ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
SECOND LANGUAGE WRITING DEVELOPMENT IN
CHILDHOOD: A CASE STUDY*
Raquel Se ano
Elizabe h R.. Howa d
Cen e o Applied Linguis ics
Whe eas mos esea ch on child second language acquisi ion has ocused on
he o al p oduc ion o child en, s udies a e needed o show hei ini ial
w i ing de elopmen in a second language. This pape aims o shed some
ligh on his p ocess, ocusing on he English w i ing de elopmen o a na i e
Spanish speake en olled in a wo-way imme sion p og am in he Uni ed
S a es. Da a o his p esen a ion come om a longi udinal, na ional s udy
which in ol es 484 s uden s in 11 p og ams ac oss he coun y. In his
pape , we will p esen a case s udy o one o he s uden s in he p ojec , om
he beginning o hi d g ade un il he end o i h g ade.
The s uden ’s w i ing samples will be discussed using an analy ic
ub ic de eloped o he p ojec . This ub ic add esses h ee majo aspec s
o w i ing –composi ion, g amma and mechanics– and p o ides a clea
amewo k o in es iga ing changes in w i ing abili y o e ime.
Key wo ds: second language w i ing, w i ing de elopmen , ESL, Spanish L1,
bilingual educa ion, wo-way imme sion.
1. In oduc ion
Two-way imme sion (TWI) is an inc easingly popula educa ional app oach
in he Uni ed S a es. Two-way imme sion p og ams in eg a e na i e English
Es udios de
lingüís ica inglesa aplicada
40 R. Se ano & E. Howa d
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
speake s wi h na i e speake s o ano he language, usually Spanish, and
each all s uden s h ough bo h languages. Fu he mo e, TWI p og ams a e
conside ed addi i e bilingual p og ams o bo h g oups o s uden s because
hey a o d all s uden s he oppo uni y o main ain and de elop o al and
w i en skills in hei i s language while simul aneously acqui ing o al and
w i en skills in a second language (Ch is ian, 1994). Thus, hese p og ams
s i e o p omo e bilingualism and bili e acy in addi ion o g ade-le el
academic achie emen . Ano he ela ed goal is o p omo e c oss-cul u al
unde s anding among he wo main s uden g oups. The ollowing a e he
co e cha ac e is ics o TWI p og ams (Ch is ian, 1994; Howa d and
Suga man, 2001; Howa d and Ch is ian, 2002):
•Language-mino i y (non-English language) and language-majo i y
(English) s uden s a e in eg a ed o a leas 50% o he day a all
g ade le els.
•Con en and li e acy ins uc ion in bo h languages a e p o ided o
all s uden s.
•Language-mino i y and language-majo i y s uden s a e balanced,
wi h each g oup making up one hi d o wo hi ds o he o al
popula ion.
The e a e wo main models o implemen a ion o TWI p og ams.
(Ch is ian, 1994; Howa d and Ch is ian, 2002). The i s is called 90/10, as
90% o ins uc ion in he p ima y g ades is in he mino i y language and
10% is in English. The a ios slowly shi o e ime, un il a balance o 50%
o ins uc ion in each language is eached by abou ou h g ade. The o he
app oach is called 50/50 since i o e s 50% o ins uc ional ime in he
mino i y language and he o he 50% in English a all g ade le els.
Rega dless o he p og am model, TWI has been shown o be an e ec i e
p og am model o bo h language mino i y s uden s and na i e English
speake s (Lindholm-Lea y, 2001; Thomas and Collie , 2003). Bo h g oups
de elop bilingualism, bili e acy, and bicul u alism in addi ion o he
academic compe ence ha compa able s uden s in mains eam U.S. schools
a ain.
Second language w i ing de elopmen …. 41
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
The pu pose o his pape is o illus a e he English w i ing
de elopmen o one na i e Spanish speake (NSS) en olled in a 90/10 TWI
p og am. We will show his p og ess om he beginning o hi d g ade
h ough he end o i h g ade, using an analy ic ub ic de eloped o he
s udy. This ub ic add esses h ee majo aspec s o w i ing –composi ion,
g amma and mechanics– and p o ides a clea amewo k o in es iga ing
changes in w i ing abili y o e ime.
By limi ing his analysis o a single subjec , we a e able o ca y ou
a deepe , mo e ho ough analysis o English w i ing de elopmen o e ime.
This de ailed case s udy can hen se e as a pilo p ojec o la ge-scale
analyses in he u u e. In addi ion o he s uden ’s w i ing samples, we ha e
ield no es de ailing his beha io s while w i ing. As a esul , we a e able o
p o ide a ich desc ip ion o he de elopmen o second language w i ing
p ocesses and p oduc s in a pa allel way.
2. Me hods
2.1. Resea ch Ques ion
The main ques ion ha guides ou s udy is he ollowing: in wha way does a
NSS p og ess in his English w i ing skills in a 90/10 TWI p og am, in e ms
o composi ion, g amma and mechanics?
2.2. Pa icipan
José was classi ied as a “na i e Spanish speake ” bo h acco ding o school
eco ds and o in o ma ion we ob ained om he home language and li e acy
ques ionnai e ha his pa en s comple ed (as well as he o he pa en s o he
s uden s in ou s udy). This pa en ques ionnai e p o ided us wi h some
impo an addi ional in o ma ion abou José. Fi s o all, we lea ned ha he
was bo n in he U.S.; howe e , Spanish was his i s language, he language
o his p e-kinde ga en dayca e and ins uc ion, as well as he language
spoken by his babysi e . A he ime o da a collec ion, José spen a week o
42 R. Se ano & E. Howa d
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
less pe yea in a Spanish-speaking coun y. In addi ion, he ques ionnai e
sugges ed ha he wa ched mo e English language TV han Spanish language
TV, and ha he had a simila numbe o books in bo h languages. Finally, in
ou h g ade, he language used mos o en in he home was Spanish,
al hough bo h languages we e used.
José a ended a 90/10 TWI p og am on he Eas Coas . In his p og am,
na i e Spanish speake s and na i e English speake s we e in eg a ed all day
o all ins uc ion, and all s uden s ecei ed ini ial li e acy ins uc ion in
Spanish only. Fo mal English li e acy ins uc ion was added in a hi d
g ade, a he onse o da a collec ion o his s udy.
2.3. Da a Collec ion
English and Spanish w i ing samples we e collec ed h ee imes a yea ( all,
win e , and sp ing) as he s uden s p og essed h ough g ades 3, 4, and 5,
yielding a o al o nine samples pe s uden in each language. Fo hese
w i en na a i es, s uden s picked a opic o hei own choice, as long as i
was a ue s o y abou hemsel es. Du ing he sco ing p ocess, i became
appa en ha many child en had no w i en pe sonal na a i es in a s ic
sense, bu a he , had w i en abou hei pe sonal expe iences mo e b oadly
de ined, such as desc ip ions o hei amilies, hei schools, hei a o i e
spo s, e c. In o de o maximize he numbe o w i ing samples in ou
analyses, we decided no o exclude such samples. Only samples ha we e
clea ly non-na a i e and/o clea ly un ela ed o pe sonal opics (e.g. poems
o exposi o y ex s abou academic opics) we e excluded om he analyses.
Be o e s a ing o w i e he na a i es, he s uden s had a p e-w i ing ac i i y
(which las ed o abou 10 minu es) whe e he eache , oge he wi h he
s uden s, b ains o med abou possible opics o “pe sonal na a i es”. The
s uden s we e able o alk wi h one ano he and consul esou ces like
dic iona ies and wo d walls du ing he w i ing p ocess, bu he eache s we e
asked no o help hem wi h ansla ion o spelling. The w i ing ac i i y
las ed app oxima ely one hou . Resea ch assis an s obse ed he s uden s
h oughou he w i ing ac i i y and ook ield-no es abou he class oom
beha io and he w i ing beha io s o a ge s uden s, such as José.
Second language w i ing de elopmen …. 43
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
3. Da a Analysis
3.1. Rub ic
In o de o analyze he s uden s’ p og ess o e ime, we de eloped a ub ic
ha examined h ee main a eas o w i ing: composi ion, g amma , and
mechanics, each o which included ou sub-componen s, as desc ibed he e.
Possible sco es o each sub-componen anged om 0 o 5.
1. Composi ion
• Topic de elopmen
• Sen ence o ma ion
• Suppo ing de ails
• Desc ip i e language
2. G amma
• Ve bs
• Ag eemen
• Placemen
• P eposi ions
3. Mechanics
• Spelling
• Punc ua ion
• Capi aliza ion
• Pa ag aph o ma ion

44 R. Se ano & E. Howa d
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
A he end o each yea o da a collec ion, he w i ing samples we e
sco ed by expe ienced wo-way imme sion eache s who we e ained by
CAL esea che s o use his ub ic. A e a high deg ee o in e - a e
eliabili y was achie ed on he aining samples, he eache s began o sco e
he pape s indi idually. Because o he high olume o w i ing samples
collec ed each yea (app oxima ely 2,500), i was no possible o a e each
sample mo e han once. The e o e, a g oup o common pape s was sco ed
each day, making i possible o de e mine in e - a e eliabili y. In e - a e
eliabili y as de e mined by he in a-class co ela ion was consis en ly high
(.83), indica ing ha he w i ing ou come sco es used in his s udy can be
conside ed easonably eliable indica o s o s uden s’ w i ing abili y o e
ime.
In he ollowing sec ion we will desc ibe José’s w i ing samples
acco ding o he ub ic. Fo e iciency, we only p esen w i ing samples ha
co espond o he beginning o each g ade le el ( hi d, ou h, and i h), plus
he inal na a i e, collec ed a he end o i h g ade.
3.2. Analysis
3.2.1. Fall o hi d g ade
My Famliy
My Name is Jose Ba oso I like o play socc e. My sis e s name is Lidia
Ba oso she like o play ba bie. My Moms name is Lidia Ba oso She likes o
wo k. My b o he name is B ian ba oso he likes o play socce . My dads
name is Jose Ba oso is a i i spo is socce . My amliy liks o sy socce
gams in . . My amliy likes o s o es. My Famliy like o sey spo s.
José’s i s na a i e pa ially de eloped a s o y abou his amily; bu
did no include any in oduc ion, conclusion o opic sen ence. He used e y
simple and sho sen ence s uc u es, all o which had he same
con igu a ion: Subjec -Ve b-A ibu e (wi h he e b o be): “My Name is
Jose Ba oso”, and Subjec -Ve b-Objec (wi h he e b o like): “I like o
Second language w i ing de elopmen …. 45
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
play socc e”, “She likes o wo k”. The na a i e did no ha e many
suppo ing de ails o desc ip i e language ha elabo a ed he opic.
Rega ding g amma , his na a i e had a limi ed use o e bs and e b
cons uc ions, ye , hey we e almos always co ec , excep o a couple o
mis akes whe e he s uden omi ed ‘s’ o o m he hi d pe son singula
conjuga ion (“she like”, “My Familiy like”). The s uden also used a a ie y
o p onouns, all o which we e in ag eemen wi h he noun hey eplaced
(“My Mom...She”, “My b o he ...he”). In e ms o placemen , he e a e no
mis akes: he possesso was in on o he possessed in ins ances o
possessi e case (“sis e s name”, “Moms name”, e c.); he adjec i e, o
modi ying wo d appea ed in on o he noun (“ a i i spo ”, “socce
gams”). This is impo an o no e, gi en ha Spanish has he opposi e wo d-
o de in bo h cases, and o mal English li e acy ins uc ion had jus s a ed a
he ime José p oduced his sample. Conce ning p eposi ions, he s uden
used a limi ed numbe o hem (“ o”, “in”). As was he case o composi ion,
he g amma in his na a i e was e y simple, since i did no include a wide
a ie y o e bs o many cons uc ions whe e ag eemen and placemen can
be analyzed; s ill, he accu acy le el is high.
Wi h ega d o mechanics, he e we e a ew spelling mis akes, some o
which showed Spanish in luence (e.g. sy o see), and o he s which showed a
limi ed knowledge o English spelling con en ions, such as he ‘silen e’ ule
(e.g. gams, liks). In ela ion o punc ua ion, he e seems o be some e idence
ha José had a limi ed unde s anding o sen ence bounda ies a his poin , as
he only used pe iods when he changed subjec s. Tha is, he w o e wo
s a emen s abou himsel using only one pe iod, hen wo s a emen s abou
his sis e using a single pe iod as well, and so on. Capi al le e s we e used
app op ia ely o he mos pa ; howe e , in a ew occasions he capi alized
wo ds ha did no need capi als (“My Family”), o used lowe -case when
capi als we e needed (“B ian ba oso”). Finally, he e was no e idence o
pa ag aph o ma ion, as all o he w i ing ell wi hin a single,
undis inguished pa ag aph.
In summa y, his all o hi d g ade w i ing sample om José was
ai ly limi ed and simple. The opic de elopmen was no e y o ganized,
46 R. Se ano & E. Howa d
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
sen ences usually had he same s uc u e, and he e we e no many
desc ip i e o suppo ing de ails ha elabo a ed on he opic. The use o
e bs, ag eemen , placemen and p eposi ions was gene ally co ec bu
limi ed, and he e we e a lo o e o s in mechanics.
3.2.2. Fall o ou h g ade
My Fa o i e spo s
I am going o ell you abou my wo a o i e spo s. My wo a o i e
spo s a e socce and baske ball. I am going o s a alking abou baske ball
and hen socce .
Baske ball is one o my a o i e spo s because I am a good
ebounde . and, and a li le bi a shoo ing. I like playing baske ball wi h
my einds, bu no by my sel . I am a good ebaunde because I jump when I
ha e o no jump be o he ball comes down.
Socce is my a o i e spo because I am a good kicke . I like o play
owo d because I like o make gools. I am a good pleye because I pass he
ball and i by acciden I d op someone I help him up.
A he beginning o ou h g ade, José de eloped an o ganized s o y,
wi h a clea in oduc ion and a ele an i le; howe e , he e was no
conclusion. The e was clea ly imp o emen om he hi d g ade sample in
e ms o o ganiza ion and ex ension. Addi ionally, José w o e longe
sen ences in ou h g ade, wi h a ying sen ence s uc u es. This sample did
no include many suppo ing de ails o much desc ip i e language.
G amma ically, José included a a ie y o e bs and e b
cons uc ions. These e bs all ag eed wi h hei subjec s, as did he p onouns
wi h hei e e en s (“I am going”, “someone...him”). Addi ionally,
adjec i es and p onouns we e placed co ec ly, al hough he e we e no oo
many ins ances o hese cons uc ions (“ wo a o i e spo s”, “bu no by my
sel ”). Finally, José used a numbe o di e en p eposi ions accu a ely in his
sample (“one o my a o i e spo s”, “playing baske ball wi h my einds”).
Second language w i ing de elopmen …. 47
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
Wi h ega d o mechanics, he spelling in his na a i e was gene ally
accu a e, wi h a ew e o s, some o which s ill may indica e in luence om
Spanish (e.g. pleye , acciden). José clea ly showed imp o emen in his
knowledge o sen ence bounda ies, as pe iods and capi al le e s we e
gene ally used co ec ly. Finally, his sample was accu a ely segmen ed in o
di e en pa ag aphs. José used he i s pa ag aph as an in oduc ion, and
used he ollowing wo pa ag aphs o ocus on one spo each.
In summa y, José’s ou h g ade all na a i e was o ganized and
clea , wi h a lo o imp o emen om he w i ing sample p oduced a yea
ea lie . This sample was mo e ex ended, and included a wide a ie y o
sen ence s uc u es. The g amma was also mo e sophis ica ed, as he e we e
a b oade ange o cons uc ions, and hey we e qui e accu a e. The clea es
and mos d ama ic imp o emen could be seen in he a ea o mechanics,
especially in he a eas o pa ag aph o ma ion and sen ence segmen a ion.
3.2.3. Fall o i h g ade
My Family
My mom is eally nice because when I ask he i I can go ou side she
usually le s me go ou side. I I ask he o go o a eind’s house she sayes
yes. I lo e wha she cooks all he ime. She wo ks in he nigh in a pa ime.
My dad lo e o play spo s especially socce and baske ball. His
a o i e eam in socce is B azil. In baske ball his a o i e eam is Los
Angeles Lake s. In oo ball he lo es Jackson ille Jagua s and San F ancisco
49e s. He wo ks in he day and comes back a 4:00 pm. When he comes back
om wo k we go play socce . My dad lo es o play socce . He is on 2 socce
eam. He playes de ence like I do.
My sis e lo es o play Ba bies. She lo es school. She in M s.
Ve mudes and Ms. Yones’s class. She lo es he wo excellen eache . He
a o i e ood is pupusa and pizza. She dosn’ like spo s o Pokémon.
My b o he lo es spo s and Pokémon. His a o i e pokemon is
Cha iza d ha his a liza d pokemon. He lo es o play Ba bies. He lo es o
play wi h my cosins. He has 15 pokemon ca ds.
54 R. Se ano & E. Howa d
ELIA 5, 2004, pp. 39-54
Re e ences
Ch is ian, D. 1994. Two-Way Bilingual Educa ion: S uden s Lea ning
h ough Two Languages (Educa ional P ac ice Rep. No. 12). San a
C uz, CA, and Washing on, DC: Na ional Cen e o Resea ch on
Cul u al Di e si y and Second Language Lea ning.
Howa d, E.R. 2003. Bili e acy de elopmen in wo-way imme sion educa ion
p og ams: A mul ile el analysis o he e ec s o na i e language and
home language use on he de elopmen o na a i e w i ing abili y in
English and Spanish. Unpublished doc o al disse a ion. Ha a d
Uni e si y.
Howa d, E.R. and Ch is ian, D. 2002. Two-way imme sion 101: Designing
and implemen ing wo-way imme sion p og ams a he elemen a y
le el. Educa ional P ac ice Repo . San a C uz, CA and Washing on,
DC: Cen e o Resea ch on Educa ion, Di e si y and Excellence and
Cen e o Applied Linguis ics.
Howa d, E.R. and Suga man, J. 2001. Two-Way Imme sion P og ams:
Fea u es and S a is ics. ERIC Diges EDO-FL-01-01. Washing on
D.C.: ERIC Clea inghouse on Languages and Linguis ics. A ailable
online a : h p://www.cal.o g/e iccll/diges /0101 wi.h ml.
Lindholm-Lea y, K. 2001. Dual Language Educa ion. Cle edon:
Mul ilingual Ma e s.
Thomas, W. and Collie , V. 2003. A na ional s udy o school e ec i eness
o language mino i y s uden s’ long e m academic achie emen .
Resea ch Repo . San a C uz, CA and Washing on, DC: Cen e o
Resea ch on Educa ion, Di e si y and Excellence and Cen e o
Applied Linguis ics.

Second language w i ing de elopmen …. 55
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