Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective

For Chinese English majors, bachelor’s theses are regarded as the most substantial piece of writing in their undergraduate study. However, in the field of EAP/ESP and genre research, thesis writing at the undergraduate level has been relatively neglected. From the perspective of genre in Systemic...

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Main Authors:	Yimin Zhang, Issra Pramoolsook
Format:	Article
Language:	English
Published:	Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2019
Online Access:	http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/1/33256-114274-2-PB.pdf

id	ukm-14110
recordtype	eprints
spelling	ukm-141102020-01-31T23:16:31Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/ Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective Yimin Zhang, Issra Pramoolsook, For Chinese English majors, bachelor’s theses are regarded as the most substantial piece of writing in their undergraduate study. However, in the field of EAP/ESP and genre research, thesis writing at the undergraduate level has been relatively neglected. From the perspective of genre in Systemic Functional Linguistics, the macrostructure of a bachelor’s thesis constitutes a macrogenre which combines more than one elemental genre to accomplish complex goals. An understanding of the deployment of elemental genres in this macrogenre can further help reveal the rhetorical values circulating in this thesis writing community. Based on the genre taxonomy developed by SFL genre theorists (e.g., Rose, 2010, 2015a, 2015b), this study analysed the genre deployment of 40 highly-rated bachelor’s theses written by English majors at a Chinese university, triangulated with semi-structured interviews with thesis writers and advisors. The results show that the 40 theses contained 776 shorter texts instantiating 22 types of elemental genres across 7 genre families. Specifically, reports were most extensively used by the thesis writers to transmit their received disciplinary knowledge. Arguments and text responses, though ranking lower in number, were essential to the writers’ projection of evaluative meanings and authorial selves. Stories, chronicles, explanations, and procedural genres were deployed sporadically, but empowered the writers to perform a constellation of social roles. The findings of this study may assist novice thesis writers by heightening their genre awareness, and more practically, increasing their knowledge on the specific types of elemental genres over which they need control to produce a rhetorically well-developed bachelor’s thesis. This paper then concludes with implications for teaching and researching thesis writing in non-English dominant contexts. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2019-11 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/1/33256-114274-2-PB.pdf Yimin Zhang, and Issra Pramoolsook, (2019) Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective. GEMA: Online Journal of Language Studies, 19 (4). pp. 304-326. ISSN 1675-8021 http://ejournal.ukm.my/gema/issue/view/1227
repository_type	Digital Repository
institution_category	Local University
institution	Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia
building	UKM Institutional Repository
collection	Online Access
language	English
description	For Chinese English majors, bachelor’s theses are regarded as the most substantial piece of writing in their undergraduate study. However, in the field of EAP/ESP and genre research, thesis writing at the undergraduate level has been relatively neglected. From the perspective of genre in Systemic Functional Linguistics, the macrostructure of a bachelor’s thesis constitutes a macrogenre which combines more than one elemental genre to accomplish complex goals. An understanding of the deployment of elemental genres in this macrogenre can further help reveal the rhetorical values circulating in this thesis writing community. Based on the genre taxonomy developed by SFL genre theorists (e.g., Rose, 2010, 2015a, 2015b), this study analysed the genre deployment of 40 highly-rated bachelor’s theses written by English majors at a Chinese university, triangulated with semi-structured interviews with thesis writers and advisors. The results show that the 40 theses contained 776 shorter texts instantiating 22 types of elemental genres across 7 genre families. Specifically, reports were most extensively used by the thesis writers to transmit their received disciplinary knowledge. Arguments and text responses, though ranking lower in number, were essential to the writers’ projection of evaluative meanings and authorial selves. Stories, chronicles, explanations, and procedural genres were deployed sporadically, but empowered the writers to perform a constellation of social roles. The findings of this study may assist novice thesis writers by heightening their genre awareness, and more practically, increasing their knowledge on the specific types of elemental genres over which they need control to produce a rhetorically well-developed bachelor’s thesis. This paper then concludes with implications for teaching and researching thesis writing in non-English dominant contexts.
format	Article
author	Yimin Zhang, Issra Pramoolsook,
spellingShingle	Yimin Zhang, Issra Pramoolsook, Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective
author_facet	Yimin Zhang, Issra Pramoolsook,
author_sort	Yimin Zhang,
title	Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective
title_short	Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective
title_full	Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective
title_fullStr	Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective
title_full_unstemmed	Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective
title_sort	generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by chinese english majors: an sfl perspective
publisher	Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
publishDate	2019
url	http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/14110/1/33256-114274-2-PB.pdf
first_indexed	2023-09-18T20:06:22Z
last_indexed	2023-09-18T20:06:22Z
_version_	1777407185020518400

Generic complexity in bachelor’s theses by Chinese English majors: an SFL perspective

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