The effects of moodle peer feedback on students writing performance master of tesol

It has the potential to help students improve their writing skills and attitudes regarding Moodle-peer feedback in English writing.. Key words: Moodle-peer feedback, attitudes, non-Engli

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

-

THESIS

DO THI NHU NGUYET

THE EFFECTS OF MOODLE-PEER FEEDBACK ON STUDENTS’ WRITING PERFORMANCE

Ba Ria-Vung Tau University

[April 2022]

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

-

THESIS

THE EFFECTS OF MOODLE-PEER FEEDBACK ON STUDENTS’ WRITING PERFORMANCE

[Do Thi Nhu Nguyet]

Supervisor: Assoc Prof [Pham Vu Phi Ho], Ph.D.,

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of TESOL

Faculty of TESOL

School of International Training and Postgraduate Studies

Ba Ria-Vung Tau University

[April 2022]

Abstract

In today's era of computer technology, online peer feedback has become more and more popular in the field of education and plays an essential part in enhancing students’ writing skills The students’ writing performances’ reality at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University suggests that they still repeat common writing mistakes after their writing products are reviewed carefully by the teachers Besides, the attainable learning advantages of delivering peer feedback in electronic learning environment have not been studied to such a great extent and especially in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, the use of this feedback is necessary The study is managed to research the effectual aspect of Moodle-peer feedback in writing lessons of non-English majors at

Ba Ria-Vung Tau University A total of sixty pre-intermediate non-English majors from two classes selected and split up into two groups The two groups absorbed the same syllabus and curriculum, textbook, methods of teaching, and educational capacity

in the traditional class and performed two different separate tasks, in which the experimental group used Moodle, while the other group use paper to write paragraph

A pretest and a post-test were gathered to assess learners' writing paper while questionnaire and an interview are instruments to evaluate the students’ attitudes The study points out that the experimental group attained a considerable enhancement in post-test scores as a result of the five-week experiment with Moodle-peer feedback and

a large number of them will continue to use it in the future In addition, the current study provided a new approach for local educators to teaching writing The outcome demonstrates that Moodle-peer feedback via the forum can be an useful instructional tool It has the potential to help students improve their writing skills and attitudes regarding Moodle-peer feedback in English writing

Key words: Moodle-peer feedback, attitudes, non-English majors, English writing

skills, blended learning, writing performance

Table of Contents

Abstract i

Table of Contents ii

List of Figures vi

List of Tables vii

List of Abbreviations viii

Statement Of Original Authorship ix

Acknowledgements x

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Background of the study 1

1.2 Purposes of the study 4

1.3 Significance and scope of the study 5

1.3.1 Significance of the study 5

1.3.2 Scope of the study 6

1.4 Thesis outline 7

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 8

2.1 Writing teaching theories 8

2.1.1 Definition of writing 8

2.1.2 Writing performance 9

2.2 Moodle 10

2.2.1 Definition of Moodle 10

2.2.2 Layout 12

2.3 The importance of peer feedback in writing instruction 14

2.3.1 Peer feedback 14

2.3.2 The role of peer feedback in teaching writing 15

2.4 Blended Learning 17

2.4.1 Definitions of blended learning 17

2.5 Previous studies on using moodle-peer feedback in writing lesson 18

2.6 Summary 22

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 24

3.1 Research method 24

3.2 Research design 27

3.3 Participants 28

3.4 The Experimental Group 30

3.5 Research instruments 32

3.5.1 The Pre- and Post-test 34

3.5.2 Questionnaires 35

3.5.3 Interview 36

3.5.4 Instruments used to acquire data: a summary 38

3.6 Main stages of Data Collection 38

3.7 Analytical framework 45

3.7.1 Pre-test and post-test 45

3.7.2 The questionnaire's quantitative analysis 46

3.7.3 Qualitative analysis of the interview 47

3.8 Moral issues 48

3.9 Chapter summary 49

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 50

4.1 Research question 1: To what extent does the use of moodle-peer feedback affect

the students’ writing performance? 50

4.1.1 Results of the pre-test 50

4.1.2 Independent Sample t Test of pretests results 52

4.1.3 Results of the post-test 52

4.1.4 Independent Sample t Test of post-tests results 54

4.2 Research question 2: What are the students’ attitudes towards moodle-peer feedback in English writing skills? 55

4.2.1 Data collected from questionnaires 55

4.2.1.1 An overview of the background information provided by the responders 55 4.2.1.2 Students' participation in peer criticism before and after it is used in class 56 4.2.1.3 The effects of peer criticism on writing performance in Moodle (items 1-5)57 4.2.1.4 Moodle-peer criticism's effects on teamwork and interaction (items 6-9) 63 4.2.1.5 Attitudes of Moodle-peer feedback in general (items 10-14) 64

4.2.1.6 Discussion in Moodle-peer feedback: Attitudes of enjoyment (items 15-20)67 4.2.1.7 Motivational attitudes in Moodle based on peer feedback (items 21-28) 68

4.3 Major findings of the study 71

4.4 Discussion 71

4.5 Overall summary 73

CHAPTER 5: 74

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 74

5.1 Conclusions 74

5.2 Pedagogical implications 75

5.3 Limitations 76

5.4 Recommendations 77

REFERENCES 78 APPENDIXES i

List of Figures

Figure 2 1 A main course page with “view” 13

Figure 2 2 A main course page with posts 14

Figure 2 3 Conceptual framework: The effects of Moodle-peer feedback on students’ writing performance 23

Figure 3 1 Chat box used in the course 30

Figure 3 2 BVU’s Moodle-peer feedback’s homepage 31

Figure 3 3 Topic in Moodle forum 32

Figure 4 1 Comparison of means of pretest and posttest score 54

Figure 4 2 Students' participation in peer criticism before it is used in class 56

Figure 4 3 Students' participation in peer criticism after it is used in class 57

List of Tables

Table 3 1 Prior to therapy, collected participants’ general information 29

Table 3 2 Data collection instruments’ summary 38

Table 3 3 The syllabus and main stages of data collection 38

Table 4 1 Pretests scores 51

Table 4 2 Two raters correlated the EG's pretest scores 51

Table 4 3 Pretest score descriptive statistics 52

Table 4 4 Two raters correlated the CG's posttest scores 52

Table 4 5 Two raters correlated the EG's pretest results 53

Table 4 6 Post-test scores descriptive statistics 53

Table 4 7 A summary of the respondents’ background information 55

Table 4 8 The effects of peer criticism on writing performance in Moodle 61

Table 4 9 Moodle-peer criticism's effects on teamwork and interaction 63

Table 4 10 Attitudes of Moodle-peer feedback in general 65

Table 4 11 Discussion in Moodle-peer feedback: Attitudes of enjoyment 67

Table 4 12 Motivational cognition on peer feedback via Moodle 69

List of Abbreviations

EFL: English as a Foreign Language

ESL: English as a Second Language

L2: Second Language

BVU: Ba Ria-Vung Tau University

EG: Experimental Group

VLE: Virtual Learning Environment

SPSS: Statistical Package for the Social Sciences

S.D: Standard Deviation

Statement Of Original Authorship

I declare that my thesis, "The effects of Moodle-peer feedback on students' writing performance," is a presentation of my own research and has never been submitted for any other degree at any other university There is no material authored by others or previously published in connection with this thesis, to the best of my knowledge and belief This research is being done at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University under the supervision of Associate Professor Pham Vu Phi Ho, Ph.D

Signature: _

Date: _

Acknowledgements

During the process of carrying out this research, I have received a lot of contribution and assistance of a lot of people Therefore, I would like to show my gratefulness to them

To begin, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Pham Vu Phi Ho, Ph.D., for his unwavering support and useful advise throughout the writing process He took the time to attentively study my thesis and provide me with his helpful feedback His positivity, encouragement, and agreement have also greatly aided me in successfully completing the challenging study Without it, I won't

be able to complete my research

Second, I am grateful to the Rector of Ba Ria-Vung Tau University and the Deans of all faculties at this institution for allowing me to pursue this MA course, complete my thesis, and conduct questionnaires and interviews with their students I also want to thank my coworkers who covered for me at work while I was away for this MA course

Overall, I would like to express my gratitude to my family for everything they've done for me and friends for always being there for me when I was spiritually

trapped throughout my life

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

Technology plays an important part in the era of industrial 4.0, and Moodle-peer feedback is being seen as a useful instrument for teaching and researching writing skills Writing is seen as an important and necessary productive language skill, according to Hussin et al (2015), particularly English is a second and foreign language (ESL/EFL) In fact, according to Ting (2003), for learners of English as a second language, English as a foreign language, and even native speakers, writing is seen as a knotty skill of linguistic issue Furthermore, writing is not only a complicated and perplexing duty, but it is also the most difficult talent to acquire of all the linguistic abilities Providing students with a diversity of writing perspectives and a large amount

of written work is one effective strategy to improve writing skills Teachers cannot expect learners' writing to produce the desired effects unless they can pique their interest, excitement, enthusiasm, and determination to write more (Adas & Bakir, 2013)

English is also considered incredibly important in Vietnam For many years, Vietnam has been globalizing and integrating by joining and being a member of numerous international organizations; therefore, English has become a vital tool for Vietnamese people to interact with the rest of the world and to learn more from foreign resources Recognizing the importance of English, the Vietnamese government is focusing on English instruction for Vietnamese nationals who will live and work in a global workplace As a result, English is a required subject in the Vietnamese national educational system, and it is included in college and university curricula in order to develop generations with exceptional English skills and meet the country's human resource needs Formal English instruction for students in grades 3 through 12 is

designed to assist students in forming and developing communicative competence through the development of listening, speaking, reading, writing, and language skills (phonics, vocabulary, grammar) The government, particularly the Ministry of Training and Education, considers English to be a mandatory subject and a mandatory graduation exam at all levels in Vietnam's scholastic system, and it is included in college and university curricula to prepare future generations for the era of development, open to the door of globalization with excellent English skills, in order to meet the actual demand for manpower In Vietnamese teaching context, despite the fact that Moodle has only recently made its way into university language instruction, there

is a tremendous desire for research-based information to advise language teachers of best practices (Vu, Nguyen & Due, Vo & Luong, Nguyen & Lien, Nguyen, 2022)

For the purpose of assisting undergraduates update and intensify their professional understanding in the educational process through books, newspapers, and specialized documents in foreign languages; fit students out with understanding and skills to be able to communicate in foreign languages in an international working and communication environment; and help graduates obtain one of the valuable international language certificates at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University (BVU) Teachers provide students with a variety of opportunities to improve these four abilities, as well

as their vocabulary and grammar They get regular English instruction for three semesters, totaling 30 credits (about 338 hours)

However, based on the researcher's own practical experience teaching English

to non-English major students at BVU for over 5 years, the researcher has discovered that BVU non-English majors find it difficult to brush up on their English writing skills Furthermore, the study discovered that most students lacked the capacity or skills to write paragraphs despite learning English for 9 periods, or around 7.5 hours per week at the institution, based on analysis and observation from the most recent final exams Furthermore, BVU teachers have faced a variety of challenges, including

students' general lack of enthusiasm, as well as opportunity and time to write in the target language as much as possible in class on a regular basis It is further exacerbated

by students' familiarity with passive learning, their significant difficulty with vocabulary to express their thoughts and opinions, the strong influence of Vietnamese grammatical structures, and their habit of not making an outline before writing, according to Ly, T T M., Nguyen, T T H., Phan, T M U., Dinh, T T H., & Huynh,

T V (2021) As a result, one of the decisive concerns faced by ESL educators in the Vietnamese environment is expanding students' vocabulary and grammar, as well

as understanding in writing

As can be observed, after obtaining their grades, students are solely interested

on how many points they received rather than the problems that the teacher has highlighted and addressed Worst of all, if students' mistakes are highlighted in red ink, their interest in learning may be diminished, and they may become frustrated (Harmer, 2007:120) A lot of research has been conducted on the helpfulness of online peer feedback in writing schools For example, according to Pham & Nguyen (2020), some students could see right through their peers' flaws and, of course, avoid making the same mistakes in their own paragraphs while checking out their partners' writings Furthermore, reading their peers' writings may broaden their vocabulary, improve their grammatical understanding, and improve their ideas

As a result, Moodle-peer feedback is growing in popularity among practitioners Nonetheless, no studies involving Moodle-peer feedback have been conducted at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University Moreover, in an effort to find effective ways for BVU non-English majors to learn and improve their writing ability in the process of learning

English, especially in light of the Covid-19 epidemic, this study "The effects of

Moodle-peer feedback on students' writing performance" examines and increases

student interest and varies writing class activities at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University now and in the future As a consequence of the outcomes of this quasi-experimental

research, certain changes and additions in teaching writing might be included in the researcher 's lessons, and some appropriate teaching activities required to be designed

in order that the researcher could boost the efficiency of the writing lessons In a learning and educational setting, it's important to get feedback from peers, Moodle can help both teachers and students

1.2 Purposes of the study

Moodle-peer feedback might be considered a useful educational communication technique Students' writing and critical thinking abilities should be enhanced L'hadi Bouzidi, & Jaillet, A (2009) also contributed significantly to computerized peer review Online peer evaluation was recommended as a way to share teachers' excessive workload in grading exam papers and responding in a timely manner in large courses, lowering instructors' workload and enhancing learning quality

Teachers who are overworked are more likely to put off giving criticism (Lavolette, Polio, & Kahng, 2015) More research has been done on the effects of electronic peer review, such as boosting learners' writing ability, motivation, and the quality of their written work (e.g., Pham, V P H., & Usaha, S., 2016; Tolosa, C., East, M., & Villers, H., 2013; Xing, S., 2014) Users can use online apps and tools at any time and from any location, with no time, space, or location constraints It gets tedious and inactive when teachers employ traditional teaching approaches As a teacher, the researcher wishes to show that Moodle has the potential to be a novel and engaging means of teaching writing at

Ba Ria-Vung Tau University, and that it can assist students in becoming better writers

The purpose of this study is to see how Moodle peer feedback influences students' writing abilities If Moodle-peer feedback can assist students improve their writing skills, Ba Ria-Vung Tau University should employ it to teach writing to a larger group of students The researcher is also interested on how students feel about using Moodle peer feedback

Research questions

The ensuing questions serve as a guide for the investigation:

1 To what extent does the application of Moodle-peer feedback affect the students’ writing performance?

2 What are the students’ attitudes towards Moodle-peer feedback in English writing skills?

1.3 Significance and scope of the study

1.3.1 Significance of the study

The following is a list of the study's relevance in this quasi-experimental study

At BVU, an investigation on the impact of Moodle-peer feedback on non-English majors' literacy competence is required

To begin with, English is currently prioritized in the Vietnamese educational system, and Moodle-based peer correction is strongly believed that it plays an significant part in EFL learners' writing performance and accomplishments As a result, investigating elements that influence students' writing presentation necessitates improving their English writing skills

Second, because many Vietnamese schools have ignored Moodle, non-English majors may become passive and bored with traditional writing approaches, despite their enthusiasm for technology These findings help non-English major students improve their ability to write English paragraphs and inspire them to be engaged in their English writing abilities during the experimental procedure The researcher hoped

to gain a deeper understanding of Moodle-based comments on influencing EFL learners so that they could build appropriate English resources, identify the best teaching techniques, and increase EFL learners through various appealing activities and policies As a result, it appears that non-English majors will be able to strive to improve their writing ability as much as possible after graduation, and will feel more

confident in writing English paragraphs every day, at school, and in an international working environment

Last but not least, little has been written regarding the influence of Moodle-peer feedback on perceivers' writing abilities in the Vietnamese setting in terms of theoretical contributions These non-professional students are aware of moodle, a new approach for learning to write, and are excited to use it, implying that their writing will improve The outcomes of this study could help researchers gain a better knowledge of the common characteristics that affect this group of university students, as well as how these factors affect EFL learners' writing skills in terms of Vietnamese culture As a result, this strategy clearly works, and it is critical to conduct this research

1.3.2 Scope of the study

The researcher conducted a study with two non-English major classes from Ba Ria-Vung Tau University in a semester, including 5 weeks, 3 lessons each week, and 150-minute sessions, combined with blended learning method, to gain insight into the impact of peer response on Moodle on learners' writing performance Because of limited time, it only focused on examining the effectiveness of using Moodle-peer feedback in enhancing students’ writing ability and the attitudes of the students towards using Moodle-peer feedback in learning writing skills

The research was focusing on key features affecting non-English major learners’ writing ability to learn English at BVU A survey at the university where the researcher has been working for was implemented so as to discover the effectivesness of e-peer response A questionnaire was delivered to those students and an interview with them was held so that the researcher could understand their attitudes with the lessons and the reasons why they expressed their interests in different ways

1.4 Thesis outline

This study primarily concentrated on the effectiveness of moodle-peer feedback on students’ writing performance The research received much approval from the Dean of Faculty of Foreign Languages and Social Sciences over and above the students who participated in the study

There are five chapters in this thesis:

Chapter 1 provides an overview of the study with the background, the research purposes, the research questions, the significance, the scope and the thesis outline Chapter 2 analyzes the literature review related to the study including the definitions of writing, Moodle, peer feedback and covers a profound review of previous theories and research papers relevant to the current research In this chapter, the researcher also points out the conceptual framework guiding the whole study Chapter 3 draws the research design with the description of the participants, the research instruments, data collection procedure and data analysis procedures

Chapter 4 shows the results of the pretests, postests, questionnaire, interview and ends with the summary of findings by discussing the research findings on the basis of comparison with the literature review and relevant theories

Chapter 5 presents the conclusion of the entire thesis, gives recommendations to help enhance Moodle-peer feedback on writing ability for non-English majors, limitations of the study, suggestions for future research relating to applying technology

to teach English writing skills and implications for further research

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

The aim of this chapter is to give an outline of the theoretical concepts of writing, peer feedback, moodle, moodle-peer feedback, the effects on the process of improving writing skills by using moodle-peer feedback, and the previous related studies

2.1 Writing teaching theories

2.1.1 Definition of writing

Language leaners find it necessary and difficult to learn writing According to Byrne (1991), users of language need a process of application graphic ideograms which can be a character, a letter or letters are combined together and we deal with the characters in our heads and translate them into written language for our writing skill in the process of writing Giles, H., & Byrne, J L (1982) also revealed that we wrote not only one sentence but also many unrelated sentences We have written a series of sentences that are linked together tightly and in certain ways In fact, writing can be more complex when linguistic features exist Writing skills are specifics abilities in the simple sense is the act of placing letters, symbols, numbers, words, ideas and thoughts into written words on paper according to the rules and structure of the language Some separate linguists gave different definitions of writing Writing is an indispensable part

of a large-scale activity where we concentrate on something else such as speaking activity, or language practice ( Harmer, 2007:33 )

Moreover, writing is an activity we discover the procedures to control our thought through language acquisition, think up and put their ideas together Olive, Favart & Beauvais (2009) investigated students' perceptive attempts during writing and discovered that the intrapersonal endeavor was linked to genres They discovered that when authoring particular types of writings, such as persuasive and narrative texts,

students' amount of effort required to write in a cognitive manner has either decreased

or increased It was the writer's first notion, and he had never considered it before When authors go through the process of writing, Zamel (1983) claims that they bring ideas to light and put them together As a result, writing circumstances should be offered to the writer in which actual communication language should be used Moreover, Boals (2012) pointed out that writing is a procedure of making meaning and

a series of activities related to producing written work such as ordering, producing, and exploiting thoughts in sentences in the following series of activities: planning, shaping, rereading the text, modifying, and careful examination (Gould, DiYanni & Smith, 1990) Based on the above explanation, it can be summarized that writing is a procedure of innovating ideas, being able to express thoughts and feelings easily and clearly, or demonstrating this quality, and arranging and catching their eyes into paragraphs that are used as successful means of comminication with other people indirectly, and students make an effort to convey message through language in writing

In summary, the value of writing has long been recognized as a crucial talent in the education and schooling of English as a Second Language (ESL) students since it is

an all-encompassing skill that aids in the development of vocabulary, grammar, thinking, planning, editing, revising, and other aspects To construct a piece of writing,

a series of terms and grammar units with grammatical and logical connections are used

to get satisfactory outcomes

2.1.2 Writing performance

According to Chomsky (1965), the term performance means “the production of actual utterances” and it involves “doing something with the language” Denzin, N K (2003) argued that performance is “a way of knowing” Sharadgah (2013) stated that writing performance is interpreted as the ability to bring out effective writing work and puts thoughts and ideas together into written words Furthermore, according to

Mohammed, M (2010), writing production is, the producing of a opinions of the learners on a particular form of a written paper with apparent arrangement of ideas, sufficient and appropriate fulfilment taking into consideration the audience and illustrating proper procedures Briefly, writing performance is understood as a means to create a real and actual piece of writing, and a way learners to handle their writing products using the English language

of all ages and backgrounds Moodle can be used in any setting where education takes place It is often used on the internet, but it can also be utilized on your company's 'intranet.'

Crisp (2011) cited that Moodle-peer feedback was one of the most advantageous devices to apply electronic assessment effectively The term “Moodle” derived from the acronym of Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment It is called

a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), a Course Management System (CMS), where teachers and learners communicate in an electronic learning circumstances It is also known as a Learning Content Management System (LCMS), which supports educators

to invent and conduct by themselve to make personal or individual online course

specifically, interchange official papers, interfere immediately within the course, give scores, supply homework, evaluate, and look into their learners’ advancement over time Martin Dougiamas, a former WebCT administrator at Australia's Curtin University of Technology who has graduated degrees in Computer Science and Education, created this website that applies GNU General Public License (GPL) licensed open source It is transcribed in PHP PHP goes on plenty of platforms (Windows, Linux, Unix, Mac OS X, etc.) PHP is consistent practically every server in operation today (Apache, IIS, etc.)

With 68 million users worldwide, Moodle has brought the most broadly applied learning management system (LMS) used for many different large and small companies Moodle is the greatest LMS all over the world because it offers a user-friendly, configurable, and feature-rich user interface, support, above all it is provided

by Moodle for free

Schoolmaters establish equipped online course using Moodle as a software with

a variety of actively interactive opportunities Eveyone can use Moodle for learning as long as there is internet Users can access wherever and whenever they want with flexibility and user-friendliness (Al-Ajlan, Zedan & Wu., 2008) In fact, based on one quite recent researches (Lien, 2015) and (Creixell & Ganter, 2016), Moodle is one of the most widely used content management systems and most employed social media network around the world Up to date, Moodle has been applied widespread for distance-learning courses at many instructional academies, for instance, according to https://stats.moodle.org/, (accessed on 15 Feruary 2022), 242 countries worldwide and estimated total figure of subscriber more than 309 million, 687 million forum posts, and 40 million courses

In brief, it is simple for everyone to work, learn and communicate in groups on the account of the convenience of moodle In learning environment, various aspects of

education such as activities, assignments, groupwork, instructional materials, multimedia resources, electronic distribution, communication and interaction between teacher-student or teacher-student Additionally, learners’ tests and assessments are readily available and accessible Thus, it has been easy to improve this process dramatically by virtue of a variety of tools and techniques (https://moodle.org/ (accessed on 20 December 2021)) with the permission of the originator of the content, Moodle Pty Ltd

2.2.2 Layout

It is said that Moodle has a beautiful flexible user interface An administrator is

a person who has the power to change pre-designed elements on the page, for example, delete, modify, add, transfer or dislocate while student users are only allowed in order

to select the ‘blocks’ on both sides by switching on or switching off In fact, the block layout on both sides of the page can be made or changed to suit the needs of the user by the administrators The computing executive can activate and create new functions by picking the module from the 'blocks’ scroll-down menu and then propel it to the acceptable position

Figure 2 1 A main course page with “view”

Moodle, according to Wu, W S., & Hua, C (2008), works on operating systems such as Unix, Linux, FreeBSD, Windows, Mac OS X, NetWare, and any other network that contributes to the PHP computer scripting language, and is used by a variety of site owners and providers In Moodle 1.6, MySQL and PostgreSQL were the only viable options, and they were introduced in November 2006 as a single database, whereas other databases such as Oracle, IBM DB2, and Microsoft SQL Server can now be used just as simply thanks to Moodle 1.7's database abstraction Moodle (1.8.4), the most recent version, was launched in January 2008 and includes a number of improvements that make it more flexible and stable

According to http://www.tesl-ej.org/wordpress/issues/volume8/ej30/ej30m2/ (accessed on 20 Feruary 2022), A typical Moodle course looks somewhat like Figure 1

below Administrators can decide the layout of blocks on either side, consisting of special functions Besides, Moodle is dynamically set out in a module-based fashion

Figure 2 2 A main course page with posts 2.3 The importance of peer feedback in writing instruction

2.3.1 Peer feedback

Liu and Hansen (2002) gave the definition of ‘feedback’ as follows In the writing process, trained teacher, tutor, or editor are usually in charge of giving comments and editing leaners’ drafts Assisting learners like that is considered as a source of information and communication with each other And in their next study in

2005, the researchers pointed out that peer response was not only about grammar and writing style but when giving right feedback, peer response could produce plentiful of information source for cubic contents and rhetorical issues, strengthen intercultural communication and help students connect with each other Moreover, Seliger (1983)

argued that learner's writing process should be received more than just the teacher's feedback Instrutors are not the only ones giving feedback to students, students can make a reply to their friends, which is called peer feedback and is also called “peer review, peer response and peer evaluation” (Liu & Hansen, 2005) According to Bartels (2004), students give feedback to their friends, their fellow and it is seen as a practice in language education Furthermore, in the feedback process, students also have the opportunity to engage in eye-to-eye constructive debate, which keeps students accountable for participating in assigned tasks and leads to deeper understanding (Johnson & Johnson, 1987)

Phelps & Damon (1989) talked through the benefits of peer feedback that encouraging students to collectively solve problems based on intrinsic rather than extrinsic competence in peer learning seems to be most likely to produce the most effective pedagogical conversations Besides, the researchers pointed out that the advantage of peer feedback related to the perceptive benefit is to help learners think on their own rather than receiving feedback from educators Therefore, they realize that educators are not the only ones who can give comment, they can be supplied with as much peer feedback as they are expected Students have the chance to discuss feedback, asking for an explanation right away because peer feedback is provided immediately (Bartels, 2003)

To sum up, this section has indicated that peer feedback has a variety of benefits Many researches have managed to prove the influence of peer feedback on L2 learners’ way of learning This view facilitates the current study’s researcher to build

up the conceptual framework

2.3.2 The role of peer feedback in teaching writing

For first language (L1) and second language (L2) learners (Bruffee, 1984; Elbow, 1973; George, 1984; Jacko, 1978; Raimes, 1983; Whitbeck, 1976; Jacobs, 1989

claimed that partner reaction on student writing has been officially supported Indeed, peer feedback is becoming increasingly popular for the reasons listed below Firstly, the growing popularity of using a process approach to teach writing in many ways has made peer feedback more relevant because it places greater highlight in reviewing Secondly, generating opinions, shaping those opinions into a paragraph, and then correcting provides more points at which feedback can be come up with

Mentors ask mentees exchange sketch and make commentary on each other’s drafts Many opportunities for peer-to-peer learning are provided in the writing class for peer-review form Peer feedback widens mentees’ collaboration by giving them the additional roles of readers as well as mentors while they are still writers Additionally, peer feedback can help develop creativity, critical thinking, cognitive betterment, intellectual improvement and social relationships (Damon & Phelps, 1989) Peer feedback has some community’s advantages Students have a new perspective on revision after giving feedback Students whose writing is being reviewed by the teacher, perceive their teachers as language critics, critique their writing However, students whose paragraphs are commented on by peers, think their friends are readers, which means learning to work with friends for their own purposes (Nystrand & Brandt, 1989) The most basic benefit of peer feedback is referred to change students' roles in the classroom The student's responsibility in a teacher-specific approach to writing is limited to developing writing that the teacher will read and evaluate individually

However, there are still some disadvantages of using peer feedback in writing teaching One of the main issue of peer feedback its quality Students complain at their peers’ insufficiency of comprehension of the target language in certain definite content areas As a result, the peers who read their paper often offer unhelpful, unspecific and even incorrect feedback Another problem with peer written feedback is that students think their peers are not qualified enough to evaluate their paper (Rollinson, 2005)

In short, based on the above arguments, the investigator realized that the benefits of peer feedback outweigh its limitations However, after applying peer feedback to teaching writing skills, teachers spend more time pointing out the mistakes students often encounter while writing

2.4 Blended Learning

2.4.1 Definitions of blended learning

Blended learning was referred to as "Integrated e-learning" by Jochems, Merrienvoer, and Koper (2004), who had a broader understanding of the word They characterized it as the requirement for a variety of relevant measures at the levels of pedagogy, organization, and technique in order to successfully use e-learning alongside traditional approaches Despite this, it still suggests that e-learning is a pedagogical integration into traditional learning methods rather than a complete redesign of learning The three most common meanings are mentioned by Graham, Allen, and Ure (2003) To begin, blended learning is an educational delivery strategy It mixes in-person and online instruction, and Space, time, integrity, and humanity are the four mix-and-matching primary dimensions (Bleed, 2001; Graham, 2006; Sharma, 2010) Blended learning mixes online learning aspects into a course while simultaneously emphasizing the importance of face-to-face interactions and other traditional methods

of student assistance (Macdonald, 2006; Rudestam & Schoenholtz, 2010; Watson, 2008) According to the description, blended learning blends lessons from two traditionally opposing educational approaches

There are two types of learning systems: face-to-face and non-traditional (Akkoyunlu & Soylu, 2008; Bleed, 2001; Harding, Kaczynski, & Wook, 2005; Graham, 2006; Moonen & Colis, 2001) The final definition is given by Stracke (2007) Stracke thought the term "blended learning" was appropriate because it

effectively represents the educational environment as well as the study's placement in a larger research context

In their study, Moonen & Colis (2001) defined blended learning as the result of mixing learning can be done both online and in person Learning takes place both in and out of the classroom There are a number of components for online learning that can be employed in blended learning Self-paced Web-based courses, electronic performance support tools, and real-time virtual or collaboration software (EPSS) integrated with occupation-task settings, and systems for knowledge management, for example, all facilitate this style of learning New learning technologies include podcasting, e-portfolios, social networking tools (such as blogs and wikis), and personal and mobile technology (Kukulska-Hulme, 2012; Lee & McLoughlin, 2011)

2.5 Previous studies on using moodle-peer feedback in writing lesson

Several research have looked into the usage of electronic in writing courses in today's omnipresent internet era of writing training The majority of these research show that using the internet has a favorable impact on students' writing outcomes Furthermore, through e-peer review, students' confidence might be increased and their critical thinking skills could be developed

Nagatomo (2006), a Japanese researcher, conducted an action research study twenty-two English majors in his own one-semester writing class utilizing Moodle to motivate them to write successfully The participants were twenty-two second-year English Department students at a Japanese national women's university, English or American Literature, English Linguistics, or English Education are all possible majors The study's findings demonstrated that regular involvement in homepages for online writing to peer discussion, self-study, and improvement of writing performance had a good impact on learners

Wu (2008) looked at the usage of Moodle in an EFL college writing course at Taiwan's Chung Hua University, with the same goals as many other researchers Moodle is a useful and beneficial tool for teaching and studying English, according to him Moodle can assist English writing teachers in organizing their classroom materials, honing their communication skills, and evaluating their interactions with students

A study on blended learning was undertaken by Adas and Baki (2013), which was used to increase learners' writing abilities in a novel method The EG had blended learning, while the CG had traditional face-to-face instruction The study enlisted the participation of 60 students, who were split into two groups Thirty people took part in the blended learning and individualized assistance training

Assignments and interactions for students were created using the Moodle-peer feedback The essential writing components such as paragraph sequence, cohesiveness, punctuation, grammar, spelling, and capitalization were included in the pretest and posttest on writing skills EG's achievement was substantially higher than CG's, according to the findings The EG participants performed better than the CG participants They admitted that employing technology to link the directions and graphics in the course lessons with real-world activities was their preferred method They improved their writing skills dramatically The topic phrase, spelling and grammar, punctuation and capitalization, and the formation of logical paragraphs all improved as expected The findings demonstrated that blended learning can help students strengthen their writing skills

The impact of electronic peer feedback on the writing abilities of EFL students

in Turkey was looked into by Ciftci and Kocoglu (2012) They divided the participants into two groups: one receiving online peer input and the other receiving face-to-face peer feedback in class Despite the fact that both groups improved their writing skills,

In terms of writing, the experimental group beat the control group

Miyazoe & Anderson (2012) linked blogs, wikis, and forums together in an EFL blended course in writing lessons The conclusion divulged that students preferred wikis to the other two online learning platforms In addition, Moradi (2012) investigated the impact of online peer feedback on Iranian students' academic writing skills According to the findings, the two groups are scrupulously momentous different

Xia, Fielder & Siragusa (2013) researched about the way to advance peer interaction via online discussion forums The results showed that students who are more active and gain higher marks than others

Two years later, Razak & Saeed (2015) did research via a Facebook group about peer revision of writing The results shows that students feel unstressed using such a friendly platform and they made many changes in grammar form and revealed the findings that using Facebook in teaching writing with online peer feedback have more positive impacts than conventional method

In a study conducted by Kurihara (2016), students were organized into two groups: a control group receiving only teacher feedback and an experimental group receiving peer review with teacher feedback The findings pointed out that students’ writing performance of the two groups improved thanks to effective peer review

Ghouali & Cecilia (2021) studied the impacts of a technology-based evaluation

in enhancing Algerian students’ writing skills The result showed that e-assessment plays a role in supporting instruction for traditional assessment

In Vietnam, there were few studies about electronic peer feedback (via Facebook, blog and portfolio) in writing performance Most of these studies showed that students’ writing performance can be enhanced However, owing to lack of lexical and grammatical knowledge, some students make strange comments that confuse their peers

Despite the fact that learning on the Moodle-peer feedback is quite favored in a lot of nations, due to the lack of facilities in institutional organization in Vietnam, there

has not been enough research done on this type of learning or widespread deployment One called Lien was interested in the subject

Lien (2015) also carried out an action research study with 41 second-year English majors at Hue University of Foreign Languages over the course of one semester to see how a blended writing course based on Moodle improved and what variables in the blended course contributed to the students' enhanced writing performance The respondents were 38 women and 3 men with a B2 level of English ability according to the Common European Framework of Reference Before and after attending, the respondents took a pretest and a posttest the experimental course, which was constructed using a Moodle-based blended technique, and they also presented and completed questionnaires The results demonstrate that there was a significant disparateness between the pretest and posttest mean scores (Pretest Means=6.3, Posttest Means=7.5, Sig=0.000), and the Moodle-based blended course's activities and contents were the key variables leading to the participants' writing improvement

Pham (2020) demonstrates a blog are an effective tool for writing quality via peer response The result shows that students can keep away from repeating their peers’ mistakes, improve new lexical source and concept when reading and commenting their friends’ paper and they learned how to comment logically

Pham (2021) conducts the study to explore Facebook-based peer comments on EFL students’ writing revisions The researcher asked learners to post their writing, then were in regular communication by Facebook Group The findings reveal that students have positive attitudes toward using Facebook Group for scholastic aims and optimistic results on students' writing outcome

Despite the prior research' results, they also revealed some considerable gaps

To begin with, while there have been several studies on blended learning and and online peer feeback in general, blended learning with Moodle in particular, blended learning with Moodle-peer feedback has not been thoroughly explored and has only

been used in prestigious universities or developed countries Second, most studies focused on one factor, such as the improvement of English competence in general, students' attitudes, or motivation, rather than a combination of these Finally, Cao Thi Xuan Lien's typical research in Vietnam revealed substantial flaws in the evaluation of the effects of learning via Moodle-peer feedback on students' writing abilities

In summary, no research has been done to date in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, specifically at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University, to probe the effects of Moodle-based peer feedback integrating with blended learning in teaching writing and the learners' attitudes towards Moodle-peer feedback on achievement in writing of leaners Because

of the above reasons, it has been essential to conduct the quasi-experimental study incorporating the quantitative data with the qualitative data so as to supply more insight about the application of Moodle in teaching writing skills

2.6 Summary

In conclusion, while some studies found that Moodle-peer feedback did not work well for some students, the majority of studies found that Moodle-peer feedback improved students’ writing performance by assisting students in recognizing the positive aspects of their writing and learning from mistakes pointed out by peers Peer feedback also improves students' motivation, confidence, and social connections in the classroom There haven't been any research done at BVU on the usefulness of employing Moodle-peer feedback in writing classes As a result, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of Moodle-peer feedback at BVU

Figure 2 3 Conceptual framework: The effects of Moodle-peer feedback on

students’ writing performance

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

As signified in the title, this chapter describes research questions whose answers will be figured out through the research methodology Benefits of different kinds of research methods will be analysed by the researcher by examining a variety of studies

on the effects of Moodle-peer feedback on students’ writing ability so as to have a general understanding of research methods and be able to choose the most appropriate method for this current study In details, the participants, the design of the study, the instruments, the procedures of selecting participants, and the methods of data collecting from those samples and process of data analysis are going to be presented in this chapter

The researcher of the present could have chances to acknowledge deeply about the influences of Moodle-based peer assessment on the ability of students to write It was argued that the mixed methodology (Creswell, 2009) combining quantitative with qualitative approach will give a better understanding to the issue which is being studied about As a result, the research’s findings are completely clearer with clear insights and perspectives

The study used mixed methods to answer two subsequent research questions:

1 To what extent does the application of Moodle-peer feedback affect the students’ writing performance?

2 What are the students’ attitudes towards Moodle-peer feedback in English writing skills?

In the present study, in order to figure out the answer for question 1, the researcher would use the quantitative methodology which would be beneficial with quantitative data The deductive statistics such as correlations have made it easier for researchers to draw conclusions about different factors affecting students' writing performance when applying Moodle-peer feedback to non-English majors at BVU

However, for study question 2, the researcher wanted to see how students felt about using Moodle-peer feedback to improve their writing skills When participants are given the opportunity to communicate and share their opinions and thoughts, it is thought that a more thorough depiction would emerge As a result, qualitative data was gathered and analyzed Overall, data gathering and analysis are carried out using both quantitative and qualitative methods to generate final conclusions

The researcher decided to choose Ba Ria-Vung Tau University as the place to conduct the study owing to the following two rationales The first one is that the researcher has been working there for more than 5 years It is obviously convenient for the researcher to cary out the study since she is familiar with the place as well as students, colleagues and staff Secondly, this institution has been training a large number of university-level students for many years, including English majors and non-English majors Therefore, it could be considered reliable and relevant In addition, the researcher also wants to partly made a major contribution to the improvementt of learners' writing skills through the use of an online platform called Moodle, specifically Moodle-peer feedback and propose a rather new method at school to encourage as well as inspire students to write

The current research was implemented with the pilot and three main stages, containing pre-test, post-test, questionnaire, and interview The outline of the research design was briefly described below The detailed explanation about procedure, participants and instruments of each stage would be discussed later in this chapter Moreover, the present study was conducted with pilot and two main phases, including questionnaires and interviews An overview of the study design is briefly described below A detailed explanation of the procedures, participants, and tools of each stage is discussed later in this chapter

Gathering data by using plenty of sources of data to acknowledge the range of occurrence when applying online peer feedback in teaching students paragraph writing Then, the inquirer have to choose the appropriate data for the research problem and methodize the data in a coherent way to classify tendency and subjects The next stage

is explaining data to explore and recognize considerable themes The investigator may use a variety types of data from concourse data, independent data to sub-population data Eventually, the consequence are assessed by evaluating the effectiveness of the interposition to resolve whether enhancement has been made Additionally, the researcher must decide if the data clearly supply the reinforcing documentation when improvement is made and what alterations can be made to the steps to have more success

The quasi-experimental research was conducted during the period of 5 weeks The first stage of this research is to deliver the pre-questionnaires to the students The post-questionnaires were managed to the learners after the use of Moodle-peer feedback in their writing classes in order to identify the changes in their viewpoint towards e-peer feedback method after its application in writing classes Another stage

is to rate, and value the students’ writing performance In the first week of the research, the researcher used one class period training the respondents what peer feedback is and how they can use peer feedback as well as explanation of Moodle-peer feedback The

teacher also introduced useful correction codes and expressions that the students could use to review their peers’ writings

In the next weeks of the research, the respondents were administered to different topics for writing at home on paper (participants in the control group) and on Moodle-peer feedback (participants in the experimental group) The researcher asked one colleague for help to mark all the writings based the scoring rubric mentioned in Afterwards, the first drafts were delivered to another student in class for peer feedback and comments

3.2 Research design

The current research was implemented with a quasi-experimental methodology, that Walliman, (2001); Thomas, (2003); Charles & Mertler (2004); and Hult, (2006) pointed out that the most significant characteristic of the experiment was cause and effect

The current study had a pre-test, post-test, questionnaire and interview in the quasi-experimental study The researcher divided the respondents into 2 teams: a control group and an experimental group All are Vietnamese BVU non-English majors and their English proficiency is at pre-intermediate level They were pre-tested before doing the investigation to guarantee that their paragraphs were identical Then, the experimental group was directed by applying peer feedback via Moodle-peer feedback

in students’ writing performance The investigation continued in time for five weeks during the third term of the school year 2020-2021 Then, the experimental group and the control group were post-tested The t-test was used to calculate the differences between the pre- and post-test mean scores

Both the control and experimental groups had several similar elements during the trial, such as the curriculum, course book, facilities, and teaching methods in in-person classes The experimental group had a distinct advantage over the control group used

Moodle for their writing activities whereas the control group used paper After the coursework of test, the two groups were given a posttest that was just as difficult as the pretest Students' attitudes of Moodle-peer feedback were investigated using a questionnaire and an interview

Before the focus group gathered to share ideas about the questions, these interviewees were provided guided questions to think about Then they were encouraged to honestly share their opinions on each question so that the research could have the most accurate and reliable results and conclusions The discussion was conducted in Vietnamese The qualitative data collected from the discussion would be translated into English and analyzed by comparing the words and expressions In the end, the researcher was able to give a detailed answer for research question 1 and 2

3.3 Participants

The coverage of this study is carried out in the following aspects of 60 students

of six different non-English majors at BVU including Financial Accounting; Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management; Electricity – Electronics, Human Resource Management; Logistics; as well as Oriental Studies They consisted of second-year students went in for the third semester and are of use to the subjects of the study

30 respondents were set apart to the experimental group at random, while the other 30 were attributed to the control group The researcher will deal with Moodle-peer feedback for the second-year students at BVU However, within the structure of this thesis, this study does not refer to other types of feedback such as oral feedback, but only focuses on written feedback However, the experimental group would do their homework via BVU’s Moodle-peer feedback while the other one would finish their assignments at home

In terms of the number of students, sex, age, and years of English learning

experience, Table 3.1 describes the characteristics of the participants in both groups