Date of Award

Spring 2019

Rights

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Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA) in English: Teaching English as a Second Language

Department

English

Abstract

This action research case study project examines stylistic imitation as an English-Teaching technique and includes (1) a review of literature about the history of stylistic imitation and current college composition practice, (2) an analysis of the close imitation journals which were written by senior English majors and minors by following the model paragraph from Katharine Anne Porter’s “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” (1965), and (3) writers’ comments and reflections on doing stylistic imitation. Stanley Fish (2005) argued: “[s]tudents can’t write clean English sentences because they are not being taught what sentences are” (as cited in Stodola, 2013, p. 57). Lacking knowledge and practice, international students who enroll in colleges in the United States are not familiar with the American writing patterns. For this reason, the author argues that stylistic imitation can be a pedagogical method for learners, not only English language learners but also native English-speaking students. Writing the freestyle journals and close imitation journals, the 14 participants who were pre-service English teachers expressed their own and their families’ voices through the stories they wrote. By analyzing and interpreting the journals, the author explains how and why stylistic imitation can be used in classroom.

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