The Platform Development of WeCWI Instructional Tool: A Comparative Systematic Review

The use of the internet for teaching and learning has received overwhelming responses from academics over the recent years. This infusion of digital and multimedia technologies into Malaysian ESL classrooms has considerably altered the ELT methodologies. Mastering English in the digital world is not only limited to knowing the syntactic, pragmatic, and lexical items of the language, but also knowing how to read, write, and communicate in electronic environments. In response to the impact of technology in English language teaching (ELT), limitations of the learning management system (LMS) in fostering second language (L2) writing skill, as well as needs of supplementary web-based instruction (WBI) in UiTM Penang Branch as reported in the past studies, a WBI namely Web-based Cognitive Writing Instruction (WeCWI) is thus proposed in this research. WeCWI is a theoretical and pedagogical framework applied into the design and development of a web-based instructional tool. This study applied a comparative systematic review focussing between the two salient alternatives of web versions, web 2.0 applications, web hosts, and on-screen web properties. A web 2.0 application, blog, hosted by Blogger was proposed to be used as the developing platform after comparing with their alternatives: Wordpress, wikis, and web 1.0. Besides, web widgets and hypertext were also analysed to be made available on the blogs as part of the user interface design. With the injection of Web widgets and hypertext into the blogs, WeCWI attempts to offer a technological enhanced ELT solution to overcome the poor writing skill among L2 learners.

UiTM Students' Writing Needs, Writing Problems, and Language Courses: A Qualitative Systematic Review of Literature Prior to WeCWI's Course Integration

To tackle the Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) students’ writing problems besides fulfilling the writing needs of UiTM learners and instructors, web-based instruction (WBI) was proposed as a supplementary instructional tool. A hybrid e-framework namely Web-based Cognitive Writing Instruction (WeCWI) was proposed to be adopted for developing WBI for writing performance and critical thinking enhancements. Before embracing WBI as a supplementary instructional tool of an English course, a qualitative systematic review of literature was conducted on the related studies of UiTM students’ writing needs and challenges as well as UiTM English courses. BEL422 Report Writing was identified as the most appropriate course among all the UiTM English courses offered up to 2013 owing to its syllabus, course structure, and assessment components focussing on report writing. Besides, this course was also crucial for the students to acquire their writing competence to communicate effectively in their future workplaces. Thus, BEL422 Report Writing was selected to be integrated with WeCWI for developing and designing a WBI to facilitate the teaching process as well as to enhance the learning outcomes.

WeCWI: Integrating Language Acquisition and Composition Studies towards Literacy Development

WeCWI is an e-framework grounded on the theoretical-and-pedagogical principles of language acquisition, composition studies, cognitive theories, and e-learning to promote literacy, language, cognitive, and psychological developments. This study aimed to tackle the writing complexity and deficiency of literacy skills among the second language (L2) learners by reviewing the literature on the integration of language acquisition and composition studies to become a hybrid framework. Three fundamental language acquisition theories such as acquisition-learning hypothesis, input hypothesis, and reading hypothesis were adopted in WeCWI. To develop a tool of web-based instruction (WBI) using WeCWI, instructors are encouraged to publish greater functions and more up-to-date reading materials by utilising the web widgets and hypertext, which offer the direct access to specific online reading materials to the learners. This will also promote reading on voluntary basis in informal setting or free reading, which is the major source of literacy competence in various aspects including vocabulary, spelling, grammar, and writing (Krashen, 1992). Besides, formal reading can also be made available on WBI through posting the targeted reading materials related to the course’s learning outcomes.

WeCWI Integrated Formula: Empowering Teachers through Adaptive Learning Technology

Web-based Cognitive Writing Instruction (WeCWI) is a theoretical-and-pedagogical multidisciplinary hybrid e-framework formulated to empower teachers through the adaptive learning technology particularly the internet. WeCWI Integrated Formula is the first framework synthesising the principles of language acquisition, cognitive theories, composition studies, and e-learning to construct a hybrid digital framework for developing and designing a web-based instruction (WBI) based on learners’ information processing preferences. The four main theoretical rationales—language acquisition, composition studies, cognitive theories, and e-learning—are seamlessly integrated as the core of WeCWI, which can be summarised into a formula as: (Language Acquisition + Composition Studies + Cognitive Theories) e-Learning = WeCWI. This integrated formula of WeCWI is represented by a Venn diagram. To promote adaptive learning, teachers are encouraged to develop their web-based instructional tools using the web 2.0 platform such as blog based on their students’ preferred interface designs that correspond to different perceptual learning styles.

From SIL to WeCWI: Overcoming L2 Learners’ Barriers to Writing through Web-Based Instruction

Rooted from the performance analysis based on the results of an English course offered by Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) in two consecutive semesters, nine L2 writing challenges were identified. These barriers to L2 writing were further analysed and elucidated in a form of chain diagram namely “SIL”, which means system (S), instructor (I), and learner (L). SIL proposes a sequence of deductive remedial actions for writing predicaments. Its learner domain was further scrutinised to examine the writing difficulties faced by UiTM undergraduates as the L2 learners. Based on the qualitative systematic review of the past studies on UiTM students’ writing problems supported by the instructors and learners’ writing needs, seven perspectives of poor writing skills were determined: writing complexity, literacy, proficiency, critical thinking, information literacy, interlanguage, and writing anxiety. Owing to the global impact of the internet, the positive outcomes of web-based writing instructions, as well as the high demand for developing a supplementary web-based instructional tool, an e-framework namely WeCWI was formulated grounded on the theoretical-and-pedagogical principles, which comes with four significances that promote in literacy, language, cognitive, and psychological developments.

A Critical Review on the Course Selection for Web-Based Instruction (WBI) Integration

Web-based instruction (WBI) has been proposed by Mah and Khor (2015) as a supplementary instructional tool to tackle the writing problems faced by Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) students besides to fulfil the writing needs of UiTM learners and instructors due to the limitations found in the existing web-based writing systems. Hence, the objective of this study is to select an appropriate English course by conducting a critical review of literature based on the past studies involving UiTM English courses as well as the types of English courses offered by UiTM before embracing WBI as the course’s supplementary instructional tool. After scrutinising all the UiTM English courses offered in 2013, BEL422 Report Writing was identified as the most proper course to be integrated with WBI owing to its syllabus, course structure, and assessment components that focus on proposal and report writing as the main learning outcome. Through the integration of WBI for instructional purpose, students who have registered in this course can acquire their writing competency to communicate effectively in an academic form of written English.

Web-Based Cognitive Writing Instruction (WeCWI): A Theoretical-and-Pedagogical e-Framework for Language Development

Web-based Cognitive Writing Instruction (WeCWI)’s contribution towards language development can be divided into linguistic and non-linguistic perspectives. In linguistic perspective, WeCWI focuses on the literacy and language discoveries, while the cognitive and psychological discoveries are the hubs in non-linguistic perspective. In linguistic perspective, WeCWI draws attention to free reading and enterprises, which are supported by the language acquisition theories. Besides, the adoption of process genre approach as a hybrid guided writing approach fosters literacy development. Literacy and language developments are interconnected in the communication process; hence, WeCWI encourages meaningful discussion based on the interactionist theory that involves input, negotiation, output, and interactional feedback. Rooted in the elearning interaction-based model, WeCWI promotes online discussion via synchronous and asynchronous communications, which allows interactions happened among the learners, instructor, and digital content. In non-linguistic perspective, WeCWI highlights on the contribution of reading, discussion, and writing towards cognitive development. Based on the inquiry models, learners’ critical thinking is fostered during information exploration process through interaction and questioning.