Imagine learning to ride a bike for the first time. You have to focus on balancing, pedaling, and steering all at once! Well, a new study explored how young students learning to write in their second language, English, use various cognitive functions. They tested these students with fun brain games and analyzed their writing skills. Turns out, working memory, which is like a mental notepad that helps us remember and organize our thoughts, played a key role in their writing ability. Other cognitive skills, like being aware of individual sounds in words or developing better speech skills as they grew older, didn’t impact their writing as much. This research is important because it tells us how English learners learn to write, so teachers can create better ways to help them improve. Wondering about the details? Dive into the research article!

A new study has examined the role of several cognitive functions in young students learning to write English, their second language. The study conducted a battery of cognitive tests, gauged the writing skills of the students and then tested the functions again. Working memory, or how we store thoughts we want to convey, was shown to be the most significant predictor of writing ability. Other cognitive functions like phonological awareness and oral language development increased as the students aged, but were not associated with improved writing. The results not only help us understand how English learners, a growing population, learn to write, but can help educators design better interventions to help the students, researchers argue.

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