Diary Writing for Science Majors: The Potential for Language Improvement
Maleki M. N. & Wright B. A.
Kanazawa Institute of Technology (KIT)Introduction

Research Questions

Summary

In preparation to study abroad, 10 science and engineeringmajor university students were required to keep a daily
diary for three months. Each student met with an English
tutor, weekly, and the diaries were a starting point for

1. What is students’ perception of using diary writing
as a tool to improve their English ability?
2. Were there any improvements in students’ writing
quality, if so, in what ways?

these tutoring sessions. Positive attitudes towards theeffectiveness of diary writing to improve English wereMethods and Procedures

A diary is “a set of notes about what one is thinking, doing, feeling at aparticular moment” (Rubin, 2003, p. 10). It is used in deferent capacities
by teachers and researchers. As part of the prerequisites for passing thiscourse, the participant wrote daily diaries and submitted to tutors and met
with them weekly.

improvement in content and mechanics.

Subjects and Setting
The participants were10 EFL non English major students at a Japanesefour year university. They were motivated graduate and undergraduate The instruments were validated by experts in the field for content andconstruct validity prior to distribution. The survey questionnaire was• Three month course on language and culture• Writing daily diary entries• Weekly tutoring sessions• Presentation about prospective school

Write diary entries

Table 1: Results of students’ perceptions of diary writing

earlier entries and used more complex grammar forms.

Diary writing enables me to:Meansome students wrote more in depth about their topics in later entries than in
Overall results revealed that there were improvements in students’ writing
quality, which is in line with Barjesteh, Vaseghi and Gholami’s (2011)

learn new vocabulary words

4.3

 The writing samples of the learners were collected from tutors at the

improve my reading ability

3.4

Further findings:

end of the course.

improve my speaking ability

3.5

 Confidence

learn basic communication skills

3.7

 The ability to express self better

improve confidence in using English

3.8

Suggestions: The participants’ tutors suggested the followings for

prepare for studying abroad

4.2

enhancing better implementation of diary writing :use my entries as a reflection tool

4.2

 Make diary entries weekly rather than daily which is also suggested bycorrect my own mistakes

3.8

Rubin (2003).

Instruments:
 Survey Questionnaire:
A five-point Likert scale questionnaire (roughly modeled

English abilities.
 Interview:
whether students felt their English improved or not, andStudents’ writing samples from the first and last week of the
improvements in students’ writing quality, and if so, in
what ways.

The above table shows that students (x = 4.3) thought their vocabularyknowledge can be improved as the result of diary entries.
Furthermore, the results show that students felt diary writing is useful in
preparation for studying abroad (x = 4.2) and they can use it as a reflection
tool (x = 4.2).
Results from another item of the questionnaire shows that the students (x =4.2) felt positive that diary writing is a helpful tool for learning English.
Interview Results:
Students were asked in the interview whether their English writing
improved because of this course, and if so, in what ways. Their responses
show that they thought diary writing had positive impact on their writing
improvement in the following areas: Able to express self better Word choice Confidence

Use the entries as the starting point for conversation practiceData Analysis
Quantitative data was compiled from the questionnaire results andanalyzed using an Excel spreadsheet to identify trends in students’
perceptions.
 Qualitative data was compiled from students’ early and later writing
samples and analyzed for improvement in English. Additionally, student
responses to interview questions were analyzed to gain insight into theirperceptions about their English improvement.

findings which concluded that diary writing improved EFL college
students’ writing.

 Sharing diaries on Blogs or Facebook groups for peer feedback.

after Pintrich et al.,1991) designed to measure students’course were compared to find out whether there were

www.PosterPresentations.com

Comparing early and later students’ diary writing samples, we found that

 The participants were interviewed at the end of the course in Japanese .

 Students’ Diary Writing Samples:

RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION DESIGN © 2012Research Question # 2:

3.6

Data Collection

3.7

their English, especially the content and mechanics of their writing.

improve my writing speed

Tutors give feedback (using Microsoft Word or on papers)

Discuss the feedback

Research Question # 1:

allowed to ask questions for clarification.

if so, in what ways.

Meet with tutors

Results revealed that:

Results indicate that students recognize the potential for diaries to improve

The participants were interviewed in Japanese to find out
Sent to tutors (through email, Google Docs, or hard copy)

for EFL learners to improve their writing ability.

improve my grammar

perceptions towards using diary writing to improve their
Diary Writing Steps:

for improvement (Hull, 1981, p. 135). Diary writing can be a starting point

distributed to the participants at the end of the course and they werelearners.
Prerequisites for studying abroad:Writing, in general, is considered “a complex skill that requires practiceBoth quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed and the following
results were found:
Survey Questionnaire Results:
Students were asked to rate the items of the survey questionnaire bycircling 1~5 (Not true ~ Always true).

evident from the results of the questionnaire and interview.
Examining student writing samples showed evidence ofConclusion

Discussion and Results

Writing Samples Results:
Analyzing the students’ early and late writing samples, the following
results were found: Content: More in depth topics
Word Choice: Variety of words
 Mechanics: There were positive changes in the usage of mechanics suchas prepositions , punctuation, and capitalization.

 Can be implemented best in small size classes so conferencing canoccur.

References

Barjesteh, H., Vaseghi, R., and Gholami, R. (2011). The effect of diary writingon efl college students’ writing improvement and attitudes. International
Conference on Language, Literature and Linguistics. 26, pp. 143-147
Hull, G. A. (1981). Effect of self-management strategies on journal writing bycollege freshmen. Research in the Teaching of English, 15(2), pp.135-148.
Pintrich, P. R., Smith, D. A. F., Garcia, T., and McKeachie, W. J. (1991). A
Manual for the Use of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire(MSLQ), National Center for Research to Improve Postsecondary
Teaching and Learning, Ann Arbor, MI.
Rubin, J. (2003). Diary writing as a process: Simple, useful, powerful.
Guidelines, 25(2), 10-14.
Students’ Writing Samples: (hard copies will be provided on site)