Idea: Electronic Writing in L2: Accuracy Vs Other Outcomes

Abstract

This article describes the effects of dialogue journaling through e-mail on the language produced by two groups (experimental and control) of first-semester-Spanish college students. The independent variable was the use of electronic mail while the dependent variables were accuracy and number of words per message. Quantitative results showed that the control group significantly outperformed the experimental group regarding grammatical accuracy. Non-significant differences for either lexical accuracy or number of words were found. For qualitative analysis, a questionnaire administered to both groups requested their opinions on the effectiveness and attitude towards the journaling technique. The authors concluded that, although the e-mail medium promoted a more positive attitude towards the language, dialogue journals via e-mail did not improve grammar skills. Thus, suggestions are offered to modify instruction to enhance other positive results from the use of electronic writing in L2, thereby providing a way to incorporate authentic, real-life writing tasks, develop better classroom rapport, and allow advantages to students otherwise reluctant to speak in class.