Wei Yao

Shuang Wang

This paper analyzes developmental features of discourse micro-structure in Chinese EFL students’ L2 writings. With the development of the English proficiency, students have applied more comparison/contrast, definition, and description measures, but less cause-and-effect measures in their essays. It was also found that strong writers applied more comparison, example, definition, description, cause-and-effect, classification and sequence of events in the development of their essays. The findings can help understand the developing features of Chinese EFL students’ L2 writing and provide insights into the role of discourse micro-structure in L2 writing.

Wenli Ma

This paper addresses second language writing from a different perspective. It examines the English-language media in China (EMC) as a case study. The paper shifts the research focus from students to professional second language writers and studies language transfer in the sociopolitical context. It identifies the patterns of language transfer in the EMC and the situations that lead to the transfer. Specifically, the transfer, presented in different patterns, has been caused by institutional nature of the EMC as a means of international communication and the identity of the journalists as advanced second language writers. Though the transfer in the EMC does have its sociopolitical background, it does not mean all of them are justified. The author argues that it is necessary for the journalist to balance the transfer to produce discourse that is both linguistically and socio-politically appropriate. The study addresses an area that has been seldom explored and shed light on a new domain.