The challenge of academic writing for Chinese students within ...

Previous studies (Arndt, 1987; Cumming, 1987, 1989; Friedlander, 1990; Lay, 1982; Wang
& Wen, 2002) have found that the native language was commonly used in the composing
process of L2 writing; the students employed their first language to help plan the writing,
generate ideas and content, check style, and assist thinking. The participants of the research
reported they had used Chinese to assist their writing. Like the students in Wang and Wen‘s
study (2002), Chinese was used by the participants mainly in the process of planning the
writing, generating and organizing the ideas. One participant mentioned at the beginning she
had used Chinese to construct sentences, and then translate them into English, but with time
and improvement of her English language competence, she had no longer used Chinese in
generating texts. This is in correlation with the findings of Wang and Wen‘s study (2002) in
which involvement of native language in texts construction decreased with the development
of the students‘ English language proficiency.
Aspirations for the future
After the acquisition of English as their second language or third language, students in the
study showed aspirations for a future associated with this linguistic advantage. For many, the
high proficiency of English language had prepared them well for a further postgraduate
degree study in an English speaking country in the near future. For others, the influence of
English on their future aspirations has gone further. Louis, in the interviews, expressed that
he would look for the opportunity to participate in international trade after his study in the
UK. His confidence came from the fact that he had mastered not only the English language
but also the culture associated with it. Celine aimed to promote the cultural and intellectual
understandings of China in the West. She decided to study further on subjects associated with
Chinese history and culture at SOAS, at the University of London. Andy had long hoped to
teach Chinese in English speaking countries, and his confidence in using English had
provided him with the possibility.
The learning experience in the UK has helped these Chinese students broaden their views on
cultures and democratic societies. In this study, there was evidence that these Chinese
students had developed a social and cultural sophistication through their knowledge and
experience of two different civilisations.
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