Text or multimodal CMC: which engages EFL writers?
Text-based CMC boosted autonomy and cognitive/behavioral engagement, while multimodal CMC boosted emotional and social engagement.
Source
Learner autonomy, learner engagement and learner satisfaction in text-based and multimodal computer mediated writing environments
Study at a glance
- Design
- Human experiment — Random assignment to text-based vs multimodal CMC for 14 treatment sessions
- N
- N=40 · 40 intermediate Iranian EFL learners (20 per condition)
- Population
- Intermediate EFL learners in CMC writing groups
- Outcome
- Autonomy, multi-dimensional engagement, satisfaction, and writing performance by modality
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Text or multimodal CMC: which engages EFL writers?
These passages occur verbatim in the stored paper text. They support the points listed below; they do not verify every statement in the explanation.
40 EFL participants aged 18–23
Participants were 40 EFL male and female intermediate Iranian EFL students from English Centers with the age range of 18–23.
5 subgroups of four students each
Each research group had 5 subgroups of four students.
What they did
Forty intermediate Iranian EFL learners were randomly assigned to text-based or multimodal computer-mediated communication groups for fourteen treatment sessions. Researchers compared autonomy, multi-dimensional engagement, satisfaction, and first-to-last writing performance.
What they found
Text-based modality produced stronger autonomous, behavioral, and cognitive engagement; multimodal modality produced stronger emotional and social engagement. Satisfaction was similar across modalities.
The limits
What it doesn't show
Results are from one EFL context with a modest sample and may not generalise broadly. Engagement measures and writing gains are limited to the fourteen-session window.
Key terms
- Computer-mediated communication (CMC)
- Interaction and writing exchanges conducted through digital platforms.
- Multimodal writing
- Composing that combines language with other semiotic resources such as images or media.
- Learner autonomy
- Learners' capacity to take responsibility for directing aspects of their own learning.
- Behavioral engagement
- Observable participation and on-task academic behaviors.
- Emotional engagement
- Affective investment such as interest or enjoyment in learning.
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Quiz yourself
How many learners participated?
Common questions
How many students participated?
40 intermediate EFL learners.
How were groups formed?
Random assignment to multimodal or text-based CMC (20 each).
Which modality supported cognitive engagement more?
Text-based CMC.
Was satisfaction different?
Students reported similar satisfaction across modalities.
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