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Thriving through Uncertainties: The Agency and Resourcefulness of First-Year Chinese 

English as an Additional Language Writers in a Canadian University 

 

Jing Mao 

University of Victoria 

 

Abstract 

 

Amidst the increased enrolment of international Chinese English as an additional language 

(EAL) students in North American universities, scholars have reported on their academic and 

social experiences in navigating English-medium studies (e.g., Liu, 2016; Zhang & Zhou, 2010). 

Although informative, some studies focus on EAL learners’ perceived deficient language 

proficiencies, and how these deficits can negatively impact their academic success. In contrast to 

studies based on deficit models, this study argues that participants exhibit agency as evidenced in 

their responses to challenges encountered in and changes to their perceptions of and practices in 

academic writing. Employing an ecological perspective and (second) language socialization 

theories (Duff, 2010, 2019; van Lier, 2004, 2008), this qualitative case study examined how six 

first-year Chinese EAL learners enacted their agency and resourcefulness when navigating their 

academic writing trajectories. Ultimately, this study’s findings recommend that composition 

faculty, administrators, and EAL educators recognize EAL writers’ agency in accessing multiple 

resources while acknowledging their writing challenges, providing an optimal learning 

environment, and empowering them to thrive in their mainstream composition studies. 

 

The Importance and Challenge of Academic Writing for EAL Students 

 

Since English functions as the dominant language for academic communication and scholarship 

globally, writing efficiently and appropriately in English is extremely important but often poses 

challenges for students who learn English as an additional language (EAL) (Hyland, 2013). As 

Hyland (2013) indicated, “we are what we write” (p. 53); therefore, students and researchers are 

defined and judged by how they write as academics. Additionally, an article by Jabeen et al. 

(2019) identified three main factors that play a role in EAL learners’ academic experiences and 

performance: academic engagement, academic socialization, and social integrity. Among these 

factors, English language proficiency is considered a predictor that accounts for EAL learners’ 

academic performance. Focusing on Chinese EAL learners (both at the graduate and 

undergraduate levels) at a Canadian university, Zhang and Zhou’s (2010) study found that a lack 

of oral and written communication abilities were factors that prevented students’ academic 

success. Although not specifically focused on academic writing, these studies have shown the 

importance and challenges of academic writing for EAL learners who aim to achieve academic 

success in English-medium Canadian universities, as well as the necessity for educators to 

support these students. 

 

Chinese EAL Learners in Canadian Universities 

 

Given the global trend towards and impact of the internationalization of higher education, an 

increasing number of international students, especially those from China, are studying in colleges 

and universities in Canada. Accordingly, Chinese EAL students (including the six participants in 

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this study) are one of the largest non-domestic student groups at Canadian universities. At both 

undergraduate and graduate levels, Chinese students account for approximately 30% of the total 

number of international students—a trend that has continued to increase yearly (CBIE, 2016). 

Therefore, researchers have paid attention to reports on the academic and social experiences of 

Chinese international students. Some studies have focused on the challenges, impacting factors, 

and outcomes of students’ experiences (e.g., Liu, 2016; Preston & Wang, 2017; Zhang, 2011; 

Zhang & Zhou, 2010). Although informative, some studies focused on EAL learners’ perceived 

deficient language proficiencies and how these deficits can negatively impact their academic 

success. In contrast to this deficit model, a few other studies have paid attention to students’ 

holistic experiences including both their struggles and successes, as well as their agency and 

dynamic changes in their academic performance (e.g., Anderson, 2017; Heng, 2018). Aligned 

with holistic studies focused on academic writing, this study investigated six Chinese EAL 

writers’ experiences in navigating first-year composition courses in an English-medium 

Canadian university by drawing from ecological and language socialization approaches. 

 

An Ecological Perspective on Language Learning and (Second) Language  

Academic Socialization 

 

This study employed an ecological perspective and (second) language socialization as its 

theoretical framework. As a holistic and contextualized framework, an ecological approach does 

not view language learning as a product that is acquired; instead, this approach emphasizes that 

learning is a process that is emergent and relational to the environment on physical, symbolic, 

and social levels (Dufva, 2013; van Lier, 2004; 2008). As Steffensen and Kramsch (2017) 

summarized, the main tenets of ecological approaches to second language acquisition (SLA) are 

as follows: language learning and use are emergent; affordances in the environment play a 

crucial role; language plays a mediated function in education; and language learning experiences 

are subjective and historical. In essence, an ecological perspective regards language learning as 

holistic, situated, emergent, and dialogical within the interrelatedness of the whole environment. 

 

In some researchers’ exploration of the relationship between individual organisms and 

their environment, the notion of affordance and agency plays a key role from an ecological 

perspective. In language education, van Lier (2004) defined affordance as perceived 

opportunities for actions or dynamic relationships between the environment and active learners. 

According to van Lier, learning resources are not yet affordable until learners as agents perceive 

of, reflect on, and act on these resources, which involves a dynamic process of mutual interaction 

between learners and the environment. Another important concept of agency refers to the 

capacity to act, which is “mediated by social, interactional, cultural, institutional, and other 

contextual factors” (van Lier, 2008, p. 171). Defining agency in this way means that the capacity 

to learn is socially constructed. Also, van Lier (2008) proposed that three core features of learner 

agency: (1) initiative or self-regulation; (2) contextual interdependence; and, (3) responsibility 

for one’s actions vis-à-vis the environment. Altogether, these features are helpful for examining 

EAL writers’ agency in the current study.  

 

In addition to an ecological perspective, the second theory that has guided this study is 

(second) language socialization (Duff, 2010; Duff & Talmy, 2011). Researchers operating within 

a language socialization theoretical framework investigate the activities and processes of 

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learning in which novices (newcomers) learn the language or cultural knowledge of a target 

community through “interactions with others who are more proficient in the language and its 

cultural practices” (Duff, 2010, p. 172). When it comes to adult additional language (L2) 

learners, their socialization processes differ from their first language (L1) counterparts. These 

adult L2 learners need to learn a non-native culture and literacy practice through an additional 

language despite having already been socialized into their L1 communities and having their own 

perspectives on issues such as identity and power relations (Steffensen & Kramsch, 2017). As 

Duff and Doherty (2015) theorized, learner agency plays a crucial role in facilitating or impeding 

the process of language socialization since “learners bring their agency to bear on the 

affordances of their personal context and the resources available to them” (p. 69). It is worth 

mentioning that learner agency has attracted increasing scholarly attention in recent years. For 

instance, Larsen-Freeman (2019) has conceptualized agency from a Complex Dynamics System 

Theory (CDST) perspective and discussed educational practices for supporting learner agency. 

These conceptual discussions provide rich insights into understanding learner agency among 

EAL learners for this study. 

 

Methodology 

 

This study employed a multiple case study approach (Duff, 2014; Yin, 2018). Aligned with a 

holistic theoretical framework, this case study was designed to allow for an in-depth 

investigation of the individualized perceptions and experiences of participants in the context of 

real-world situations. In this study, the selection of multiple cases, rather than a single case, 

aimed to provide “several instances of the phenomenon in question,” which has become “the 

new norm” in contemporary case study research in Applied Linguistics (Duff & Anderson, 2015, 

p. 114). The overall aim of this study was to examine the evolving perceptions and performances 

of six Chinese EAL writers, especially in terms of how they navigated their writing trajectories 

by exerting their agency and multilingual resources. 

 

Context and Participants 

 

The study was conducted in a medium-sized English-medium university in western Canada. In 

the academic year of 2017–2018, approximately 2,392 of the university’s 18,400 undergraduates 

were international students. Among them, Chinese EAL students ranked as the largest group 

with around 1,400 students enrolled (citation redacted for anonymity). The study focused on a 

course titled COMP 100 (pseudonym, as with other courses named in this study) because it was a 

popular required course that nearly all undergraduates take in their first year. The course aimed 

to teach the practical skills needed for successful academic writing across a variety of subject 

areas. The basic course assignments of COMP 100 included four elements: a summary, a genre 

or rhetorical analysis, a research paper, and a final exit exam.  

 

My recruitment of student participants began in the Fall of 2019. Informed by Creswell 

and Poth’s (2018) instructions for recruiting participants for a qualitative study, I employed 

purposive sampling for the current study. Ideal participants for the study were Chinese EAL 

students enrolled in COMP 100. These Chinese EAL learners were  enrolled from across various 

disciplines in their first year of study in the university. Six participants (one in her third year of 

study and excluded from this report) were finally recruited through an international students’ 

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club and the social media application WeChat (a popular application among Chinese students). 

The following table presents a brief summary of the personal, linguistic, and educational 

backgrounds of each student.  

 

Table 1  

 

List of Student Participants’ Information 

 

Pseudonym Gender Age Major Prior Education 
English Test  

(name and score) 

Young Male 21 Economics College in China 
IELTS 6 

UAP 82 

Zoey Female 21 Finance College in China IELTS 7 

MoMo Female 18 Business 
International 

high school 

Provincial Test (pass) 

IELTS 6.5 

Emily Female 18 Business 
International 

high school 
TOEFL 100 

Steve Male 18 
Health Information 

Science 

International 

high school 

ACT 30 

TOEFL 100 

Serena Female 21 Math 
Chinese high 

school 

IELTS 6 

UAP 80 

 

Data Collection and Analysis 

 

In this qualitative case study, multiple data collection methods were employed to produce rich 

descriptions and analyses of participants’ writing-related perceptions, practices, and changes 

with regard to their academic writing in a first-year composition context. Data collection 

instruments included mainly background surveys and semi-structured interviews. Two rounds of 

semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants (see Appendix). Held in a study 

room at the campus library, each interview lasted from forty-five minutes to one hour and was 

audio-recorded with permission from participants. The interview and survey data for this study 

were analysed thematically (Braun & Clarke, 2006; Yin, 2018). After reading through the whole 

data set several times and developing some initial ideas, I conducted the formal initial coding 

through the use of a web-based program for qualitative data analysis. As I began to understand 

the data sets on a deeper level, some codes were collated, deleted, or re-grouped into different 

code clusters representing new logical relations. The use of a web-based program was a 

convenient way to code data extracts and make changes in the coding process. During the phase 

of further categorizing different codes and code groups, I identified potential overarching themes 

that accounted for participants’ holistic experiences. The major themes addressed in this paper 

were related to students’ enactment of their learner agency and resourcefulness.  

 

Findings: Enactment of Learner Agency and Resourcefulness 

 

During the four-month semester in 2019, participants experienced challenges as well as 

improvements in their academic writing practices and socialization experiences by interacting 

and engaging with learning affordances within and beyond their first-year composition classes. 

The following discussion highlights the key role of learner agency that students displayed in 

drawing on academic supports beyond classrooms, especially how students’ enactment of agency 

impacted their self-directed socialization processes. Four salient themes emerged from the data 

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analysis regarding the manifestation of learner agency and resourcefulness in L2 academic 

socialization processes: adaptive alignment of awareness and actions in accessing learning 

affordances; dynamic integration of past and present experiences; proactive building-up of 

support networks; and autonomous decision-making in navigating uncertainties. I highlight the 

role of learner agency among EAL students in accessing multiple learning affordances through 

dynamic interactions and engagements with the environment across time and space. 

 

Adaptive Alignment of Awareness and Actions in Accessing Learning Affordances 

 

In this study, most participants felt overwhelmed and challenged by the prospect of succeeding 

in their writing studies when entering into their first-year composition courses. As most 

participants proclaimed, “Everything was so new” to them. However, when confronted with the 

demanding expectations of English proficiency, complex assigned readings, and various types of 

writing assignments, most participants not only became aware of such challenges early on but 

also proactively sought supports from their surrounding environment. For example, when asked 

whether she had experienced challenges since her arrival, Zoey responded: “Yes, I almost met 

new things every day. But I basically handle them well since I take them as opportunities to learn 

from” (First interview, Oct 8, 2019). As shown, Zoey recognized certain challenges upon 

entering mainstream studies and actively aligned her actions with what she perceived as the 

learning opportunities identified. According to an ecological perspective, once learners recognize 

that learning opportunities vary for different learners, they can begin to act on available 

resources (van Lier, 2004). In the case of Zoey, her decision to seek resources by translating an 

assigned article from English to Mandarin Chinese aligned with her early awareness of her 

difficulties in comprehending complex academic readings. Despite spending a great amount of 

time on the task of reading, Zoey reported that she could understand articles at a deeper level by 

means of translation. Furthermore, she also learned how to write by imitating the structure and 

rhetorical features of her assigned readings. Similarly, another participant named Young 

originally sought help from his instructor and later adjusted his strategy when he recognized that 

his instructor was not available to provide the support he expected in his class: 

 

I used to visit my instructor’s office time, twice a week. But later I decide not to go there 

to avoid misunderstanding. The writing centre is very helpful for my study. I asked 

questions from the tutors relating to my assignments and course content. I also visited the 

library yesterday and asked for help from the teacher at the research help desk (Young, 

First interview, September 10, 2019) 

 

Young’s expression of “misunderstanding” reflected his perception that communications 

with his instructor were not as smooth as he expected. As Young recalled, his instructor seemed 

a bit “unfriendly” and repeatedly recommended that he withdraw from the course whenever he 

asked questions during his instructor’s office hours. As will be discussed, Young decided to seek 

help outside the classroom to avoid feeling frustrated by his instructors’ responses. By visiting 

the writing centre to meet with tutors on a regular basis, Young gradually improved his writing 

practices and gained confidence by positioning himself as an EAL learner in need of academic 

support.  

 

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Within any ecological system, an individual must be willing to discern learning 

affordances and act upon them. The resources that Young mentioned were available to every 

student; however, Young was the only participant in this study to visit the writing centre 

consistently and persistently. In fact, Young grasped simple but important skills for newcomers: 

asking for help when he encountered struggles rather than withdrawing from challenges. He 

articulated his concerns by interacting with various supporting agents without feeling intimidated 

by his instructors’ discouragement. As shown, the cases of Zoey and Young showed the 

alignment of their perceptions and actions when dynamically interacting with the affordances in 

their learning contexts.  

 

Dynamic Integration of Past and Present Experiences 

 

Another salient theme that emerged from this study is related to participants’ integration of their 

prior learning experiences and current composition studies. In this study, most participants 

realized that their previous experiences in academic reading and writing were limited, which 

prevented them from effectively managing their current composition studies. However, 

recognition of the differences or inconsistencies between two academic systems progressively 

changed over time. As EAL students became familiar with current course expectations and 

gained practice composing course assignments, participants tended to modify their perceptions 

toward their prior writing experiences and future goals. For example, Emily initially believed 

that she knew how to write academically since her required written essays were similar to what 

she practised for her Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) exam. By the end of the 

semester, however, she changed her stance when asked about the relevance of TOEFL 

preparation to her current composition practices: 

 

Jing: Do you think your previous writing experiences, such as TOEFL or other exam-

based preparation was sufficient enough to support your writing in your composition 

course? 

Emily: Not that much. They are quite different. The TOEFL exam preparation might help 

me a bit with the summary writing, but the citation rules and writing research papers were 

totally new to me. I am still learning how to make a strong argument by including a 

claim, ground, and warrant. It is also hard for me to include my own ideas in an organized 

way. (Second Interview, December 17, 2019) 

 

As shown, Emily appeared to progressively develop her understanding of the similarities 

and differences between what she previously practised and her current writing. When she 

recognized that her previous writing experiences preparing for the TOEFL examination were not 

enough to support her learning in her current composition course, Emily took agentive action to 

learn how to compose a strong argument and recognized that she needed to take further action to 

improve her writing practices. Similarly, Young reported that he benefited from a pathway 

program he took before enrolling in his composition studies and indicated that, “without that 

one-month experience, I will feel more challenged now.” What Young noted is aligned with 

scholarship in the field of EAP or L2 writing, which reports that pathway or sheltered programs 

are helpful for EAL writers transitioning into mainstream Canadian studies (Fox, et al., 2014; 

Haggerty, 2019; Keefe & Shi, 2017). For instance, Haggerty (2019) found that a pathway 

program, which was a newly designed post-secondary academic language program, benefited 

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EAL learners transferring into their mainstream studies in a British Columbian university. 

However, given the constraints of institutional policies and lack of funding, creating new 

programs may be unrealistic for some Canadian universities. 

 

In addition to integrating past and present learning experiences into aligned efforts, some 

participants also cherished long-term or future goals rather than obtaining a passing grade in the 

course. For example, when asked about his course goals, Steven responded that, in addition to 

successfully completing the course, he hoped to know the difference between himself and other 

academic writers in order to bridge such differences. When revisiting his goals in a second 

interview, Steve held onto this optimistic belief despite the unexpected challenges that he 

encountered: 

 

I think my goal to write academically has been somehow achieved, but not quite obvious. 

I am unsatisfied since the course instructor provided me quite limited feedback, but the 

course is effective, and I have achieved my goal by self-learning (Second interview, 

December 28, 2019) 

 

As shown, Steve was aware of the importance of academic writing for his learning 

journey and set a clear goal to improve his writing practices in the long run. Although he self-

perceived that his goal was “somehow” achieved, he seemed to enjoy the “self-learning” process 

and was proud of the progress he made. In addition, Steve identified “limited feedback” from his 

instructor as an external factor that contributed to his dissatisfaction. From a second language 

socialization perspective, EAL students can be positioned as marginalized learners when they 

obtain insufficient feedback on their written work, which may impede their academic 

socialization process. Although influential, the effect of obtaining limited feedback on Steve’s 

learning seemed less detrimental since he held a long-term goal and took an agentive role in the 

process of self-directed socialization.  

 

Furthermore, Steve and other participants developed their reflexivity in the process of 

exerting their agency. During the second round of interviews, participants presented a deepened 

understanding of academic writing and reflected on how their writing could be further improved 

if they gained greater familiarity with the academic conventions expected in their composition 

classes. For example, Zoey reported her realization about the importance of “critical thinking” in 

reading and writing essays by reflecting on her learning “to integrate others’ perspectives 

appropriately” into her essay writing rather than arguing her own ideas. Likewise, when he 

received a low grade for his summary writing, Steve took responsibility and reflected on how he 

“should ask for clarification before writing” (Second interview, December 28, 2019). As such, 

Steve displayed developed self-reflection skills while gaining more knowledge in his writing 

practices. 

 

Proactive Building-up of Support Networks  

 

In this study, participants proactively built up their individual networks of academic writing 

practices by interacting and engaging with various agents, communities, and resources. Beyond 

interactions with composition instructors, other resources included one-on-one tutoring at the 

writing centre, soliciting peer support (both L1 and L2), attending workshops, and employing 

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online tools. By placing learners at the centre of the socialization process, Zappa-Hollman and 

Duff (2015) have proposed using the construct of Individual Network of Practice (INoP) to 

examine the types and roles of various agents and resources. Aligned with their guidance, I 

present how participants socialized their academic practices in the context of first-year 

composition studies in what follows. 

 

First, every participant reported that they had visited the writing centre, but differed in 

terms of times and consistency. Writing centres are a common form of academic support in 

North American universities and the main source of help for EAL learners (Okuda & Anderson, 

2018). From an academic socialization perspective, tutors at the writing centre serve as agents to 

socialize EAL writers into expected writing conventions and norms. However, whether or to 

what extent students’ academic writing improves varies for individual learners. In this study, the 

students who visited the writing centre persistently and regularly tended to express their 

appreciation for the support they received, as well as benefited from acquired writing skills and 

knowledge. For example, Young described in detail how a tutor at the writing centre guided him 

through hands-on assistance on one of his writing assignments: 

 

I remembered the first time when I asked about how to write a reflective letter, she wrote 

everything on a piece of paper in detail, explaining what it is by relating to what I’ve 

learned before, such as, what are my ideas and how to use it to respond to the summary I 

made by reading the article...That is really helpful. (First interview, September 10, 2019) 

 

Apparently, interactive one-on-one tutoring was very effective in accommodating 

Young’s concerns and writing needs. Studies have found that EAL writers prefer one-on-one 

interactions with instructors, especially to gain direct feedback through conferencing about their 

writing (e.g., Best et. al., 2015; Hu, 2019). Compared to his communication with his instructor, 

Young reported he felt more comfortable and confident when interacting with tutors at the 

writing centre, who were encouraging and less judgemental. Additionally, by joining a six-week 

Learning Plan (an individualized learning program set for EAL writers) recommended by his 

instructor, Young gained extra one-on-one support for his writing practices. Altogether, Young 

noted that he spent almost five to ten hours meeting with tutors per week throughout the 

semester. His devotion of time and energy into interacting with writing tutors, an enactment of 

agency, facilitated his academic writing improvement and socialization process.  

 

In addition to seeking academic support from tutors at the writing centre, learner agency 

among participants was also reflected in their efforts to informally establish individual networks. 

For instance, for the purpose of obtaining different perspectives on his written drafts, Steve 

exerted his agency by asking for advice from an academic advisor in his discipline as well as his 

native English speaking (NES) roommates, and by attending workshops related to academic 

writing: 

 

One is organized by the library; another one may be organized by the Residence. I am not 

sure since they said if you want to improve your writing, just come to the Fair. So, I did. 

The library one is huge like a peer-reviewed workshop. Students are invited to read each 

other’s papers and provide feedback. Because there is limited time for a student to read 

each other’s papers, I think the effect is limited. (Second interview, December 19, 2019)  

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The Fair that Steve described seemed to be a group peer-review activity, in which 

students were organized to review others’ written work, provide feedback within a limited period 

of time, and then exchange papers with another student. In doing so, students could obtain quick 

feedback from multiple perspectives and contribute their ideas to each other’s work in a 

reciprocal way. Although the effect of engaging in this activity was “limited,” Steve made a 

crucial step to immerse himself in his local environment, which is important for international 

students. Moreover, the positive comments that he received from NES students facilitated his 

awareness and socialization of key aspects of academic writing conventions and practices. 

Promisingly, Steve noted that he learned how to conduct self-directed studies, an unexpected 

benefit, by interacting and engaging with various agents and resources. From a language 

socialization perspective, both EAL learners and their peers can be powerful agents of 

socialization, especially when the main facilitators (such as instructors) are absent (Duff, 2010; 

Zappa-Hollman & Duff, 2015). Indeed, Steve validates how building up individual networks 

through the enactment of agency can facilitate improved academic writing practices and self-

directed socialization experiences. 

 

Another manifestation of learner agency was EAL learners’ effective use of online tools 

and resources. For example, an important strategy MoMo employed was searching for 

information online and making use of various digital tools in her process of “learning to write.” 

MoMo reported that she learned the APA citation style mainly from the university website and 

other online resources. Additionally, she chose a research topic related to social media and took 

interest in her research process. Although she reported that finding academic sources was 

challenging because of her chosen topic, MoMo took an agentive role in making full use of her 

digital literacy to gain knowledge by surfing websites in both English and Mandarin Chinese. 

Equipped with previous experience using online tools, EAL writers in this study seemed to 

naturally integrate such tools into their learning process. For instance, Zoey reported that she 

found using Zotero helpful to automatically generate citation lists, but she also manually checked 

the lists again before submitting her research paper. Furthermore, when she felt confused or 

uncertain about particular rules, she asked the research help desk or writing centre for assistance. 

Additionally, by employing web-based Google docs, she was also involved in collaborative 

writing with one of her classmates, which enriched her writing experiences. Therefore, exerting 

learner agency by using digital tools and online resources provided EAL learners with 

complementary opportunities for learning, which facilitated their academic socialization. 

 

Autonomous Decision-making in Navigating Uncertainties 

 

Students’ academic socialization processes are not only mediated by various external agents and 

resources, such as instructors or tutors at the writing centre, as well as textbooks and online 

resources, but can also be internally mediated or self-directed (Anderson, 2017). Having agency 

and having choices are closely connected (Larsen-Freeman, 2019). In the process of self-directed 

socialization, learner agency in this study was also manifested when participants made informed 

decisions and modified their own coping strategies to navigate their writing trajectories. The 

effect of exerting their agency can either facilitate or impede their academic socialization (Duff, 

2010). A typical example was Young, who resisted his instructors’ repeated advice to withdraw 

from his composition class by staying in his section, as mentioned earlier. According to Young’s 

description, since he was the only EAL student in his class, his instructor treated him the same as 

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students from NES backgrounds. During the process of interacting with his instructor, Young felt 

an increasing amount of stress:  

 

I cannot fully understand what the teacher said in class time, first of all. Since she might 

tell a joke that only native speakers can understand. I felt lost and sad about it since I 

cannot figure out what is happening. Every time I go to her office hours, she might 

suggest that I register for COMP 99 and just stop to answer my questions anymore 

(Young, First interview, September 10, 2019). 

 

As shown, Young interpreted his instructor’s suggestion as a signal of unwelcomeness, 

and he became too intimidated to communicate with the instructor during her office hours since 

he was unsure of how to deal with the stressful situation and tried to avoid potential 

misunderstandings. His instructor’s suggestion that he withdraw from his course socialized him 

into a category of inferior EAL learners marginalized from others in his class. Young reflected 

that he felt “so bad about himself.” Despite his rocky interactions with his instructor, Young 

excised his agency by deciding to stay in the class and seek support outside his classroom, as 

discussed above. In addition to being socialized into positioning himself as inferior to his NES 

peers, Young also socialized his instructor into believing that he would exert his utmost efforts 

into his composition studies to stay in the class. As Young later reported, his instructor provided 

him with an opportunity to enrol in a six-week learning plan specifically designed for EAL 

writers in need of writing assistance. This time, Young exerted his agency by accepting his 

instructor’s offer and made a commitment to go through with his writing practices. Both 

Young’s act of resistance and acceptance of his instructor’s advice demonstrated his enactment 

of agency: making his own decision with the options and resources provided. 

 

In addition to making their own decisions, another important aspect of the participants’ 

self-directed socialization was strategically coping with uncertainties about and struggles in their 

academic writing practices. For instance, Emily developed her own way to incorporate various 

resources when completing her writing assignments at different stages of her composition 

studies. When asked about her development in academic writing, Emily cheerfully shared a set 

of procedures she developed for composing and revising her written drafts: 

 

At first, I will follow the guideline and samples that the instructor provided very carefully 

and write the first draft, then I will send my draft to the instructor for suggestions. After I 

get the feedback, I will make changes accordingly and revise the draft. Then I will bring 

them to the Writing Centre to meet the tutors there. We work together on my paper, 

which is also quite helpful. Sometimes I could even have a whole paragraph changed. 

Then I might feel ready to produce the final version and hand it in. (First interview, 

September 28, 2019) 

 

It seemed that Emily not only worked hard but also learned how to wisely and 

strategically make use of the supports available to her. In addition to benefiting greatly from 

interactions with her instructor and the help gained from the writing centre, Emily indicated the 

positive role of feedback from peer-editing practices, of exchanges with her Chinese friends on 

her research ideas, and using Grammarly to check her grammar and diction. Her agency 

demonstrated a self-directed process of interacting with texts as well as various agents in her 

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academic discourse and community. Emily also enhanced her confidence by interacting and 

engaging with learning affordances in her language socialization process. 

 

Discussion 

 

Informed by an ecological perspective and language socialization theory, these findings 

exemplified how the students in this study attempted to seek learning opportunities and engage 

with various agents and sources in order to navigate their writing journeys and improve their 

academic performance. In alignment with previous research on second language academic 

socialization, the findings showed that the learner agency of EAL writers greatly affects their 

writing trajectories, especially their self-directed learning processes (Anderson, 2017; Duff & 

Doherty, 2015). Being active agents, most participants leveraged external and internal resources 

strategically to create favourable learning opportunities and outcomes in their writing 

trajectories. Therefore, the interrelatedness between “active learners” and their surrounding 

environment revealed the uniqueness and diversity of learners’ agency in interacting with 

mediated affordances for academic writing development. 

 

The findings of student participants’ efforts to seek various affordances to improve their 

academic writing were aligned with empirical studies on multilingual students. For instance, 

Morton et al. (2015) found that multicultural learners who solicited feedback from numerous 

people have a “multiplicity of resources” at their disposal. As Zappa-Hollman and Duff (2015) 

emphasized in their study, “what is remarkable was just how resourceful the participants were in 

drawing on a wide range of human and other forms of support” (p. 357). Similarly, participants 

in this study worked out their own ways to understand their environment and seek resources for 

academic success. These findings show that students’ enactment of agency was impacted by a 

range of contextual and individual factors when they engaged and interacted with different 

resources. Future studies should therefore focus on how EAL students’ employment of resources 

is dynamically impacted by various factors in different contexts. 

 

Despite their efforts, the actual resources that participants chose to employ, the amount of 

help they obtained, and the extent to which they drew upon various affordances varied greatly 

from participant to participant in this situated context. As discussed above, some participants 

were more agentive and resourceful than others in the ways they sought supports from their 

surrounding environment. These findings also showed that students who were more aware of 

their challenges early on and actively familiarized themselves with surrounding supports were 

better equipped to achieve their course goals. That said, the outcome of academic socialization is 

complicated and unpredictable, and cannot be guaranteed by the enactment of learner agency. 

Instances of students’ exerting learner agency highlight the function of socialization in building 

support networks for academic writing practices and being autonomous in their decision-making, 

which is conducive to students’ self-directed socialization processes and academic performance. 

 

Pedagogical Recommendations 

 

From an ecological perspective on language learning and academic socialization, I discuss how 

the findings of this study can inform pedagogical considerations for creating agency rich 

environments to support EAL learners in first year composition courses. As Biesta and Tedder 

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(2007) pointed out, agency is not a personal trait nor an independent power but can be “achieved 

by means of an environment, not simply in the environment” (p. 137). To facilitate the 

achievement of EAL learners’ agency in their composition studies, instructors are important 

agents who have power over the learning activities, resources, and opportunities that students 

access (Douglas Fir Group, 2016). It is also important to acknowledge that the achievement of 

learner agency depends on the efforts and openness of both students and instructors (Larsen-

Freeman, 2019). As such, several pedagogical implications can be drawn from this study.  

 

First of all, this study suggests composition instructors and EAL educators become more 

aware of the complexities of academic writing for EAL learners and appreciate students’ 

resourcefulness in developing their academic literacy. It is also helpful for instructors to learn 

that EAL students’ struggles with English proficiencies do not mean that they are non-agentive 

or only a product of socialization. From a contemporary language socialization perspective, Duff 

and Doherty’s (2015) study indicated that agency is a crucial component in students’ self-

directed process of socialization since “highly motivated learners plan and exert their agency in 

various ways to achieve their goals” (p. 55). Thus, composition instructors could holistically 

understand EAL students’ learning paths and support them by recognizing EAL learners’ 

multiplicity of resources for practising academic writing, while acknowledging their challenges 

in developing English capacities in taking writing courses.  

 

Additionally, composition instructors can prompt EAL learners’ agency by optimizing 

the learning environment and guiding students to be adaptive to changing situations (Knoblock 

& Gorman, 2018; Larsen-Freeman, 2019; Shapiro et al., 2016). For instance, Shapiro et al. 

(2016) proposed a framework of “teaching for agency” (p. 31) and exemplified how to promote 

the agency of multilingual writers in classroom practices. Some pedagogical innovations, such as 

integrating agency as a central construct in designing writing assignments, may serve as a model 

for promoting EAL writers’ agency by optimizing resources in situated contexts for EAL 

students. Since writing centres play a central role in supporting EAL writing needs (Simpson & 

Waye, 2016), composition instructors could invite a writing tutor as an embedded guest in daily 

classroom activities. All the students, especially EAL learners, would benefit from such teaching 

practices.  

 

Furthermore, this study suggests composition instructors trust EAL students’ choices and 

create spaces for the latter to exercise their decision-making capacities with respect. As Larsen-

Freeman (2019) indicated, “at least create a place where students are not silenced because they 

cannot draw on all their language resources in the classroom” (p. 72). One practical way to 

achieve this trust and space can be initiating new projects, such as “writing about films,” chosen 

to encourage EAL writers to make choices and optimize their resources (Shapiro et al., 2016). 

The authors also indicated that allowing students to “thrive and stumble” with trust in these 

created spaces can lead to “learning and resilience” as a reward (p. 49). A specific example in 

this study was when participants who performed well in their genre analysis assignments were 

given the option to choose a genre type they were familiar with, such as a Chinese advertisement 

or fairy tale. As such, EAL learners felt empowered to exercise their agency by utilizing multiple 

resources. 

  

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Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research 

 

There were several limitations to this study. First, the sampling of this case study was small and 

student groups were limited to Chinese EAL writers in a Canadian first-year composition course 

context. Future research could include EAL learners with diverse linguistic and cultural groups, 

which would further enrich research findings in this field. In particular, considering the local 

context of this study, it was also necessary to include the needs of domestic students who were 

also EAL learners because of their families’ immigration status. Compared to international EAL 

learners, the academic writing needs of domestic EAL students were less visible and tended to be 

overlooked by instructors and academic support services.  

 

In addition to the sampling of EAL learners, the design of research methods can also be 

modified within specific institutional contexts. Preferably, if future studies could include an 

ongoing needs analysis of EAL learners with a larger sample size, the findings could identify and 

categorize students’ specific needs with updated information to complement qualitative case 

studies. Institutional policies and programs would also benefit from such investigations. 

Moreover, it would be interesting to compare and contrast EAL learners and NES students in 

terms of their attitudes, needs, and expectations in taking first-year composition courses (e.g., 

Stuart, 2012). The results would provide insights for pedagogical approaches to teaching 

composition with an inclusive and culturally responsive curriculum.  

 

Acknowledgements 

 

I would like to thank the participants for agreeing to take part in this study. I would also like to 

thank the anonymous reviewers and the editor of the BC TEAL Journal for taking time to read 

the earlier version of this article and giving their feedback. 

 

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Appendix: Semi-Structured Interview Questions 

 

A. First Interview 

 

1. In general terms, how has your time in this university gone so far?  

2. Have you experienced any academic challenges or barriers in your studies? 

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3. How often do you write in English in your daily life? 

4. What do you think are the main differences between daily writing and academic writing? 

5. Have you ever been taught how to write papers in your first language? If so, when and how? 

6. Have you ever been taught how to write papers in English? If so, when and how? 

7. What writing skills and knowledge have you learned so far from the course? 

8. How does the reading of academic articles help you in academic writing? 

9. What challenges have you experienced so far in your writing assignments (both in-class and 

out-of-class)? 

10. Could you understand the writing expectations (such as class assignments or writing 

guidance) in the course clearly? 

11. Do you feel satisfied with your academic writing so far? What are the parts of your writing 

that you feel good about or bad about? 

12. Do you feel your language proficiency (will) affect your performance in the academic 

writing? 

13. How do you feel being a Chinese EAL student in the class? What challenges do you think 

you’ve encountered or experienced being a first-year international student?  

14. Have you consulted anyone (e.g., friends, the writing centre) while writing and revising your 

assignments? How often do you do it? 

15. What are your goals in the course for academic writing? 

 

B. Second Interview  

 

1. Since our first interview, what sorts of changes, if any, have occurred regarding your 

academic writing here at the university? 

2. What kind of writing skills or competence have you gained or developed from the course? 

3.  Do you feel your academic writing has improved, regressed, or stayed the same? 

4. Which assignment for academic writing do you feel most challenging so far? Why? 

5. Have you found the written feedback from the instructors to be helpful? How? 

6. In what ways does the writing course support you in your subject learning?  

7. Do you feel you have received enough support with your writing? Why or why not?  

8. What writing-related support have you sought to obtain so far? (e.g., one-on-one writing 

tutoring, writing workshop)? How does it help or facilitate your studies? 

9. For what writing skills or writing-related knowledge do you feel you need further support? 

10. Based on the support and guidance you have received thus far in your program, what do you 

feel will be your biggest challenges for academic writing in the future? Do you feel prepared 

to advance to your next academic stage? What role does writing have in this process?  

 

 

 
The BC TEAL Journal is licensed under a 

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. 

Copyright rests with the author(s). 

 

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