Facilitating undergraduate novice L2 writers’ pathways toward criticality enactment in genre-based literature review writing instruction

Abstract

Using a critical approach in source-based writing remains a primary challenge for many learners, especially undergraduate-level L2 writers. However, studies examining the use of explicit pedagogical approaches to address this challenge in literature review writing instruction to undergraduate L2 writers are still limited. To bridge this gap, based on a measurement of students' (N = 46) writing performance on two literature review writing tasks, this study investigated the effectiveness of using an explicit unit-based approach to promote novice L2 academic writers' criticality in source use in an undergraduate course on research proposal writing. It also explored participants' (N = 55) perceptions of their genre learning experiences using data from individual written reflections and a survey. Textual analysis suggests that the approach facilitated participants' acquisition and successful sequencing of taught criticality enacting discoursal strategies. Learners' self-reports reveal that many appreciated the approach for enhancing their awareness of genre features and of ways to enact criticality. These findings reinforce the potential of explicit pedagogical approaches to promote learners’ source use skills in literature review assignments and contribute to research into how undergraduate novice L2 academic writers respond to genre-based instruction.