Writing Competency: The Skill Everyone Needs in Online Coursework(USE AS GUIDE ONLY)

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Writing Competency: The Skill Everyone Needs in Online Coursework
Abstract
Online colleges and universities in the United States support cultural diversity by making
learning a viable option for anyone anywhere in the world. Students in the online environment
represent cultures from a broad geographic spectrum (Brock Enger, 2006).Liang and Creasy
(2004), maintain the most essential media online is writing competency. Therefore, the absence
of face-to-face interaction may be problematic for English Language Learners (ELL) and
students with poor writing skills. Such students are placed in a disadvantaged position to
demonstrate their performance. To address this issue, an error analysis of writing samples from
online doctoral student coursework was undertaken. The results of a Paired-Sample T Test
procedure indicate that doctoral students at the end of the doctoral program made more errors in
content, style, and mechanics than students at the beginning of the program. It is critical that all
students receive the support needed in online courses to present ideas in writing that are clear,
concise, and coherent.
Keywords: online learning, writing assessment, written corrective feedback, error analysis
Introduction
According to the Allen and Seaman (2011) of more than 2,500 colleges and universities,
including both nonprofit and for-profit institutions, the number of college students enrolled in at
least one online course increased for the ninth straight year. The survey reports that more than
6.1 million students took at least one online class during fall 2010—a 10.1 percent increase over
the year before.Online courses reach a diverse student population from across town to across
national boundaries, across cultures, and into remote areas. Students in online courses are not
typical and are characterized by adults who work part-time to pay for college, professionals who
work full time and have children, stay at-home-moms, single parents, retirees, and business men
and women wanting to continue their education.Eldred and Hawisher (1995) maintain that online
courses create opportunities for historically marginalized populations to participate in
educational advancement previously thought unattainable.Additionally, as studentpopulations
become less and less traditional, instructors are finding that the skill setsassociated with the
diverse student population are just as varied.Kelly (n.d) points out that one difference
distinguishing online from face to-face learning is that students have the additional challenge of
negotiating distance communication methods and thatthis disconnect requires students to master
the writing process.Unfortunately, this learning paradigm shift places students with poor writing
skills in a disadvantaged position to demonstrate their performance(Laing & Creasy, 2004). The
purpose of this study was to examine doctoral writing samples from the second course of an
online Ed D program, and samples from the last course in the program, to determine if there is
significant improvement in student writing congruent with the completion of the doctoral
coursework. The research question that guided the study was the following: What significant growth in student writing is exhibited in writing samples from the second
course of an online doctoral program, compared to writing samples from the last course in the
same program?

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Course: Writing Competency: The Skill Everyone Needs in Online Coursework(USE AS GUIDE ONLY)
Subject: Writing Competency: The Skill Everyone Needs in Online Coursework(USE AS GUIDE ONLY)
Subject code: Writing Competency: The Skill Everyone Needs in Online Coursework(USE AS GUIDE ONLY)
Year of study: 17-18
Document
Section: Homework & Assignments
Made on: 27-01-2020
Type: .pdf
Pages: 11
Language: English