Written Communication Apr 2023

Prompting Reflection: Using Corpus Linguistic Methods in the Local Assessment of Reflective Writing

Cara Marta Messina Jacksonville State University ; Cherice Escobar Jones Northeastern University ; Mya Poe Northeastern University

Abstract

We report on a college-level study of student reflection and instructor prompts using scoring and corpus analysis methods. We collected 340 student reflections and 24 faculty prompts. Reflections were scored using trait and holistic scoring and then reflections and faculty prompts were analyzed using Natural Language Processing to identify linguistic features of high, middle, and low scoring reflections. The data sets were then connected to determine if there was a relationship between faculty prompts and scores. Additional analysis was completed to determine if there was a relationship between scores and students’ GPAs. The corpus linguistics analysis showed that higher-scoring reflections used words that referred to the self, the writing process, and specific rhetorical terms. Additional analysis showed student GPAs did not correlate with holistic scores but that higher scoring reflections were from faculty who included learning goals on reflective writing prompts. Results suggest that teachers can de-mystify reflective writing by linking learning outcomes to textual tasks and that corpus linguistics methods can provide an understanding of how local learning goals are transmitted to students.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
2023-04-01
DOI
10.1177/07410883221149425
Open Access
Closed
Topics
curriculum design quantitative research multilingual writers

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (3)

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    The Impact of Subordination Type and Finiteness on Second Language Development …
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  2. Nastal (2024)
    Ungrading in the Ethical Turn as an Assessment Killjoy
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  3. Nastal (2024)
    A Sociocognitive Grading Model for First-Year Writing Classes
    Pedagogy

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    Research in the Teaching of English
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    Revealing the Human and the Writer: The Promise of a Humanizing Writing Pedagog…
    Research in the Teaching of English
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    “We Have a Strong Way of Thinking … and It Shows through Our Words”: Exploring …
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    Pedagogy
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    College Composition and Communication
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    Research in the Teaching of English
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    Tracing Discursive Resources: How Students Use Prior Genre Knowledge to Negotia…
    Written Communication
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