Exploring interactional metadiscourse in remote teaching: A case study of A2-level english learners

Abstract

The use of interactional metadiscourse markers in opinion paragraphs written by A2-level English learners was investigated in this research. Although metadiscourse is commonly studied in discourse analysis, pragmatics, and language teaching, there has been limited attention given to the writing of beginner-level language learners. Metadiscourse is typically associated with advanced English learners' writing behavior. However, this study recognizes that English learners at lower proficiency levels can also employ interactional metadiscourse markers, such as hedges, boosters, attitude markers, self-mentions, and engagement markers. The study scrutinized the opinion paragraphs of 20 university students at A2-level during the period of emergency remote teaching caused by the pandemic. The analysis of metadiscourse was carried out using Hyland's model for academic texts. The paragraphs of 10 students who attended online writing classes and 10 who did not were compared. The results showed that students who attended online classes attempted to use the metadiscourse markers they had learned in their writing lessons. On the other hand, students who did not attend online classes tended to use fewer interactional metadiscourse markers. The study proposes that students' writing and communication with their readers can be considerably impacted by teachers' attitudes, lesson materials, and sample paragraphs. Therefore, metadiscourse analysis can assist teachers and material developers in selecting appropriate materials for writing instruction.