Examines the view that the items writers use to modify their claims in academic texts, commonly referred to as hedges and boosters, may actually be unnoticed by second language readers, a phenomenon known as the lexical invisibility hypothesis. Data is presented from a small retrospective think-aloud study that explores how 14 Cantonese first…

Offers a detailed text analysis of written feedback given by two teachers of English-as-a-Second-Language students. Considers this feedback in terms of it functions as praise, criticism, and suggestions. Explores the motivations for these through teacher interviews and think-aloud protocols and examines cases where students failed to understand…