Sin Wang Chong

University of St Andrews · International Education Institute

In the past 10 to 15 years, researchers have begun to explore the possibility of synthesizing research on task-based language teaching (TBLT) and computer-assisted language learning (CALL) in the interests of advancing the development of both fields as well as informing practice. In particular, there has been an increasing number of naturalistic, c...

In response to the paradigm shift of feedback from information to process, Sutton’s (2012) notion of ‘feedback literacy’, which refers to students’ capacities and dispositions to use feedback, has been increasingly promulgated in the higher education assessment literature in the past few years. One of the most recent and successful attempts is the...

Secondary research in the form of literature reviews facilitates consolidation and transfer of knowledge. In the field of TESOL, the majority of secondary research is conducted in the form of narrative reviews, which rely on the author’s selection and interpretation of primary studies and findings. Systematic reviews, which can be broadly categoriz...

Learner autonomy is a vibrant and diverse field. In its approximately 40-year history, it has drawn liberally on theoretical constructs and research methodologies from other disciplines. In turn, it has contributed to the field of applied linguistics by drawing attention to the fundamental importance of understanding the language learner as an acti...

“Context” has been increasingly featured and acknowledged in second language (L2) research because L2 teaching is recognised to be shaped by the environments in which it is situated. Numerous theoretical perspectives were introduced to L2 research that aim to capture the contextual forces at work in teaching and learning, including but not limited...

Assessors, in both clinical practice and academic settings, are pivotal in making judgements on learner performance to ensure members of the public are supported by graduates who are safe and competent practitioners. However, consistency of assessor judgements of learner performance has been a concern in directly observed clinical assessments such...

Language transfer is one of the most significant aspects of cross-linguistic influence. It can be divided into two types: positive and negative, the beneficial and detrimental use of one language's acquired characteristics in another. This study aims to investigate the L1 (Chinese) influence on Hong Kong ESL learners' acquisition of conjunctions an...

Review Question 1. What language skills do studies on test takers’ cognitive processes focus on? 2. What are the assessment contexts of these studies? What are the levels of test takers in these studies? 3. What research designs do these studies adopt? What research tools do these studies use to reveal test takers’ processes? 4. What information ab...

The three research questions which guide this qualitative synthesis of research are: 1)What are the different types of technology-mediated tasks used in Japanese English classrooms? a.Technology-mediated tasks inside the classroom b.Technology-mediated tasks outside the classroom 2)What are learners' and teachers' perceptions of the experience...

The present review intends to investigate how teacher leadership has been conceptualised and researched in language teaching context, and the following research questions are developed: 1.How is language teacher leadership conceptualised? 2.How is language teacher leadership researched?

The research questions which guide this systematic literature review are: 1. How are teaching interventions for synthesis writing from sources described and conceptualised? 2. What features do such interventions have when deployed in university contexts? 3a. How effective are different interventions in helping students write from sources? 3b....

Language assessment is any activity, both inside and outside the classroom, that aims to collect information about language learners’ performance, proficiency, knowledge, and skills. There is an expectation that such information will be analysed and acted on by the teacher and/or the learners. Central to the processes of collection, analysis, and a...

Feedback provided by peer reviewers plays a pivotal role in any journal peer-review model. Peer-review feedback helps authors reconsider their manuscripts in a new light and improve their work before it is published. While there is a wealth of knowledge and empirical evidence focusing on effective feedback practices in educational settings, there i...

Secondary research is burgeoning in the field of Applied Linguistics, taking the form of both narrative literature review and especially more systematic research synthesis. Clearly purposed and methodologically sound secondary research contributes to the field because it provides useful and reliable summaries in a given domain, facilitates research...

Bilingual education has become increasingly popular in China, with a subsequent growth in research, particularly research with a qualitative component that examines learners’ and teachers’ experiences and perspectives. These studies have mostly been conducted in individual classroom settings where contexts and learners differ, making findings less...

Classroom-based assessment (CBA) takes place in learning environments influenced by myriad individual and contextual factors. Nevertheless, factors related to individual differences and learner psychology are seldom considered in creating instructional environments designed to facilitate learners’ use of CBA. This article introduces the concept of...

A protocol for a scoping review of learning-oriented language assessment in formal and non-formal educational contexts

This chapter is a continuation of Chong (2021) published in Innovations in Education and Teaching International (Taylor & Francis) in which I presented a genre analysis of thesis guidelines of 81 universities in the UK. The outcome of this genre analysis is a structural framework of Retrospective PhD by Publication (also called “PhD by Published Wo...

This concluding chapter draws together some of the emergent themes from the papers presented within this collection on the PhD by Publication, and does so by first of all providing a socio-historical context for the recent interest in this qualification route. We describe developments in academic culture and suggest that the PhD by Publication is o...

This chapter documents the rationale for compiling a collection on the PhD by Publication. The aim of the book is to “demystify” this alternative route of doctoral education because there is a dearth of publications (journal articles or books) on this PhD route which is gaining popularity around the world. This book attempts to “demystify” PhD by P...

In this report, we reviewed Open Scholarship in Applied Linguistics: What, Why, and How, a two-day online symposium held in June 2022. The symposium was the inaugural event of Open Applied Linguistics, a newly established AILA research network dedicated to the promotion of open scholarship in applied linguistics. We started with the background agai...

Writing teachers often develop their feedback literacy through reflecting on in-service observations. Thus, language teacher autonomy (LTA) plays an important role in developing L2 writing teachers’ feedback literacy. Nevertheless, there is a paucity of research on written feedback exploring the influence of LTA on L2 writing teachers’ feedback pra...

“Context” has been increasingly featured and acknowledged in second language (L2) research because L2 teaching is recognised to be shaped by the environments in which it is situated. Numerous theoretical perspectives were introduced to L2 research that aim to capture the contextual forces at work in teaching and learning, including but not limited...

Although research on the efficacy of written corrective feedback (WCF) has received considerable attention in recent years, there is a dearth of research on learner engagement with WCF. Understanding how language learners engage with, that is, make use of WCF is high on the agenda of feedback research because it provides a broadened perspective tha...

Research on written corrective feedback (WCF) has received sustained interest in the field of second language acquisition and language education. This viewpoint article extends the theoretical and conceptual discussion on WCF research by introducing the notions of “feedback literacy” and “feedback ecology”. In this article, I first review three str...

While early career researchers (ECRs) often read and produce articles for peer reviewed journals, they are less familiar with peer review reports (PRRs). Most ECRs learn about the genre of PRRs by reading reports on their own manuscripts and through hands-on experience crafting their own, often with little guidance or exposure to exemplars. To demy...

There has been an exponential growth in Language Massive Open Online Courses (LMOOCs) in the past decade. LMOOCs have also become an emergent and topical area of research in CALL, in particular, vis-a-vis learners’ perceptions and experiences. However, not much attention has been paid to analysing the features of LMOOCs. We argue that a systematic...

High-stakes language tests are used around the world as a gate keeping tool under the internationalization of higher education. However, the predictable aspect of the high-stakes language tests is seldom discussed, especially from students’ perspectives. This study aims to address this gap by aiming to better understand how certain factors and cond...

The field of higher education research has bourgeoned in the past decades, addressing a wide range of topics. Being in a rapidly expanding and interdisciplinary field of research, higher education scholars have demonstrated exigency for aggregating research findings to map the research landscape, identify future research directions, and bridge the...

The field of higher education research has bourgeoned in the past decades, addressing a wide range of topics. Being in a rapidly expanding and interdisciplinary field of research, higher education scholars have demonstrated exigency for aggregating research findings to map the research landscape, identify future research directions, and bridge the...

The field of higher education research has bourgeoned in the past decades, addressing a wide range of topics. Being in a rapidly expanding and interdisciplinary field of research, higher education scholars have demonstrated exigency for aggregating research findings to map the research landscape, identify future research directions, and bridge the...

Peer reviewers serve a vital role in assessing the value of published scholarship and improving the quality of submitted manuscripts. To provide more appropriate and systematic support to peer reviewers, especially those new to the role, this study documents the feedback practices and experiences of two award-winning peer reviewers in the field of...

A two-day online seminar was held on 10 and 11 June 2021 on the topic of research synthesis in applied linguistics.The primary aim of this seminar is to promote the values and practices of research synthesis (a systematic form of secondary research - see Chong and Plonsky, 2021a for a typology of different forms of research synthesis) in applied li...

Qualitative research in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has received more attention recently, most evidently from the publications of two special issues on qualitative research in CALL by CALICO Journal (2015) and Language Learning & Technology (2018). The inherent strength of qualitative studies in CALL is that they celebrate depth of i...

The revived interest in the notion of ‘evaluative judgement’ in higher education is motivated by commitment of researchers and practitioners to effectively implement learning-oriented assessment and cultivate this high-order cognitive ability to develop students’ capacity for self-regulated learning. Recent studies have examined the affordances and...

Learner autonomy is a vibrant and diverse field. In its approximately 40-year history, it has drawn liberally on theoretical constructs and research methodologies from other disciplines. In turn, it has contributed to the field of applied linguistics by drawing attention to the fundamental importance of understanding the language learner as an acti...

CALL research, like other sub-fields in applied linguistics, has been dominated by explanatory, quantitative studies which aim to understand the effectiveness of technological innovations. Qualitative research in CALL, on the other hand, has received more attention in recent years, most evidently from the publications of two special issues on quali...

Secondary research is burgeoning in the field of Applied Linguistics, taking the form of both narrative literature review and especially more systematic research synthesis. Clearly purposed and methodologically sound secondary research contributes to the field because it provides useful and reliable summaries in a given domain, facilitates research...

Key points • There is a need to train journal peer reviewers to provide professional, constructive, and actionable feedback i.e., develop their feedback literacy. • Ways for journals and publishers to develop peer reviewers’ feedback literacy are suggested. • Existing online peer-review training resources developed by major publishers only focus on...

PhD by Published Work has become an increasingly common option for experienced researchers in Europe, including the UK. While thesis requirements of a PhD by Published Work differ greatly from those of a traditional monograph, guidelines on how to write a PhD by Published Work thesis (commentary) vary across institutions, giving rise to issues pert...

The academic year 2020-21 will remain a challenging time for language teachers and professionals because of the unparalleled evolving nature of teaching and learning. Yet, I contend in this short opinion piece that it is also an opportune moment for language teachers to revisit ways to inform their own pedagogical practices, remain innovative and r...

In the past 10 to 15 years, researchers have begun to explore the possibility of synthesizing research on task-based language teaching (TBLT) and computer-assisted language learning (CALL) in the interests of advancing the development of both fields as well as informing practice. In particular, there has been an increasing number of naturalistic, c...

Readers Respond is a forum for individuals to contribute their own reactions, perspectives, or experiences in relation to a specific article or articles published in a recent issue of ELT Journal. These views are not necessarily those of the Editor, the Editorial Panel, or the Publisher.

Synthesizing research on metacognition and intersecting it with studies on second and foreign language writing, Sin Wang Chong puts forward a conceptual framework of metacognition and metacognitive knowledge that is employed as an analytical lens to examine junior secondary EFL students’ writing proficiencies. The exploration takes into account th...

In this chapter, I describe the impetus for writing this book. Specifically, I report on the importance of the constructs of metacognition and metacognitive knowledge in the understanding of students’ acquisition of second and foreign language. Research findings related to the significant influence of metacognition on second and foreign language le...

Metacognitive knowledge system of low-proficiency students is reported with reference to person, task, and strategic knowledge. Person knowledge of these students shows that the majority of the students perceive English writing as useful because it plays a determining role in examinations, improves students’ general English ability, and empowers st...

Metacognitive knowledge system of average-proficiency students is reported with reference to person, task, and strategic knowledge. In respect of their person knowledge, opinions are divided regarding students’ impression on English writing. As far as their task knowledge is concerned, they identify a range of expectations for English writing which...

The focus of this chapter is on the theoretical underpinning of metacognition, with a particular focus on metacognitive knowledge. I first define metacognition and its different components (e.g. metacognitive experience, metacognitive awareness, self-regulation). I then justify why metacognitive knowledge should be focused on and its importance in...

In this chapter, information on the context and participants is provided and a detailed description of the research design and methods adopted in this study is given. Since data reported in qualitative studies are best understood in relation to the context it is situated in, a brief description of the education context in mainland China will be pro...

This chapter compares and contrasts the MK systems of the three groups of students and key findings will be presented diagrammatically. Both theoretical and pedagogical implications will be drawn based on the findings reported. It is my research philosophy that findings from educational research are made relevant to not only researchers but also fr...

Metacognitive knowledge system of high-proficiency students is reported with reference to person, task, and strategic knowledge. With regards to their person knowledge, these students hold a positive impression on English writing and they perceive it as useful and the process enjoyable and relaxing. As far as their task knowledge is concerned, this...

Research into written corrective feedback (WCF) in English-as-an-Second-Language (ESL) contexts has been burgeoning in the past decades, focusing mostly on its effectiveness and students’ preferences. Nevertheless, studies focusing on school settings and teachers’ perspective are scant. In particular, very few studies venture to examine the interre...

In this short article, I share my experience of completing a PhD by Published Work, an alternative PhD route, at a UK university, especially in relation to its usefulness in preparing me for a position in academia. I end the piece with some questions for potential candidates to consider.

This research-driven textbook prepares students for IELTS writing through the use of authentic exemplars by students.

In the past decade (2007 – 2017), research on written corrective feedback (WCF) has been proliferating in ESL and EFL contexts and new developments in this field of research are evident. To synthesize the latest advancement in WCF research, a number of review articles have been published in leading journals of TESOL and applied linguistics. Despite...

This short exchange paper reports on the major findings of a forthcoming research monograph, which is going to be published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing entitled “Theorizing ESL community college students’ perception of written feedback”. This research project, which was conducted in an international community college in Hong Kong, attempts to...

The increasing prominence of technology has given rise to new ways for writing teachers to give feedback electronically. Specifically, this article focuses on electronic written feedback (e-feedback) given to a group of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) community college students. Although previous studies have investigated the effectiveness of di...

The notion of language learner autonomy, which is defined as ‘a capacity to control important aspects of one’s language learning’ (Benson, 2013, p. 839), is now widely considered a key educational goal in language teaching programmes around the world (Reinders & Benson, 2017). Despite the increasing number of studies on language learner autonomy, a...

To many English-as-an-Additional Language (EAL) language users, academic writing simply means the accurate use of citation and referencing style, and the construction of long and complex sentences. To broaden the understanding of the notion of 'academic writing' of a group of postgraduate students at my university, I organized a three-day academic...

Despite the bulk of studies on written feedback (WF) in post-secondary education in the past decades, the majority of them have focused on written corrective feedback. On the other hand, WF research on students’ perception of teacher WF is scant. Among those studies which focus on L2 students’ perception, the participants are mostly secondary schoo...

Recent literature on the use of exemplars in the context of higher education has shown that exemplar-based instruction is implemented in various disciplines; nevertheless, how exemplar-based instruction can be implemented in English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) writing classrooms in higher education institutions remains under-explored. In this connec...

A voluminous body of research has examined the implementation of task-based language teaching (TBLT) in English-as-a-Second/Foreign-Language (ESL/EFL) contexts. However, classroom-based research investigating frontline EFL school teachers' perception of TBLT remains scant, especially in the less affluent regions of China. To address this research g...

This article aims to show how the findings from written corrective feedback (WCF) research can be applied in practice. One particular kind of WCF-focused WCF-is brought into the spotlight. The article first summarizes major findings from focused WCF research to reveal the potential advantages of correcting a few pre-selected language items instead...

Classroom assessment has always been an indispensible and integral part of any curriculum. In particular, assessment plays the role of reporting students' learning summatively (assessment of learning), providing diagnostic and formative information for teachers to inform their instruction (assessment for learning); more recently, Earl (2013) propos...

In the context of higher education, research findings have attested to the formative values of feedback. Feedback researchers have found that teachers give feedback vigorously and students are eager to read teachers’ feedback. Due to the plethora of potential benefits of written feedback on students, innovative feedback practices have been gaining...

'Composition slaves' -- this is how some L2 writing scholars label Hong Kong English teachers (Hairston, 1986; Lee, 2009). It is my own experience and observation too that English teachers in Asia (particularly in Hong Kong) are mostly identified by their ‘vigilant’ attention to marking all errors in students’ compositions in a bid to meet the expe...

The centrality of written feedback is clearly seen from the proliferation of research in the context of higher education. As an increasingly expanding field in research, the majority of written feedback studies have been interested in investigating the technical aspect of how feedback should be given in order to promote student learning. More recen...

Traditionally, teachers play a central role in creating a learning environment that favors the implementation of peer assessment in writing. Nevertheless, students’ writing ability and how it factors into students’ provision of relevant (content-related) and accurate (language-related) written feedback is not considered. This is due to the fact tha...

Findings from recent research on teachers’ and students’ perceptions of written feedback has repeatedly shown that students value written feedback less than teachers do because they do not understand the feedback or they do not know how to do revision based on the comments, which undermines the effectiveness of teachers’ written feedback. This arti...

This article introduces a pre-writing task to prepare Grade 11 students to write a photo diary. The purpose of this activity is to provide scaffolding for students to write a photo diary entry. After participating in this activity, students should develop the capacity to describe the people, the environment, the time, the activities, and the feelin...

In the discussion of effective teachers’ written comments in L2 writing, much attention has been given to how these comments would lead to an improvement in students’ language proficiency and writing ability in general. Nevertheless, recent studies on students’ perception of teachers’ written comments have revealed limitations in these content-focu...