A genre analysis of written academic feedback

Lee, Kok Yueh (2013). A genre analysis of written academic feedback. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

This thesis sets out to investigate two aspects, first to explore written academic feedback as a genre and second, to use corpus approaches to investigate any significant strategy revealed by the genre study. Feedback reports were gathered from two Humanities departments from undergraduate students who were doing an English programme in a UK higher education institution. The first aim of this research is to identify the rhetorical structures or functions of feedback by analyzing its moves, steps, and acts structure. A genre analysis was carried with 100 feedback reports. Although both departments used different templates in giving feedback, the findings from the genre analysis show some distinctive patterning of feedback, indicating that written academic feedback is a genre. The second part of this research was developed in the process of genre analysis where one of the salient features of feedback is in tutors’ use of hedging. The EdEng corpus was compiled from the feedback reports. From the findings of the corpus study, hedging is often expressed through four sub-components: modal verbs, vague language, stance adverbs, and submodifiers. Through the findings of this study, I hope to be able to raise awareness of the current feedback writing system and to provide salient ways for tutors to give feedback in essays.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):