Mohanmadreza Shalizar Jalali

Focused and Unfocused Written Feedback in L2 Writing: Accuracy, Error Types, and Learner Perceptions

This GradTalk presents findings from a doctoral study examining how focused and unfocused written corrective feedback (WCF) influence accuracy in second language (L2) writing. Conducted in an EFL university context, the study compared focused feedback, unfocused feedback, and a no-feedback control condition. Writing accuracy was assessed at pre-test, immediate post-test, and delayed post-test. Quantitative results showed that both focused and unfocused WCF significantly outperformed the no-feedback group in the accuracy of targeted error types and in overall writing accuracy. No statistically significant differences were found between the two feedback conditions at either level of accuracy. Error type moderated feedback effectiveness: article errors showed the strongest gains, verb tense/form showed more limited improvement, and prepositional errors were least responsive to feedback. Qualitative findings from retrospective interviews addressed learners’ revision behavior, perceived difficulty of grammatical and lexical errors, perceived usefulness of focused and unfocused feedback, beliefs about future writing improvement, and preferences regarding feedback scope. The talk highlights how feedback scope, error type, and learner perceptions jointly shape the effectiveness of written corrective feedback in L2 writing instruction.