Reading-Writing Connections in E.a.P. Classes: a Content Analysis of Written Summaries Produced Under Three Mediating Conditions

Abstract

A recent study by the authors has proposed a rationale for investigating the effects of mediating tasks upon a summary writing activity for tertiary-level students using English as an educational medium. The tasks in the study involved a group discussion or a reading comprehension exercise, with a third condition providing for immediate access to the text and summary instructions with no mediating activity. Following a brief review of the experimental design and procedures, the authors now present an original comparative analysis of the content of summaries written by students under the three different task conditions (approximately 30 students in each group). The content analysis examines the selection of topics, their sequential development and especially their relative prominence in these summaries. The discussion of implications for teaching assesses the merits of mediating tasks as language activities and also comments on their probable effects upon final written outcomes.