Fostering Chinese EFL Learners’ Genre Awareness: A Genre-Based Approach

Abstract

This chapter describes the setting, participants, and the procedures of data collection and analysis of the study. It mainly focuses on the issue of how the Chinese EFL learners’ genre awareness is fostered. Through analysis of the pre-research and post-research questionnaires, it is found that the Chinese EFL learners had scant genre awareness before the implementation of genre-based approach, whereas they greatly increased their genre awareness after they went through the systematic genre-based training and practice for 18 weeks. By closely examining the data of interviews and multifaceted portfolios provided by the learners themselves, it is observed that the Chinese EFL learners’ genre awareness was fostered basically through the systematic genre-based instruction in the EFL reading and writing classes, the multitude of genre-based class activities for reading and writing, and the use of the genre-based multifaceted writing portfolio. It is also found that the Chinese EFL learners’ genre awareness fostered had a positive effect on the learners’ generic reading and writing competence. The findings are discussed in terms of genre theory, input theory, and social cultural theory as well.