Scaling academic writing instruction : evaluation of a scaffolding tool (Thesis Writer)

Rapp, Christian; Kauf, Peter Emau

doi:10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z

Publication type:	Article in scientific journal
Type of review:	Peer review (publication)
Title:	Scaling academic writing instruction : evaluation of a scaffolding tool (Thesis Writer)
Authors:	Rapp, Christian Kauf, Peter Emau
DOI:	10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z
Published in:	International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education
Issue Date:	6-Mar-2018
Publisher / Ed. Institution:	Springer
ISSN:	1560-4292 1560-4306
Language:	English
Subjects:	Computer-supported writing instruction; Writing instruction; Intelligent tutoring system; Academic writing; Evaluation
Subject (DDC):	378: Higher education 808: Rhetoric and writing
Abstract:	No thesis - no graduation. Academic writing poses manifold challenges to students, instructors and institutions alike. High labor costs, increasing student numbers, and the Bologna Process (which has reduced the period after which undergraduates in Europe submit their first thesis and thus the time available to focus on writing skills) all pose a threat to students’ academic writing abilities. This situation gave rise to the practical goal of this study: to determine if, and to what extent, academic writing and its instruction can be scaled (i.e., designed more efficiently) using a technological solution, in this case Thesis Writer (TW), a domain-specific, online learning environment for the scaffolding of student academic writing, combined with an online editor optimized for producing academic text. Compared to existing automated essay scoring and writing evaluation tools, TW is not focusing on feedback but on instruction, planning, and genre mastery. While most US-based tools, particularly those also used in secondary education, are targeting on the essay genre, TW is tailored to the needs of theses and research article writing (IMRD scheme). This mixed-methods paper reports data of a test run with a first-year course of 102 business administration students. A technology adoption model served as a frame of reference for the research design. From a student’s perspective, problems posed by the task of writing a research proposal as well as the use, usability, and usefulness of TW were studied through an online survey and focus groups (explanatory sequential design). Results seen were positive to highly positive – TW is being used, and has been deemed supportive by students. In particular, it supports the scaling of writing instruction in group assignment settings.
URI:	http://rdcu.be/IuRO https://digitalcollection.zhaw.ch/handle/11475/3540
Fulltext version:	Published version
License (according to publishing contract):	Licence according to publishing contract
Departement:	School of Management and Law
Organisational Unit:	Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning (ZID)
Appears in collections:	Publikationen School of Management and Law

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Rapp, C., & Kauf, P. E. (2018). Scaling academic writing instruction : evaluation of a scaffolding tool (Thesis Writer). International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z

Rapp, C. and Kauf, P.E. (2018) ‘Scaling academic writing instruction : evaluation of a scaffolding tool (Thesis Writer)’, International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education [Preprint]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z.

C. Rapp and P. E. Kauf, “Scaling academic writing instruction : evaluation of a scaffolding tool (Thesis Writer),” International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Mar. 2018, doi: 10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z.

RAPP, Christian und Peter Emau KAUF, 2018. Scaling academic writing instruction : evaluation of a scaffolding tool (Thesis Writer). International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education [online]. 6 März 2018. DOI 10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z. Verfügbar unter: http://rdcu.be/IuRO

Rapp, Christian, and Peter Emau Kauf. 2018. “Scaling Academic Writing Instruction : Evaluation of a Scaffolding Tool (Thesis Writer).” International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, March. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z.

Rapp, Christian, and Peter Emau Kauf. “Scaling Academic Writing Instruction : Evaluation of a Scaffolding Tool (Thesis Writer).” International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, Mar. 2018, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-017-0162-z.