, we explored the role of the teacher-student relationship in how a teacher made written comments on students' writing and in how students responded to these comments in revision. The focal participants were one non-native teacher of English and two of the students enrolled in her six-week composition course in a Korean…

The debate continues between those who believe in giving corrective feedback to students to improve their written accuracy and those who do not. Indeed, the results of the many experimental studies on written corrective feedback carried out over the last 20 years have been so contradictory that second language teachers looking to support their…

Researchers of scholarly literacy are becoming more aware that a published research article, especially if it is written by an English as an Additional Language (EAL) author, needs to be viewed as a product involving a range of "shapers" who participate in the editorial process (e.g., Burrough-Boenisch, 2003). Drawing on data gathered…

Debate about the value of providing corrective feedback on L2 writing has been prominent in recent years as a result of Truscott's [Truscott, J. (1996). The case against grammar correction in L2 writing classes. Language Learning, 46, 327-369] claim that it is both ineffective and harmful and should therefore be abandoned. A growing body of…

Uses experimental and control group data to show that students' correction of grammatical and lexical error between assignments reduces such error in subsequent writing over he semester without reducing fluency or quality. Further examines how error correction should be done. (Author/VWL)