Killing two birds with one stone? Turning CFL learners into book writers

Abstract

Two problems often emerge in the process of learning Chinese. First, learning to write at the beginning stage often focuses on forms, without an authentic purpose. As a result, learners do not have enough motivation to write. Second, while extensive reading benefits language learners, not many extensive reading materials are available to beginning and lower-intermediate level CFL learners. This empirical study examined the feasibility of incorporating a writing project into the curriculum, as well as the potential impact of such a project on learners’ reading and writing progress. A total of 89 learners participated in this study. The findings show that the participants who wrote books and those who read the books both enjoyed and benefited from the project.