SUSTAINING ESL STUDENTS’ INTERACTIONS IN A COLLABORATIVE LEARNING VIA EMAIL DISCUSSION: A case study at UMT

The primary focus of this study centres on how participants communicate via email in a collaborative learning environment incorporating process writing approach and pair work activity. The study addresses these concerns by investigating students’ interactions through email messages. Findings are that participants’ interactions are focused predominantly on task-related activity and active correspondence occurred at the early stages of the writing process activity. The task framework, involving a procedure for process writing development through e-mail interaction, the banded marking scheme for the argumentative essay, online interview questions, and the analytical framework are intended to aid researchers to conduct related research in future. The findings will contribute to the development and testing of the efficacy and flexibility of process approaches to ESL writing instruction through e-mail. The study offers positive views for further study to be explored in order to attain a better understanding of how learners interact in a collaborative learning environment via email discussions.