This opinion paper focuses on foregrounding the issue of the hidden curriculum in L2 writing and how addressing its negative sides can greatly move forward our understanding of students' writing learning experiences and further promote more effective and equal writing teaching. Specifically, this paper argues that the negative sides of the hidden…

Learner autonomy has received growing interest from researchers and educators since the 1980s. Autonomous learners are supposed to monitor their progress and assess their performance. The present study investigated the effects of learner factors on the scorer reliability of self- and peer-assessment of EFL (English as foreign language) writing…

This study aims to explore the students' experience with ChatGPT in providing scaffolding for writing essays. It also discloses students' appraisals of utilising ChatGPT. Drawing upon data from semi-structured interviews, this study involved 12 students learning English as a Foreign Language who utilised ChatGPT in academic writing classes. The…

This study evaluated the effect of a combined feedback activity (peer feedback, computer-generated feedback and teacher feedback) on students' second language (L2) writing feedback literacy. One hundred and eighty-two Chinese university students participated in this research. Findings revealed that the intervention significantly improved students'…

Constructive alignment, as a less examined issue in the English language learning context, is a technique to align learning outcomes, teaching activities, and assessment based on the competencies that learners need to achieve. This study examined whether teaching academic paragraph writing in a virtual flipped classroom according to the…

Success in higher education relates in part to competence in the medium of instruction. But the academic literacy literature provides compelling evidence that competence in the medium of instruction is insufficient to ensure success. Crucially, students need to take on the literacy practices of the discipline or field. This study offers a thematic…

While blended teaching approaches are becoming more common in some higher educational institutes, their consistency in aligning with higher-level learning objectives varies The current study aims to explore the design and effectiveness of Small Private Online Course (SPOC)-based blended teaching in fostering deep learning among English as a…

Students completing undergraduate thesis projects rely on supervisory feedback to improve their academic writing and research abilities. Despite its critical role, supervisory feedback on undergraduate theses is under-researched. Adopting a qualitative multiple case-study approach, this study explores how students' motivation for writing the…

This study designed and pilot-tested a learning path in Personal Learning Environments (PLEs) to facilitate learners' Self-regulated Learning. 122 postgraduates who joined an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) course at a comprehensive university in China were evenly divided into two groups. The experimental group used PLEs with…

Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) are a form of online learning that has become increasingly popular across the globe, yet they often suffer from low completion rates. This study aims to advance understanding of the Dropout Phenomenon in MOOCs through a qualitative case study conducted in Pakistan. The purpose of this research is to understand…

Although there have been numerous mobile learning studies, relatively few concerns the moderating impact of perceived fit on mobile learning outcomes. A total of 335 adult learners with a mobile language learning experience in Taiwan took part in this study. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) is used to determine the key…

Incorporating Vygotsky's concepts of scaffolding and Zone of Proximal Development, this paper presents a qualitative study examining student roles in dialogic peer feedback learning, focusing on Chinese English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) students in mixed translation proficiency triads within an English-Chinese translation course. During feedback…

Our purpose in this study is to propose a voice model which provides a framework to analyse how student writers construct their authorial identities through the voices they employ in their texts and to test the effectiveness of the Lehman's rubric design as a measure of authorial voice. The voice model, which features individualised, collective…

Over the last decade, online learning has grown to become an important part of higher education. However, despite the considerable volume of research in this area, many educators are still concerned about how online learning can be used in an effective way. This paper presents the results of research which set out to evaluate the efficacy of an…

This research paper employs an exploratory framework to evaluate the potential of ChatGPT as an Automated Writing Evaluation (AWE) tool in teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Thailand. The main objective is to investigate how well ChatGPT can assess students' writing using prompts and pre-defined rubrics compared to human raters.…