Effects of Explicit Instruction of Metadiscourse Markers on Persuasive Writing Ability and the Learners’ Attitude towards Teaching Academic Writing with Online Modality

Persuasive writing is considered a complex genre for EFL learners to master and yet vital for academic arguments. As meta-discourse markers are recognizable and familiar devices to persuade, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of explicit online instruction on Iranian high school students’ persuasive writing. The participants were high school students, homogenously divided into two groups: experimental (n=40) and control (n=40). An official e-platform used in Iranian state-run schools was used for online instruction. The participants received different passages containing meta-discourse markers in a writing class with the regular schedule. The teacher assigned the experimental group to notice and discuss the markers in small groups. Then, a passage-related topic was assigned and the learners wrote a persuasive essay in each session. For the control group, the same procedure was adopted except for the explicit focus on meta-discourse markers. Finally, a writing test demonstrated the significant effect of explicit instruction on persuasive writing of high school students, through statistical analysis explaining participants’ attitudes and high frequency of interactive type meta-discourse markers. Students’ attitudes were also examined through interviews. Pedagogical implications are suggested to include an explicit focus on meta- discourse markers in writing courses.