The influence of a short break on the ability of mistakes spotting in non-native speakers’ own writing
Introduction
Background and aims
Nowadays, heavy study pressure enforces more and more students to concentrate on study for a long period of time until they fulfil their tasks, especially in Chinese secondary schools. Even though that breaks have been introduced between classes, they tend to be of no use because most students still stay in the classroom, reading and writing (Shi H., 2006: 6). However, a series of experiments conducted by psychologists from two key universities in the US suggested that regular breaks during the study process are very likely to improve efficiency (Herbert W., 2007 :2). Thus, this research intended to provide an insight into their relationship and give possible suggestions to avoid learning diminishment. Following the commonly accepted perception, it was hypothesized that short breaks do make improvement in students’ ability to pick out different kinds of mistakes in articles written by themselves. An experiment, which is a “cornerstone” in exploring the material world (Wikipedia) was designed as the research tool to look into this subject.
Structure overview
This report will be organised as follows. The methodology adopted will be discussed in the following section with the results of the experiment coming next. The conclusions and recommendations based on this research will be included in the last section.
Methods
The design
Initially, the research group decided to collect students’ writing by assigning a picture-describing task (pictures excerpted from examda) and the students were randomly distributed into 2 groups with breaks of different length and a control one. This experiment plan was piloted inside the class. However, it did not turn out as was expected. Some participants were unwilling to write articles of high quality due to the time constraints and innate inertia, and consequently failed to meet the... [continues]
Introduction
Background and aims
Nowadays, heavy study pressure enforces more and more students to concentrate on study for a long period of time until they fulfil their tasks, especially in Chinese secondary schools. Even though that breaks have been introduced between classes, they tend to be of no use because most students still stay in the classroom, reading and writing (Shi H., 2006: 6). However, a series of experiments conducted by psychologists from two key universities in the US suggested that regular breaks during the study process are very likely to improve efficiency (Herbert W., 2007 :2). Thus, this research intended to provide an insight into their relationship and give possible suggestions to avoid learning diminishment. Following the commonly accepted perception, it was hypothesized that short breaks do make improvement in students’ ability to pick out different kinds of mistakes in articles written by themselves. An experiment, which is a “cornerstone” in exploring the material world (Wikipedia) was designed as the research tool to look into this subject.
Structure overview
This report will be organised as follows. The methodology adopted will be discussed in the following section with the results of the experiment coming next. The conclusions and recommendations based on this research will be included in the last section.
Methods
The design
Initially, the research group decided to collect students’ writing by assigning a picture-describing task (pictures excerpted from examda) and the students were randomly distributed into 2 groups with breaks of different length and a control one. This experiment plan was piloted inside the class. However, it did not turn out as was expected. Some participants were unwilling to write articles of high quality due to the time constraints and innate inertia, and consequently failed to meet the... [continues]
Cite This Essay
- APA
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(2008, 11). The Influence of a Short Break on the Ability of Mistakes Spotting in Non-Native Speakers’ Own Writing. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 11, 2008, from http://www.studymode.com/essays/Influence-Short-Break-Ability-Mistakes-Spotting-179627.html
- MLA
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"The Influence of a Short Break on the Ability of Mistakes Spotting in Non-Native Speakers’ Own Writing" StudyMode.com. 11 2008. 11 2008 <http://www.studymode.com/essays/Influence-Short-Break-Ability-Mistakes-Spotting-179627.html>.
- CHICAGO
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"The Influence of a Short Break on the Ability of Mistakes Spotting in Non-Native Speakers’ Own Writing." StudyMode.com. 11, 2008. Accessed 11, 2008. http://www.studymode.com/essays/Influence-Short-Break-Ability-Mistakes-Spotting-179627.html.
