How to Cite
Abstract
This study examined the challenges faced by Malaysian second language (L2) learners when paraphrasing an academic text. Drawing on interviews with two diploma students from two business majors, I explored the types of challenges they faced when attempting paraphrasing tasks. The findings revealed that the students faced multiple challenges that ranged from text comprehension, poor L2 proficiency to referencing problems. In addition, there were significant differences between paraphrasing strategies adopted by a competent student and one with a lower proficiency level. Overall, the findings suggest that there is a need to utilise Content-Based Instruction to make the links between writing skills and learners’ disciplines tangible and that pre-degree preparation needs to include extensive writing practice which would help students become familiar with academic writing demands. Preliminary results also show that there is a need for teachers to be aware that the design of the materials for English language teaching should be tailored to the purpose of university study and academic vocabulary.
References
Abasi, A. R., & Akbari, N. (2008). Are we encouraging patchwriting? Reconsidering the role of the pedagogical context in ESL student writers' transgressive intertextuality. English for Specific Purposes, 27(3), 267-284.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2008.02.001
Abasi, A. R., Akbari, N., & Graves, B. (2006). Discourse appropriation, construction of identities, and the complex issue of plagiarism: ESL students writing in graduate school. Journal of Second Language Writing, 15(2), 102-117.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2006.05.001
Abdullah, M. R., Abu Bakar, Z., Ali, R. M., Raja Yaacob, R. A. I., Rahman, A., Embong, A. M., & Amar, A. Z. (2011). Writing strategies of Malaysian ESL undergraduate engineering learners. International Journal of Engineering and Technology, 11(2), 1-9.
Anstrom, K., DiCerbo, P., Butler, F., Katz, A., Millet, J., & Rivera, C. (2010). A review of the literature on academic English: Implications for K-12 English language learners. www.ceee.gwu.edu
Badiozaman, I. (2012). The relationship between Malaysian learner's self-concept and engagement in academic writing in one higher learning institution. Unpublished PhD dissertation, Massey University, New Zealand.
Barbour, R. S. (2008). Introducing qualitative research: A student guide to the craft of doing qualitative research. London: Sage.
Barks, D., & Watts, P. (2001). Textual borrowing strategies for graduate-level ESL writers. In D. Belcher & A. Hirvela (Eds.), Linking literacies: Perspectives on L2 reading-writing connections (pp. 246-270). Ann Arbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.
Berman, R., & Cheng, L. (2010). English academic language skills: Perceived difficulties by undergraduate and graduate students, and their academic achievement. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 4(1-2), 25-40.
Blackboard Inc. (2010). Blackboard Learn Version 9.1. Safeassign Instructor Guide. Washington, DC: Blackboard Inc.
Bloch, J. (2009). Academic writing and plagiarism: A linguistic analysis English for Specific Purposes, 28(4), 282-285.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2009.01.004
Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (2007). Qualitative research for education: An introduction to theories and methods (5th ed.). Boston: Pearson International Edition.
Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2007). Research methods in education (6th ed.). London: Routledge.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203029053
Coxhead, A. (2012). Academic vocabulary, writing and English for Academic Purposes: Perspectives from second language learners. RELC Journal, 43(1), 137-145.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688212439323
Elton, L. (2010). Academic writing and tacit knowledge. Teaching in Higher Education, 15(2), 151-160.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13562511003619979
Erhel, S., & Jamet, E. (2006). Using pop-up windows to improve multimedia learning. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 22, 137-147.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2006.00165.x
Gebril, A., & Plakans, L. (2013). Toward a transparent construct of reading-to-write tasks: The interface between discourse features an proficiency Language Assessment Quarterly, 10(1), 9-27.
https://doi.org/10.1080/15434303.2011.642040
Grabe, W., & Kaplan, R. B. (1996). Theory and practice of writing. Harlow, England: Pearson Education.
Green, D. (2010). Words fail us: How academics view language and ideas in higher education research. International Journal for Academic Development, 15(1), 47-59.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13601440903529901
Hirvela, A., & Du, Q. (2013). "Why am I paraphrasing?": Undergraduate ESL writers' engagement with source-based academic writing and reading. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 12(2), 87-98.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2012.11.005
Howard, R. M. (1995). Plagiarisms, authorships, and the academic death penalty. College English, 57, 788-806.
https://doi.org/10.2307/378403
Janesick, V. (2000). The choreography of qualitative research design. In N. Denzin & Y. Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research (2nd ed., pp. 379-399). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Johns, A. M., & Mayes, P. (1990). An analysis of summary protocols of university ESL students. Applied Lingustics, 11(3), 253-271.
https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/11.3.253
Keck, C. (2006). The use of paraphrase in summary writing: A comparison of L1 and L2 writers. Journal of Second Language Writing, 15(4), 261-278.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2006.09.006
Leki, I., Cumming, A., & Silva, T. (2008). A synthesis of research on second language writing in English. New York: Routledge.
Lillis, T. M. (2001). Student writing: Access, regulation and desire. New York: Routledge.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203186268
Mutch, C. (2005). Doing educational research: A practitioners' guide to getting started. Wellington, NZ: NZCER Press.
Patton, M. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Pecorari, D. (2003). Good and original: Plagiarism and patchwriting in academic second-language writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 12(4), 317-345.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2003.08.004
Puteh, S. N., Rahamat, R., & Karim, A. A. (2010). Writing in the second language: Support and help needed by the low achievers. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 7, 580-587.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.10.078
Sedhu, D., Lee, M. Y., & Choy, S. C. (2013). The influence of teaching strategies on students' paraphrasing strategies: A case study. International Journal of Independent Research and Studies, 2(3), 130-137.
Shafie, L. A., & Nayan, S. (2011). The characteristics of struggling university readers and instructional approaches of academic reading in Malaysia. International Journal of Human Sciences, 8(1). http://www.insanbilimleri.com/en
Shi, L. (2004). Textual borrowing in second-language writing. Written Communication, 21(2), 171-200.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088303262846
Smith, M., Ghazali, N., & Noor Minhad, S. F. (2007). Attitudes towards plagiarism among undergraduate accounting students: Malaysian evidence. Asian Review of Accounting, 15(2), 122-146.
https://doi.org/10.1108/13217340710823350
Sun, Y. C. (2012). Does text readability matter? A study of paraphrasing and plagiarism in English as a foreign language writing context. Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 21(2), 296-306.
Wette, R. (2010). Evaluating student learning in a university-level EAP unit on writing using sources. Journal of Second Language Writing, 19(3), 158-177.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2010.06.002
Wolfersberger, M. (2013). Refining the construct of classroom-based writing-from reading Assessment: The role of task representation. Language Assessment Quarterly, 10, 49-72.
https://doi.org/10.1080/15434303.2012.750661
Yigitoglu, N. (2010). Review of academic writing and plagiarism: A linguistic analysis. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 9(3), 223-225.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2010.06.002
Yu, G. (2008). Reading to summarise in English adn chinse: A tale of two languages. Language Testing, 25(4), 521-551.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532208094275
Zhang, Y., & Mi, Y. (2010). Another look at the language difficulties of international students. Journal of Studies in International Education, 14(4), 371-388.
Copyright Transfer Statement for Journal
1) In signing this statement, the author(s) grant UNIMAS Publisher an exclusive license to publish their original research papers. The author(s) also grant UNIMAS Publisher permission to reproduce, recreate, translate, extract or summarize, and to distribute and display in any forms, formats, and media. The author(s) can reuse their papers in their future printed work without first requiring permission from UNIMAS Publisher, provided that the author(s) acknowledge and reference publication in the Journal.
2) For open access articles, the author(s) agree that their articles published under UNIMAS Publisher are distributed under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, for non-commercial purposes, provided the original work of the author(s) is properly cited.
3) For subscription articles, the author(s) agree that UNIMAS Publisher holds copyright, or an exclusive license to publish. Readers or users may view, download, print, and copy the content, for academic purposes, subject to the following conditions of use: (a) any reuse of materials is subject to permission from UNIMAS Publisher; (b) archived materials may only be used for academic research; (c) archived materials may not be used for commercial purposes, which include but not limited to monetary compensation by means of sale, resale, license, transfer of copyright, loan, etc.; and (d) archived materials may not be re-published in any part, either in print or online.
4) The author(s) is/are responsible to ensure his or her or their submitted work is original and does not infringe any existing copyright, trademark, patent, statutory right, or propriety right of others. Corresponding author(s) has (have) obtained permission from all co-authors prior to submission to the journal. Upon submission of the manuscript, the author(s) agree that no similar work has been or will be submitted or published elsewhere in any language. If submitted manuscript includes materials from others, the authors have obtained the permission from the copyright owners.
5) In signing this statement, the author(s) declare(s) that the researches in which they have conducted are in compliance with the current laws of the respective country and UNIMAS Journal Publication Ethics Policy. Any experimentation or research involving human or the use of animal samples must obtain approval from Human or Animal Ethics Committee in their respective institutions. The author(s) agree and understand that UNIMAS Publisher is not responsible for any compensational claims or failure caused by the author(s) in fulfilling the above-mentioned requirements. The author(s) must accept the responsibility for releasing their materials upon request by Chief Editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
6) The author(s) should have participated sufficiently in the work and ensured the appropriateness of the content of the article. The author(s) should also agree that he or she has no commercial attachments (e.g. patent or license arrangement, equity interest, consultancies, etc.) that might pose any conflict of interest with the submitted manuscript. The author(s) also agree to make any relevant materials and data available upon request by the editor or UNIMAS Publisher.