Reader responses of two different disciplinary groups of Saudi college-level students

Kazeminava, Rokhsareh (2018). Reader responses of two different disciplinary groups of Saudi college-level students. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

As writing and reading are interconnected activities and as learners are at the centre of learning process, this thesis employed a reader response activity in English classes of two disciplinary different college-level students to examine the SL learners’ roles in the writing process. This study was motivated by three main research questions in the areas of the effect of learner variables on the choice of reading topics and the length of learners’ responses, the textual characteristics of the responses, and writer’s self-representation and reader engagement strategies. A sample of 600 student texts was analysed using referential statistics for addressing the question on learner variables, and text analysis, both manually and through a corpus tool, for the other two questions. The findings showed these students differed in their choices of reading topics and that the topic, the students’ linguistic ability and discipline affected their responses. The text analysis revealed that most responses belonged to the levels 2 and 3 of cognitive engagement and that their generic structuring consisted of three main rhetorical moves. It also illustrated that personal pronouns were used for self-representation and reader engagement and had various rhetorical functions. The findings have wide-ranging pedagogical implications.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

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