The Effect of Genre-based Instruction on the Teaching of Business Report Writing

Abstract

The present study investigates the application of Genre Theory to the teaching of business report writing to university students. Five instructors, three raters and five groups of learners attending the fourth semester of a six-stage Business English course participated in this study. Three intact classes were randomly selected for the experimental group (EG) and two for the control group (CG). Each group was administered a pre-test requesting learners to write a business assessment report. The EG then received a four-week instruction period following the principles of a genre-based approach. The CG underwent no treatment. After the period of instruction, a post-test requesting the same task as the pre-test was administered to both groups. Three independent raters scored the reports using a five-band scale adapted for this study. The quantitative data collected from the tests were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Rank Sums and the Cohen's Simple Unweighted Coefficient statistical tests. Scripts were also analyzed for code associations using the AQUAD.5 (Analysis of Qualitative Data) software. The information gathered was triangulated with the data provided by questionnaires administered to students and interviews held with instructors. Results support the hypothesis that genre-based instruction enhances the written production of Business English learners with an intermediate English proficiency.