Intra-individual Writing Progression Patterns of Maximal Variation Learners Writing in Different Modes

Zahed Alavi, Sahar

doi:10.22080/iselt.2026.30233.1136

Intra-individual Writing Progression Patterns of Maximal Variation Learners Writing in Different Modes

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Sahar Zahed Alavi

Department of Language and Linguistics, University of Bojnord, Bojnord, Iran.

10.22080/iselt.2026.30233.1136

Abstract

Applying dynamic systems theory (Thelen & Smith, 1994) and sociocultural theory (Vygotsky, 1978) as the frameworks of the study, the present study used a time-series design to track the intra-individual writing development of EFL learners. Forty writing samples were collected from one low-achieving individual and one high-achieving individual who wrote tasks individually and one low-achieving pair and one high-achieving pair who wrote tasks in collaboration over one semester. More specifically, each of the groups wrote on ten tasks over time. The data were coded for complexity (two measures), accuracy (two measures), and fluency (three measures; CAF) features. Following Norris and Ortega (2009), to offer a more comprehensive and detailed picture of the data, each of the CAF features was estimated through more than one indicator. The data showed progressions and regressions in the developmental process of both learners writing independently and those collaborating in writing over time. In addition, even the high-proficiency individual and pair experienced moments of regression in terms of CAF features. Furthermore, it was shown that learners engaging in collaborative writing produced more accurate texts than those engaging in individual writing tasks.

Keywords

Main Subjects

Copyright © 2025 The Author(s). Published by the Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages at the University of Mazandaran. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license.

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