Effect of Different Types of Written Corrective Feedback on Accuracy and Overall Quality of L2 Learners’ Writing

The present study aims to trace the long term effects of different types of feedback--direct, indirect, and content-on EFL learners' writing accuracy (the major concern of SLA researchers) and overall writing quality (the primary aim of L2 writing researchers). Data was gathered from three groups of Iranian EFL learners (N=44) randomly assigned to an indirect feedback, a direct feedback, and a content feedback group. The first two groups received both content and form feedback, while the last group received content feedback only. Results obtained from the analysis of three essays written at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of the study, over the course of nine months, indicated a significant but small difference between formal feedback groups (direct and indirect) and only content feedback group regarding the long-term improvement of their writing accuracy. Nonetheless, no significant difference was found among the three groups with respect to the improvement observed in their overall writing quality in the long run. The study concludes that content feedback seems to be the most efficient feedback method, when we are concerned with the long-term improvement in either accuracy or overall quality of writing.