Composing processes of Thai high school students : a protocol analysis

This protocol-based case study research explored the general composing and thinking processes of five Thai EFL high school subjects who, while verbalizing their thoughts, composed in the first language (L1), Thai, and in the second language (L2), English. The composing sessions were audiotaped and videotaped; these tapes were then transcribed, translated, and coded for analysis, along with notes, drafts, and the written compositions.The L1/L2 protocol data yielded a number of interesting findings. Most subjects had a purpose in mind while composing their texts, but had little concern for the audience. Individually, each subject displayed a unitary composing style across languages, tending to compose in the Li and the L2 similarly, with minor variations. This suggests that composing knowledge and skills of the L1 were probably transferred to the composing in the L2.As a group, the subjects wrote the Li compositions in a similar manner, manifesting mental planning and reliance on internal resources, as they alternated among writing, repeating, and rehearsing. The L2 compositions gradually emerged with frequent repetitions and brief pauses, and the L2 composing processes seem to be constrained by the subjects' imperfect mastery of the L2.In addition, when they stumbled on L2 lexis, grammar, and mechanics, the subjects mainly employed the L1. Use of the L1 seemed to facilitate the subjects’ writing in the L2 a great deal. In both the L1 and the L2 compositions, the subjects tended to comment and repeat portions of texts in words, rehearse in phrases, and engage in other composing activities at the sentence level. The translated segments which occurred in the English protocols were at the phrase level.A tentative composing process model of these Thai EFL subjects is proposed; implications for EFL composition instruction and suggestions for further research are also provided.Department of EnglishThesis (Ph. D.