The effectiveness of genre-based pedagogy in improving grade four Lebanese learners’ conceptual knowledge and expository writing in science and the challenges they face.

Abstract

This study adopted a mixed research design in order to identify the effectiveness of genre-based pedagogy in improving grade four Lebanese learners’ conceptual knowledge and expository writing in science and to identify the challenges they articulate when completing a writing task intended to elicit exposition. The purpose of this study was to: (a) investigate whether genre-based pedagogy approach improves the quality of grade four Lebanese English Language Learners’ expository writing text, (b) examine whether genre-based pedagogy approach improves grade four Lebanese English Language Learners’ conceptual knowledge in science, and (c) explore the challenges that grade four Lebanese English Language Learners articulate when completing a writing task intended to elicit exposition. Data was collected using: (a) a paper and pencil measure where students were provided with a question prompting them to write an expository text both before and after the intervention to test the effectiveness of genre-based approach on students’ expository writing, (b) conceptual knowledge assessment adopted from Science Fusion assessments sheets and modified by the researcher to identify the effectiveness of genre-based approach on students’ conceptual knowledge in science, and (c) a think a loud protocol was also followed as students were asked to think aloud while writing to learn in order to identify the challenges they articulate when writing a task intended to elicit exposition. The sample consisted of approximately, 37 grade four students from a private school in the area of Beirut. This study has shown that the genre-based approach did improve the quality of grade 4 students’ expository writing in most of its aspects. However, while students in both groups improved substantially in their conceptual knowledge, there was no significant difference between the control and experimental groups in the gain in conceptual knowledge from before to after the intervention. Finally, even though most stude