The language for school writing: Monolingual and EFL writing across contexts

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School-relevant writing:  Adolescent students in the US

In a project funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, The Language of Written Argumentation and Explanation: Individual Developmental Trajectories From 4th to 8th Grade, we are conducting a secondary data analysis based on the longitudinal writing dataset collected as part of a reading comprehension intervention study, and informed by my prior work on writing with linguistically diverse U.S. samples (Uccelli, Dobbs & Scott, 2013) and English-as-a-foreign-language learners (Qin & Uccelli, 2016). The research is driven by two goals: (1) to investigate developmental trajectories of explanatory and argumentative writing to contribute to a pedagogically relevant developmental model of mid-adolescence writing; (2) to explore the contribution of receptive academic language skills (i.e., CALS) to writing proficiency. This research represents a shift from the study of reading and writing mostly independently to investigating both processes concurrently through a hypothesized common language proficiency that may also lead to instructional initiatives linked across modalities.

Project

The Language of Written Argumentation and Explanation: Individual Developmental Trajectories From 4th to 8th Grade

Funding. This research project is supported by the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, trough Grant R305A170185.

The purpose of this project is to examine how language skills change over time and which skills support the writing quality of explanatory summaries and persuasive writing in grades 4 to 8. Language skills are necessary for writing complex texts as students get older, but research has not sufficiently explored how these skills develop over time. The current study examines the development of the language for school writing in relation to writing quality and students' receptive academic language (or language for school reading). Data for this study comes from previously-funded Reading for Understanding project (Catalyzing Comprehension Through Discussion and Debate). Information from this study may be used to develop teaching practices and interventions to help students learn to write more effectively.
 

 

 

Writing in English as a Foreign Language

This line of research explores English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ writing development, with a particular focus on how EFL writers learn to flexibly deploy linguistic features - i.e., at the lexical, syntactic, and discourse levels - to write effectively across genres, registers, and communicative contexts. Studies identify a series of factors relevant to explain such development, including learners’ English proficiency level, educational level, native language background, etc. Results are discussed in relation to pedagogical implications to enhance EFL learners’ real-world communicative competence.

 Funding. This research was funded though an EF Education First research grant.

 

Publications

2020

Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2020). Beyond linguistic complexity: Assessing register flexibility in EFL writing across contexts. Assessing Writing, 45, 100465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2020.100465 (Original work published 2020)
Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2020). Beyond linguistic complexity: Assessing register flexibility in EFL writing across contexts. Assessing Writing, 45, 100465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2020.100465 (Original work published 2020)
Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2020). Beyond linguistic complexity: Assessing register flexibility in EFL writing across contexts. Assessing Writing, 45, 100465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2020.100465 (Original work published 2020)
Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2020). Beyond linguistic complexity: Assessing register flexibility in EFL writing across contexts. Assessing Writing, 45, 100465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2020.100465 (Original work published 2020)

2019

Galloway, E., Qin, W., Uccelli, P., & Barr, C. (2019). The role of cross-disciplinary academic language skills in disciplinary, source-based writing: investigating the role of core academic language skills in science summarization for middle grade writers. Reading and Writing, 33. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-019-09942-x (Original work published 2019)
Galloway, E., Qin, W., Uccelli, P., & Barr, C. (2019). The role of cross-disciplinary academic language skills in disciplinary, source-based writing: investigating the role of core academic language skills in science summarization for middle grade writers. Reading and Writing, 33. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-019-09942-x (Original work published 2019)
Galloway, E., Qin, W., Uccelli, P., & Barr, C. (2019). The role of cross-disciplinary academic language skills in disciplinary, source-based writing: investigating the role of core academic language skills in science summarization for middle grade writers. Reading and Writing, 33. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-019-09942-x (Original work published 2019)
Galloway, E., Qin, W., Uccelli, P., & Barr, C. (2019). The role of cross-disciplinary academic language skills in disciplinary, source-based writing: investigating the role of core academic language skills in science summarization for middle grade writers. Reading and Writing, 33. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-019-09942-x (Original work published 2019)
Uccelli, P., Deng, Z., Galloway, E., & Qin, W. (2019). The Role of Language Skills in Mid-Adolescents’ Science Summaries. Journal of Literacy Research, 51, 1086296X1986020. https://doi.org/10.1177/1086296X19860206 (Original work published 2019)
Uccelli, P., Deng, Z., Galloway, E., & Qin, W. (2019). The Role of Language Skills in Mid-Adolescents’ Science Summaries. Journal of Literacy Research, 51, 1086296X1986020. https://doi.org/10.1177/1086296X19860206 (Original work published 2019)
Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2019). Metadiscourse: Variation across communicative contexts. Journal of Pragmatics, 139, 22-39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2018.10.004 (Original work published 2019)
Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2019). Metadiscourse: Variation across communicative contexts. Journal of Pragmatics, 139, 22-39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2018.10.004 (Original work published 2019)

2018

Galloway, E., & Uccelli, P. (2018). Beyond reading comprehension: exploring the additional contribution of Core Academic Language Skills to early adolescents’ written summaries. Reading and Writing, 32. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-018-9880-3 (Original work published 2018)
Galloway, E., & Uccelli, P. (2018). Beyond reading comprehension: exploring the additional contribution of Core Academic Language Skills to early adolescents’ written summaries. Reading and Writing, 32. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-018-9880-3 (Original work published 2018)

2013

Uccelli, P., Dobbs, C. L., & Scott, J. (2013). Mastering Academic Language: Organization and Stance in the Persuasive Writing of High School Students. Written Communication, 30(1), 36-62. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088312469013
Uccelli, P., Dobbs, C. L., & Scott, J. (2013). Mastering Academic Language: Organization and Stance in the Persuasive Writing of High School Students. Written Communication, 30(1), 36-62. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088312469013

2015

Galloway, E., & Uccelli, P. (2015). Modeling the relationship between lexico-grammatical and discourse organization skills in middle grade writers: insights into later productive language skills that support academic writing. Reading and Writing, 28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-015-9550-7 (Original work published 2015)
Galloway, E., & Uccelli, P. (2015). Modeling the relationship between lexico-grammatical and discourse organization skills in middle grade writers: insights into later productive language skills that support academic writing. Reading and Writing, 28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-015-9550-7 (Original work published 2015)

2016

Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2016). Same language, different functions: A cross-genre analysis of Chinese EFL learners’ writing performance. Journal of Second Language Writing, 33, 3-17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2016.06.001 (Original work published 2016)
Qin, W., & Uccelli, P. (2016). Same language, different functions: A cross-genre analysis of Chinese EFL learners’ writing performance. Journal of Second Language Writing, 33, 3-17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2016.06.001 (Original work published 2016)
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