Feedback in writing has in recent years attracted the attention of an increasing number of writing researchers. While much feedback research focuses on the act of feedback per se, little attention has been paid to the issue of teacher readiness to implement change in feedback. Using data gathered from Hong Kong secondary teachers attending a…

While research on portfolio assessment (PA) has focused largely on the summative aspects of writing assessment, not much has been done to find out its formative potential. Drawing upon student questionnaires and student and teacher interview data, this paper aims to explore the formative functions of PA and, specifically, how the formative…

Research on teachers' beliefs has demonstrated that beliefs have an important impact on teachers' practice. In teacher feedback research, however, not much is known about teachers' beliefs and the extent to which they influence practice. This article reports on the findings from a study that investigated teachers' beliefs and practice in written…

This article explores how dialogue journals and response journals can be used to encourage reflection among pre-service teachers. Thirty-one pre-service English teachers from two Hong Kong universities participated in the study. One group wrote dialogue journals and the other group wrote response journals throughout two semesters on two separate…

Describes the implementation of a self-directed learning program for tertiary students in Hong Kong and evaluates its outcomes using data from the students and the teacher. The article raises issues concerning the provision of support for such learning and discusses the implications for future work in the field. (Author/JL)