Institutional influences on academic writing feedback practices: A case study from an EFL context

Abstract

<p>A growing body of recent research has explored feedback in relation to the context where it takes place; however, up to now, little is known about how English as a Foreign Language (EFL) institutional contexts influence feedback on academic writing. This paper reports an ethnographic case study on how the institutional context of a major foreign studies university in Mainland China impacted feedback practices. Based on data collected over three semesters through interviews, process logs, documents, and emails, this research found that teachers’ and students’ perspectives on and experiences with feedback were shaped by the EFL institutional context mainly through curriculum structure, institutional regulations, and power relations. Informed by the situated understanding of feedback on academic writing, we call for more efforts to develop productive feedback practices by fostering supportive pedagogical contexts.</p>