Unlocking genre knowledge through text exemplars and assessing its impact on argumentative essay quality

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study investigates the impact of analyzing text exemplars on genre knowledge and on the quality of argumentative essays in authentic educational settings. Focusing on single and analogue text exemplars, we assess whether targeted genre knowledge and text quality can be improved. Conducted in classrooms with teacher-led Socratic instruction and individual text analysis, our hypotheses explore the effectiveness of both single and analogue exemplars on genre knowledge and text quality. Results show that while both exemplar types enhance genre knowledge similarly, only analogue exemplars significantly improve text quality. The study underscores the complex relationship between genre knowledge and text quality, suggesting that factors beyond genre knowledge contribute to writing proficiency. The findings highlight the nuanced process of knowledge transfer in writing and the potential of analogue exemplars to facilitate this transfer effectively.