A study of the Illinois ESL etextbook from the perspective of students and instructors

Hewage, Nalaka Saman

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/108350 Copy

Description

Title

A study of the Illinois ESL etextbook from the perspective of students and instructors

Author(s)

Hewage, Nalaka Saman

Issue Date

2020-05-15

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Sadler, Randall W

Committee Member(s)

Kang, Hyun-Sook

Department of Study

Linguistics

Discipline

Teaching of English Sec Lang

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

M.A.

Degree Level

Thesis

Keyword(s)

ESL Writing, etextbooks, etextbook features, students, instructors, satisfaction

Abstract

With the advancement of technology, the utilization of etextbooks as an educational tool has become a common practice in many different educational institutions in the US and other parts of the world. In such a context, student and instructor perspectives regarding etextbooks have been the focus of research in a wide variety of disciplines, but the use of etextbooks and their special interactive features in ESL Writing (English as a Second Language Writing) remains largely under-explored. The existing literature is also predominantly based on the use of such textbooks produced mainly by manufacturing companies. In contrast, the subject of this study is an in-house etextbook designed by the Illinois ESL program. This etextbook has been specifically customized for the needs and expectations of an international undergraduate student population learning Academic Writing at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Through a mixed methods approach, the research study explored student and instructor experiences about the use of the Illinois ESL etextbook and its special features in the teaching-learning process. According to the findings, certain etextbook features are more frequently used and perceived as more useful than others by research participants but, overall, a majority of the participants showed high levels of satisfaction with the etextbook. The results provide pedagogical implications on how instructors could integrate the etextbook to future academic writing class sessions. Some pedagogical implications may also inform administrative decisions about possible updates to the etextbook and, perhaps, the design of etextbooks for ESL Writing students in general.

Graduation Semester

2020-05

Type of Resource

Thesis

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/108350

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Copyright 2020 Nalaka Hewage

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