Collaborative Paper Writing as a Tool to Advance Language Competence

Abstract

As an effective tool to advance language competence, writing papers collaboratively has the characteristic of improving author language skills, providing authors with opportunities to practice language skills in meaningful contexts. As authors collaborate to yield a paper, they get exposure to grammar genres, structures, and expressions. Concurrently, during the process, language is applied to communicate ideas effectively. This paper aims to investigate whether collaboration is really a beneficial aspect for authors. This qualitative investigation was embedded in case study design to uncover truths experienced in real-life situations. To collect data, semi-structured interviews were administered to five university scholars chosen from a population of authors reported to have successfully written publishable papers. It emerged as major findings that individual comprehension can be improved when authors collaborate on paper writing, and, as authors receive written feedback from each other, language competence advances. Although previous publications on writing collaboratively exist, research is silent on improved language competence acquired through this practice. It is concluded that individual comprehension can be improved by collaborative paper writing as the process provides opportunities for authors to justify and discuss their ideas. As they work collaboratively, authors deepen their understanding of the material and enhance their language skills.