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EZ Research Monographs • VOL. 1 200954

Using Action Research to Enhance the Level of Primary Five Pupils’ Self-expression in Chinese Composition of a

Singapore School

Teo, Wan QiLiu, Ern Ming

Junyuan Primary School

Abstract

Composition writing is often pupils’ weakest component during examination. Their weakness in self-expression during composition writing has often led the pupils to attain only a borderline pass for their composition due to their limited content and language skills in engaging readers emotionally. This has impact their Chinese Subject grade adversely. In this research study, we use Action Research to explore the effectiveness of guided reading of Chinese short passages in improving the writing skills of Primary Five (P5) pupils, particularly in self-expression. Two classes of P5 EM2 pupils with similar academic background and language ability are involved. According to the Singapore Primary School Education system, to maximise pupils’ potential, pupils are formally streamed according to their learning ability at the end of Primary 4.

They are placed in one of three language streams, namely EM1, EM2, and EM3, according to their abilities. Pupils in the EM1 and EM2 streams do English, Mother Tongue, Mathematics and Science. EM1 pupils may do Higher Malay/Chinese/Tamil as their Mother Tongue. Pupils in the EM3 stream do Foundation English, basic Mother Tongue and Foundation Mathematics.

This research study was conducted through a series of fourth Action Research Cycles. During the process, a set of surveys was conducted to measure the effectiveness of applied interventions. These surveys included, a pre-survey, a survey to analyze self-expression used in pupils’ written composition as well as a post-survey.

EZ Booklet 11.09.09.indd 54 EZ Booklet 11.09.09.indd 54 9/21/11 9:10 PM9/21/11 9:10 PM


Introduction

At the end of their 6 years of primary education, pupils are required to sit for their Primary School Leaving Examinations (PSLE). The components for the Chinese language paper are: 1. Listening comprehension (10%) 2 Oral (25%) 3. Paper 1-Composition writing (20%) 4. Paper 2-Content and Language (45%)

Recent years, MOE is moving towards TLLM (Teach Less Learn More) where teaching is moving towards learner-centred. According to the Singapore’s Ministry of Education’s Primary Chinese Syllabus 20071 , at the end of primary education, pupils are able to read reading materials suitable for their level and are able to make use of different resources e.g. learning CD-roms, learning websites etc to read independently. They have to be able to write content-rich compositions and are able to make use of Chinese language to express their feelings in their daily lives.

As such, reading and writing are of utmost importance to the pupils during their PSLE. The reading and writing components comprise of 65% of the overall PSLE Chinese grade. Hence, improvement (or the change) to these two areas is needed.

Besides, the ‘Primary Chinese Syllabus 2007’2requires reading and writing skills are to be built on during upper primary, namely, Primary Five and Primary Six.

In view of the above, our main objective for this research is to develop an effective guided reading approach to help our P5 pupils, particularly in the usage of self-expression in Chinese writing. The definition of self expression 3 is that in writing, the descriptions used for the characters’ emotions can best allow the character to be more colourful and to come alive. Self-expressions can be divided into various aspects e.g. happy, contented, disappointed, sad, hatred, angry, surprised, fear, praise etc which also includes relevant idioms and sentences.

“

” (Primary Chinese Syllabus 2007, http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/languages-and-literature/files/chinese-primary-2007.pdf, Pg 5) 2“

’ (Primary Chinese Syllabus 2007, http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/languages-and-literature/files/chinese-primary-2007.pdf, Pg 3) 3 “

” (http://www.enmajor.com/cn/Html/Listening_Speaking/English_Writing/53287080605.html) )



As pointed by Dick (2001), Action research (AR) is both a change methodology and a research methodology within a single process. In our research study, AR has helped us to bring about change or improvement (the action) in such a way that more understanding is developed as parallel outcome at one hand. AR also assisted us to pursue understanding (the research) in ways that allow the action to be based upon a better understanding of the problem situation and the research is achieved by being responsive to the situation and by searching strenuously for disconfirming evidence.

This research study is conducted through a series of four AR cycles with each cycle that alternates action and critical reflection. Action and research enhance each other in an ongoing basis. In the process, we have designed a reading and writing package to guide the pupils through a systematic way of reading a passage and incorporating the learning contents, phrases or writing structure they learnt from the passage to write a complete composition

Action Research Cycle One: Immersing and deriving the root defi nition of the problem situation

As highlighted by Maxwell’s statement in the work of Leitch, R., Wiegand, M. and Quek, C. (1990), “It is important to have a partial answer to a valid research question rather than a valid answer to a wrong research question”, therefore, it is important for us to make sense and derive the root definition for our problem situation first.

In this AR cycle, we explored the different aspects associated with our problem situations and the gist of each aspect is summarized below.

First Aspect: Traditional way of teaching reading of Chinese passagesThe conventional steps for teaching pupils to read a passage are as follows: (1) Self-read the passage once (2) Highlight unfamiliar words and phrases (3) Self-read the passage for the 2nd time and try to deduce the meaning of the highlighted words and phrases from the context of the passage (4) Check the dictionary or ask the teacher for the meaning of the highlighted words and phrasesSecond Aspect: Traditional way of teaching Chinese composition writingThe conventional steps for teaching pupils to write picture-composition are as follows: (1) Analyze the pictures in the composition (going through the Five-what and One-How, namely, when, where, what, why and how) with the pupils (2) Go through the helping words with the pupils (3) Pupils embark in their writing

The conventional steps for teaching pupils to write title-composition are as follows:

(1) Analyze the title of the composition (brainstorm ideas that need to be emphasized on in the composition) (2) Go through the leading questions and guide the pupils in the writing of the composition (3) Pupils embark in their writing



Third Aspect: Intended Objectives for pupils and teachers involved:The followings summarized our intended objectives for this research study.For pupils: a) To develop a strong interest in reading Chinese short passages b) To obtain ideas and structure of short passages and use them in Chinese composition writing c) To develop a strong interest in writing and use writing as a medium to express one’s opinions and feelings

For teachers: a) To explore various methods of conducting guided reading and writing lessons using short passages b) To find out the impact of short passages on pupils’ self-expression in writing composition c) To be able to design an effective guided reading and writing package to benefit the pupils

The above objectives help to establish greater awareness of the relationship between reading and writing among teachers. It is a good start to create a bridging module for the pupils. To minimize the variables involved, we have selected 2 classes (out of the four P5 classes offering standard Chinese) with comparable results, to be involved in this research. One will be the control class and the other will be the experimental class.

Fourth Aspect: Purpose and Motivation factorsAs Chinese teachers, our main concern is to constantly improve our methodology in the teaching of the Chinese Language. Composition writing is often pupils’ weakest component in their Chinese paper. Their results are often affected by this component. After gathering feedback from Chinese teachers, we found that the main reason most pupils attained only a borderline pass in composition lies in their weak writing skills. The content and language of their compositions failed to engage readers. This is a worrying phenomenon as the weightage of composition writing is 20% of overall examination marks. Hence, their writing skills need to be further enhanced in order for them to perform well.

Fifth Aspect: Positive feedback from student in “Happy Reading Express” conducted prior to this Research Study

As a continuation of our Primary Four (P4) reading prototype project last year, we decided to choose P5 as our research level. This is because this group of students has completed the 2nd wave of “Happy Reading Express” in 2007 when these students were introduced to read a series of short passages. The Chinese Language reading materials selected for this programme are a series of short stories entitled “Memories - The Box” specially written by NIE’s A/P Woon Wee Lee. After reading, they were to complete relevant reading activities. At the end of this programme, the pupils gave feedback that they enjoyed the reading lessons and are motivated to read more.

Sixth Aspect: Literature Review and conclusion derived on Reading and/or WritingAccording to Ramona Gunter (1996)4 , “meaningful experience, when learning a second language, is key to language acquisition.”

In addition, Gail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993)5 mentioned that “Exposure to good literature also supports students’ writing development.” In particular, they find that



4 “Model ESL and bilingual programs provide educators with many examples of effective strategies. These programs have shown that meaningful experience, when learning a second language, is key to lan-guage acquisition. Successful programs value a child’s home language and culture and often utilize the student’s first language. Cooperative learning is a strategy frequently used, with reading, writing and speak-ing activities focused on development of higher order thinking skills as well as basic skills. Parents are encouraged to become involved in the education of their children, and educators hold high standards for ALL students.”(http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/archive/ccvi/pub/newsletter/Aug1996_SpEd_Setting-Stage/Lang_Acquisition_v1_no1.html)5Gail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993). Teaching reading with literature (Case studies to ac-tion plans). Pg 13. USA: Macmillan Publishing Company.6(Gail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993). Teaching reading with literature (Case studies to action plans). Pg 14. USA: Macmillan Publishing Company.)

“Literature-based reading programs offer students many opportunities to read like writers a need to write like writers..” 6

To Ann Browne (2001) 7,

“Guided reading is a strategy for teaching children to read.” and “The aim of guided reading is to help children to learn to use and apply reading strategies effectively.”

Before a child can read independently, it is important to design lessons to guide them to read effectively and efficiently. We can guide our pupils better by analyzing past years’ examination questions to identify board categories of questions tested. “The assessment of writing should be accompanied by refl ection on the classroom practices that support children’s learning in order to ensure that the curriculum provision and organization is enabling the pupils to learn what the teacher intends.” 8 Before the start of every composition writings, guided writing exercises for the pupils are necessary as they provide them with the building blocks for writing according to Ann Browne (2001). “Reading and writing are intimately connected so that students write what they are reading about and read to fi nd out more of their writing.” 9 Beside, Reading has a direct impact on writing because the phrases and sentence structures read by a child will indirectly affect the phrases and sentence structures written by the pupil during composition writing.

Beside, Reading has a direct impact on writing because the phrases and sentence structures read by a child will indirectly affect the phrases and sentence structures written by the pupil during composition writing.

In view of the above literature review for Chinese composition writing, we have chosen to focus on this area so as to: 1. Find out the impact of Reading on Writing. 2. Let the teachers have an in-depth understanding of the relationship between reading and writing. 3. Provide teachers with a more systematic way to guide pupils from reading to writing and in turn design a comprehensive reading and writing package to be used for P5 white-space.



Final Research QuestionOur research question is as follows: 1) Can P5 pupils improve their Chinese composition writing skills, particularly in the aspect of self-expression, through guided reading and writing using Chinese short stories?

Action Research Cycle Two: Derivation of Intervention ApproachIn this AR cycle, our intervention approach is derived through the following stages.

Stage 1: Selection of ClassesThis research uses the quasi-experimental approach. We will be using a control group because we want to ensure the effectiveness of the package before introducing it to the whole level eventually. There are 2 intact classes of P5 pupils (32 pupils each) involved. Both classes are doing the standard Chinese subject and they are banded according to their overall P4 Chinese Language Examinations results.

7 Ann Browne (2001). Developing Language and Literacy 3-8, 2nd Edition. Pg 44. Great Britain: Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wiltshire8 Ann Browne (2001). Developing Language and Literacy 3-8, 2nd Edition. Pg 235. Great Britain: Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wiltshire9 Gail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993). Teaching reading with literature (Case studies to action plans). Pg 14. USA: Macmillan Publishing Company.

Band (Marks) Band 1

(85-100)

Band 2

(70-84)

Band 3

(50-69)

Band 4

(<50)

Control Class 0 6 26 0

Experimental Class 0 3 29 0

Pupils from both classes have similar academic background where most of them scored Band 3 for their Chinese last year. The control class will be taught using the traditional composition teaching method while the experimental class will use the reading to writing package designed by us.

Currently, there are many literatures that support the relationship between reading and writing. However, they do not have a detailed research as to how reading has any specific impact on writing. E.g. Do thereading and learning of phrases in reading passages equip pupils with the ability to use these phrasesin their writing? Once the phrases are taken out of context, can pupils make use of the same phrases in another composition topic? Without any formal teaching of the new phrases that the pupils do not understand, will they be able to correctly use these phrases in their composition writing?



Stage Two: Conduct of Pre-survey

Besides being comparable in their academic, we have to make sure that the pupils’ background, their reading and writing habits are comparable too. Group equivalence was checked using a pre-test survey. This survey consists of MCQ and open-ended questions. The pupils were guided by the teachers to understand and answer the survey.

Our survey consists of three parts. Its main motive is to find out: 1. Pupils’ learning and language background. 2. Pupils’ reading habits and preferences of books. 3. Pupils’ writing habits and preferences.

Pre-survey results:

The results of pre-survey are tabulated into graphical format for every question. Below is an analysis of the results.

(a)Background a. From the result, most of the pupils from both classes use Mandarin to converse with their friends and family. Most of the pupils from both classes attended, mainly English tuition classes. Hence, both classes are comparable in terms of academic and social background. (b)Reading habits and preferences of books a. Both classes prefer reading English books to Chinese books. If they were to choose Chinese books, most of them will prefer comics as there are more pictures than words. This allows them to read with ease. On the average, they read about 1-5 books per week and this is normally done during the weekend. The pupils also have consistent exposure to Chinese reading every week.(c)Writing habits and preferences a. Both classes prefer writing English Composition to Chinese Compositions because they are unable to write many Chinese characters. Most of them do not engage in other Chinese writings. As such, they have less contact with writing in their daily lives. Most of the pupils indicated that they prefer writing picture composition. In P3 and P4, the average marks for their composition results were between 10-15 marks (out of 20 marks). Since P3, most pupils have achieved a composition length of 100-150 words. They have already achieved the examination’s target of at least a 100 words. Most of the pupils expressed that during composition writing, they will organize their thoughts in Chinese before penning their thoughts down.

10 “two of the main proponents of the Deakin Model of action research, have defi ned it as: A form of collective self-refl ective enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own or educational practices, as well as their understanding of these practices and the situations in which these practices are carried out.” [Towards more effective open and distance teaching. Perc Marland , Published 1997 by Routledge, P 63 and 64]



From the above findings, we concluded that these 2 classes are suitable as our research subjects.

Stage Three: Derivation of an Intervention Approach based on Kemmis and McTaggart’s Deakin Model 10

To improve pupils’ writing skills, it is important to find out the actual reasons for their weaknesses. Action research can help us identify these reasons so as to design an effective learning package.

Using the data derived from the above-mentioned survey, we have chosen the control and experimental groups for comparison. Experimental group will be going through the solution based research. Their results will be compared with those in the control group, where they will go through the traditional teaching method of writing.

We will be making use of Kemmis and McTaggart’s Deakin Model11 as shown below

11 “two of the main proponents of the Deakin Model of action research, have defi ned it as: A form of collective self-refl ective enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own or educational practices, as well as their understanding of these practices and the situations in which these practices are carried out.” [Towards more effective open and distance teaching. Perc Marland , Published 1997 by Routledge, P 63 and 64]

Design a reading and writing guided package to improve the pupils’ writing.

Actual conduct of the lesson. Use surveys and marking rubrics to determine success of package

Improving of package. Narrowing the gap to better suit pupils’ learning needs.

Compile the learning package and the learning report into a summative learning journal.



We have chosen Kemmis and McTaggart’s Deakin Model11 because we are doing a solution based action research and the model depicts our action plan perfectly in terms of Plan – Action – Observe – Reflect. Through our pre-survey, we will discover the learning traits of the pupils’ acquisition in reading and writing. We will make use of our discovery to design an intervention package to help the pupils integrate and translate their reading into writing. Reading becomes their source of inspiration for writing. After the 1st cycle of intervention, we will calculate the percentage of self expression phrases used by the pupils in relation of the whole passage. A 2nd cycle of intervention will be designed to better suit the learning needs of the pupils and to narrow the gap. A 3rd or 4th intervention may also be carried out if time permits.

Illustration adapted from Dan MacIsaac, 1996 (http://www.physics.nau.edu/~danmac)

We will be using the following data recording and analysis techniques in our research. It includes qualitative and quantitative results derived from 1. Pre-survey: Collective survey form with both close and open-ended questions as stated above in the paragraph on subject 2. Baseline composition: To find out on the standard of the pupils before embarking on the research 3. Analysis of pupils’ compositions for each cycle of Reading to Writing. 4. Pupils’ feedback: To find out on the engagement and effectiveness of lessons carried out 5. Feedback from teacher conducting lessons in experimental class. 6. Post-Survey: To measure the extent of pupils’ learning and the effectiveness of the package designed.

The limitations of our research methods/processes are: 1. Internal validity

a .It is impossible to find 2 classes with identical academic background. Therefore the results and the data collected might be inaccurate. b. Teaching the usage of self-expression in composition writing might be too difficult for these 2 classes, as their writing abilities are weak. Initially, we wanted to choose the best ability P5 EM2 class and a P5 HCL class as the research subject, but due to the differences in their curriculum as well as standard of language, the final measurement may not be accurate in view of variables.

2.External validity

a. TLLM Ignite!’s main direction is a solution-based research. We have to design the package in view of the assumption that pupils only attained a borderline pass for their composition grades because of their limitation in self-expression which lead to poor composition results. However, these assumptions may not reflect the true problem faced by the pupils when it comes to composition writing.



Action Research Cycle Three: Intervention process in action

Primary school pupils’ learning is in the concrete operational stage. In this stage, most of them focus on the content, rather than adding descriptions in their composition to make it more interesting for the reader. More descriptions in a composition will improve the language component marks and the overall marks will definitely improve. In this research, we hope to increase the volume of self-expressions used in their composition so that their writing skills will improve.

After we have selected the research subjects, we started to select short stories for the Reading to Writing intervention procedures. The stories chosen have to be interesting and relevant to the experi-mental class pupils.

In view of the fact that last year, this batch of P5 pupils have embarked on a series of read-ing lessons under the “Happy Reading Express” project, we decided to look into using the same set of books. As mentioned above, the CL reading materials used for that programme are from a series of short stories entitled “Memories - The Box”. These stories gave the pupils an insight on their parents’ childhood lifestyles. The story background may not be familiar to our pupils of present but moral val-ues are the same. Hence, they can make a comparison with their own childhood memories or with their personal experiences. The reading lessons made used of these short passages to arouse their interest in reading. Hence, we decided to continue using A/P Woon Wee Lee’s short passages as the content and language used in the passages can develop pupils’ writing skills with colourful self-expressions. After much consideration on the stories that are relevant to the PSLE compositions’ titles, we have chosen 5 stories from a set of storybooks. Composition titles are then chosen to match the content of these 5 stories. We then scheduled the Reading to Writing procedures for the experimental class.

Both the experimental and control classes’ teachers conducted the baseline composition with their pupils. In Term 2 Week 8, the experimental class teacher conducted the first lesson. However, due to unforeseen circumstances like power failure and school ad-hoc events, we have decided to reduce the number of lessons from 5 to 4 instead. Besides the baseline composition which was conducted be-fore the first lesson, we also conducted the PETALS12 Engagement Indicator survey to find out their engagement level.

After planning the schedule, we started to design the lesson plans according to the Read-ing to Writing procedures mentioned earlier. These lessons were then conducted in Term 3. Each read-ing to writing cycle consists of about 4 lessons with at least 1 hour per lesson. Below is an overview of the Reading to Writing programme designed for each set of lesson.



After the pupils have completed the composition writing in class within the stipulated time of 50 minutes, the teachers of each class will mark the compositions according to the MOE guidelines and used brackets to identify the self-expression words or phrases used by the pupils. After marking, copies of the compositions are given to the Research Activist. Research Activist will calculate the number of self-expressions used and fill in the analysis form. After filling in the form, the results for individual pupils are keyed into the excel file for individual pupil.

After every lesson, the experimental class teacher will conduct a simple feedback with her pupils to find out about their interest towards the reading and writing lessons. After the feedback for the first lesson was collected, we realized that the previous survey was not comprehensive enough to collect feedback. Hence, amendments were done where we added open-ended questions to allow pupils to provide more feedback. The experimental class teacher will also complete a feedback form on the lesson taught, her amendments to the lesson plans, her suggestions for improvement etc.

12 “The PETALS™ Framework is a synthesis of teachers’ experiences, students’ feedback, researchers’ data and sound education theories. It comprises fi ve dimensions of learning and teaching that contribute to engaged learning in the Singapore classroom The fi ve dimensions of learning and teaching can be used interactively to help teachers plan student-centred and engaging lessons. In short, students are engaged when teachers: a. select Pedagogy that considers students’ readiness to learn and their learning styles; b. design an Experience of learning that stretches thinking, promotes inter-connectedness and develops independent learning; c. create a Tone of environment that is safe, stimulating and which engenders trust; d. adopt Assessment practices that provide information on how well students have performed and provide timely feedback to improve learning; and e. select relevant and meaningful Learning content that makes learning authentic for the students. These 5 dimensions of Pedagogy, Experience of learning, Tone of environment, Assessment, and Learning content are abbreviated into the acronym “PETALS”.” (http://www.moe.gov.sg/media/press/2008/01/more-support-for-schools-teach.php).

After a few lessons of practicing,

Composition writing

Making use of the technique learnt to practice writing

Teaching pupils the usage of certain techniques found in the passage

Find the writing technique used in the passage

Guided reading



At the end of Term 3, the experimental class teacher completed the 3 cycles of Reading to Writing. However, we realized that we are unable to complete the 4th cycle in Term 4 because SA2 examinations were scheduled in Week 5. Due to time constraint, we have to reduce the number of lessons again.

There was a post-survey conducted for the pupils and teacher of the experimental class for both the control and experimental classes’ pupils at the end of the intervention cycles to find out whether these reading to writing strategies are of interest to them and whether they benefited from them.

After we have completed our research and design of the learning package, there are plans to cascade this Reading to Writing programme to other levels as well as other language departments in our school.

Action Research Cycle Fourth: Evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention processIn this AR Cycle, we evaluate the effectiveness of our intervention and we have gathered a set of quantitative and qualitative results as described below. Our findings are presented using bar graph and Effect Size Calculator. Bar graphs were used to tabulate the surveys and composition results. It is easy to use. It presents the data in graphical format which is easy for readers to understand. Effect Size Calculator is used to analyze the effectiveness of the intervention used in the experimental class as compared to the control class. We will also be collating and summarizing the feedback from pupils and teacher.

Quantitative Results

We collated the pupils’ results as a class as well as individual results. Since we are focusing on the self-expressions aspect, we will go into details on the results for this component. Below is the bar graph of the average percentage of self-expressions used in each composition in comparison to the length of the composition for both the control class and the experimental class.



With a structured intervention of reading to writing strategies, the average increase in self-expressions used by the experimental class between baseline composition and composition one is 3.1%. With the 2nd cycle of structured intervention of reading to writing lessons, the frequency of self-expressions used by the experimental class have increased further by 8.9%. From composition two to composition three, there is a slight drop from 24.3% to 21.9% for the experimental class.

However, we see a downward trend in the average of self-expressions’ percentage from composition two to composition three. There is a slight drop of 2.4% with the experimental class as compared to 8% with the control class. The main reason for this slight downward trend for the experimental class is attributed to the fact that the pupils focused more on the content of the composition rather than the usage of self-expressions. As compared with the control class, the experimental class scored 0.9% higher for the baseline composition as seen from Table 02 below. By composition three, the difference had become bigger between the control and experimental class.

Even though we can see that there is an uptrend from baseline composition to composition two for both the control class and the experimental class, the average percentage of self-expressions used by the experimental class has increased more than the control class. Hence, we can assume that there is a significant effect of the reading to writing cycles for the experimental class as at composition two.

The upward to downward trend does not mean that this research has lost its effect on the experimental class’s pupils. We can still say that these series of reading to writing cycle is a success as seen from Table 02.

Using the effect size calculator, there is progressive increase in the standard mean deviation from baseline composition to composition three from 0.11 to 1.59. An effect size of 0.11 showed that there was a negligible effect between the percentages of the control and the experimental class. In terms of the frequency of self-expressions used in their written composition without any intervention, the experimental class and control class is comparable.

Measure Experimental

group (N=32)

Control

group

(N=32)

Effect

Size

Remarks

Baseline Composition 12.3 (7.99) 11.4(8.09) 0.11 Negligible Effect

Compo 1 15.4 (7.12) 11.8 (7.64) 0.49 Small Effect

Compo 2 24.3 (11.07) 15.8 (7.66) 0.89 Large Effect

Compo 3 21.9 (10.7) 7.8 (6.5) 1.59 Very Large Effect



The experimental class embarked on its series of reading to writing intervention cycles and with each intervention, the pupils’ achieved higher percentage mean as compared to the control class. As we can see from Table 02, the effect size has increased by almost 50% with every intervention. By composition three, there is an effect size of 1.59 which showed a very large effect of standard mean deviation comparison. From the composition analysis, this series of reading to writing cycle has indeed increased the experimental class pupils’ percentage of self-expressions used in relation to the total length of composition written as compared to the control class using traditional composition teaching.

The assumption that we have made here is that when the frequency of self-expressions increases in a typical composition, the language component marks will also increase. In our case, the average language mean scored by the experimental class did not increase. After looking at the pupils’ compositions, we found out that their sentences, including the self-expressions, written in the composition were not of standard Chinese grammar. They also miswrote certain Chinese characters and some of the punctuation marks were not used appropriately.

Qualitative Indicators

Pupils did a feedback after every lesson. Below is the collated feedback for all the lessons conducted.



Other feedback include pupils have learnt to use different words on expressing emotions through inner feelings, movements, idioms etc. They have also learnt what a good composition should comprise. They find it easier to write composition after going through the lessons. Some of them requested that the teacher explain the words or phrases to them for better understanding.

According to the post-survey of the experimental class, the results projected a positive feedback of the reading to writing cycles done with them. Pupils developed a strong interest in the short stories as they indicated that the stories given are interesting mainly because they understood the content of the stories given to them and can relate the stories to their daily lives. They also find the reading and writing activities interesting. All of them agreed that the writing activities do help them in their written composition. Pupils are able to obtain ideas and structure of short passages and use them for writing. About 62.5%of the pupils have developed a strong interest in writing and indicated that they would use writing as a medium to express themselves.

The experimental class teacher also gave her feedback on this research. She indicated that the pupils understood and showed interest in the stories. They participated actively in class activities. After the lessons, she noticed that most pupils are able to apply what they have learnt in their writing. She also indicated that the lessons’ timing was appropriate and sufficient and most of the lessons are suitable for her pupils’ academic level.

Discussion and Conclusion

In this research, we want to find out whether P5 pupils’ composition writing skills will improve particularly in the aspect of self-expression through cycles of guided reading and writing approach using Chinese short stories.

The findings further acknowledge the close relationship between Reading and Writing. However, we have also observed that even though the pupils are able to increase the frequency of self-expressions used in their written composition, their command of Chinese language as well as their knowledge in using punctuation and paragraphing etc still have room for improvement. This batch of Primary 5 pupils’ language ability is relatively weak, with mostly at entry level of Band 3. They may be able to replicate and even include self-expressions, but

Table 03: Collated feedback of the pupils in the experimental class

Questions Lesson 01 Lesson 02 Lesson 03 Average

I like these lessons. Yes: 97%

No: 3%

Yes: 100%

No: 0%

Yes: 100%

No: 0%

Yes: 99%

No: 1%

These lessons are beneficial to

me.

Yes: 97%

No: 3%

Yes: 97%

No: 3%

Yes: 100%

No: 0%

Yes: 98%

No: 2%

I will use the techniques learnt

in my writing.

Yes: 90%

No: 10%

Yes: 100%

No: 0%

Yes: 97%

No: 3%

Yes: 96%

No: 4%



they are unable to express the sentences in standard Chinese grammar. As a result, their language component marks did not show much improvement. Hence, the pupils selected for this research should be those who have already acquired the basic skills of proper writing. This way, the increase in self-expressions in these pupils’ composition will make their composition engaging and eventually increase their overall composition marks.

In order for pupils to reach this level of reading to writing, all school based curriculum should be planned in a more structured and systematic way and the time freed by MOE should be protected and not used for after school activities. Pupils can then benefit from school based curriculum throughout their six years of education.

In this research, two of us are the main planners and the experimental teacher has the flexibility to amend the lesson plans given to her beforehand. It would be much better if all teachers in the department can be involved in planning as this will allow them to explore various methods of conducting guided reading and writing lessons. Only then will we be able to design an effective guided reading and writing package to benefit all pupils.

Our target for this programme is that pupils will be able to write a complete composition with at least 20% increase in the usage of self-expression and they will be more confident and interested in writing composition has been achieved.

After a series of three Reading to Writing cycles, the experimental class’s pupils achieved a 20.5% increase in the frequency of self-expression words written in their composition. The frequency of self-expressions used increases after each intervention. Hence, this research has met its main research objective as mentioned above. Furthermore, pupils gain more confidence and are more interested in writing as they indicated that they would read more materials on their own and are willing to take on other forms of writing. Experimental class teacher also expressed that this research has indeed increased the pupils’ use of self-expressions in their compositions and is useful in improving their writing skills.

Besides, we have also adopted AR as a meta-methodology and even use it to refine itself as such as Kemmis and McTaggart’s Deakin Model in this research study. AR is an innate and unconscious process that executed by some parts of our brain (Davies, 2001), and it can be used to derive and refine other methodologies, including itself (Dick, 2001). Also demonstrated in this research study, as a Meta-methodology, AR does not deny the value of mathematics and statistical concepts. In fact, it assumes them and goes beyond them by trying to encompass phenomenon that cannot be represented in a static, unambiguous, and formal framework.



References

Ann Browne (2001). Developing Language and Literacy 3-8, 2nd Edition. Pg 44. Great Britain: Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, WiltshireAnn Browne (2001). Developing Language and Literacy 3-8, 2nd Edition. Pg 235. Great Britain: Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wiltshirehttp://www.enmajor.com/cn/Html/Listening_Speaking/English_Writing/53287080605.htmlhttp://www.moe.gov.sg/media/press/2008/01/more-support-for-schools-teach.phphttp://www.physics.nau.edu/~danmachttp://www.wcer.wisc.edu/archive/ccvi/pub/newsletter/Aug1996_SpEd_SettingStage/Lang_Acquisition_ v1_no1.htmlGail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993). Teaching reading with literature (Case studies to action plans). Pg 13. USA: Macmillan Publishing Company.Gail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993). Teaching reading with literature (Case studies to action plans). Pg 14. USA: Macmillan Publishing Company.Gail E. Tompkins & Lea M.McBee (1993). Teaching reading with literature (Case studies to action plans). Pg 14. USA: Macmillan Publishing Company.Primary Chinese Syllabus 2007, http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/languages-and literature/files/chinese-primary-2007.pdf, Pg 3Primary Chinese Syllabus 2007, http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/syllabuses/languages-and-literature/files/chinese-primary-2007.pdf, Pg 5Towards more effective open and distance teaching. Perc Marland , Published 1997 by Routledge,P 63 and 64 Davies, A. (2001) Action Research and Systems Thinking in Effective Change Management Using Action Learning and Action Research, 75-86, eds. Sankaran, S., Dick, B., Passfield, R. and Swepson, P., Lismore: Southern Cross University Press.Leitch, R., Wiegand, M. and Quek, C. (1990), Coping with Complexity in Physical Systems Modelling, International Journal of Artificial Intelligence Communications, Volume 3, Part 2, 48-57.

Acknowledgement

We would like to thank Dr Eric Goh and Dr Tay Boon Hou for their tireless guidance;Dr Tay Boon Hou for his valuable contributions in helping us to improve our paper, Sangeetha and Research@EastZone in organizing all these beneficial action research consultation sessions. Mdm Soh Eng Wee for implementing the intervention package with her class.


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