The Effects of Two Forms of Written Corrective Feedback and Ambiguity Tolerance on EFL Learners’ Writing Accuracy

Abstract

The current study examines the effects of two forms of written corrective feedback (CF) and also learners’ ambiguity tolerance (AT) on L2 writing accuracy. To this end, 54 Iranian EFL learners enrolled in three intact classes participated in the study and served as two experimental groups as well as a control condition. The participants of the three conditions first took a writing task as pre-test. They were also asked to answer a questionnaire which was employed to measure the participants’ ambiguity tolerance (AT). During three treatment sessions, the participants of one experimental group received direct written CF from their teacher in response to their writing errors while the learners of the second experimental group were provided with indirect written CF that required them to self-correct their errors. The participants of the control group received no CF for their errors. Data analysis revealed that both types of written CF were effective for promoting the learners’ writing accuracy. Moreover, the findings indicated that the participants benefited more from direct feedback than indirect feedback although the difference was not statistically significant. These findings highlighted the value of teacher’s direct correction as well as learners’ self-correction. Finally, the results did not provide evidence for the moderating effects of learners’ AT on written CF effectiveness. Implications for language teachers and suggestions for further studies are presented in the study.