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Volume 38
Professional Teaching Articles
August 2009
Article2

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Title
Writing Wordless Picture Books to Facilitate English Writing

Author
Yi-Ching Huang.

Bio

Yi-Ching Huang is an assistant professor in the Department of Applied Foreign Languages at Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology in Taiwan. Her Interest include English teaching and English for Specific Purposes. She teachers class in English composition, English reading and ESP (Journalistic English, Business English).

Abstract
This study attempted to examine the extent to which students in the Department of Applied English in one selected university learn to sustain their English writing by using wordless picture books, and the effectiveness of using wordless picture books in terms of students’ English language learning. In this study, a qualitative case study methodology was used to gather data from the perspectives of the participants involved. This study employed the following techniques to collect data in this study: 1) teacher observations of student participation in whole-class and small-group activities; 2) students’ writing sample; 3) informal interviews; 4) class presentations; 5) pre-test writing sample; 6) students’ reflective writing; and 7) questionnaires. The benefits of using wordless picture books showed that students improved their visual literacy and oral to written expression, promoted their creative writing and thinking skills, and enhanced their enjoyment of the writing process. Limited oral language skills and lack of time for teachers to teach and evaluate the writing process were examined in depth for this research question. Based on the data and observation, this study highly endorsed the use of wordless picture books to improve student writing.

Key Words: Wordless picture books; English writing; creative writing; English learning.

Introduction
Students’ inability to communicate through written language appears to be problematic in vocational colleges. Generally speaking, students as a whole are poor writers. College teachers are often stunned at their students’ inability both to express ideas clearly and to use the correct conventions to convey those ideas. English as Second Language (ESL) students in vocational colleges exhibited a need for improving writing skills as evidenced by classroom teacher observations, authentic writing portfolios and surveys, and test scores. When students read the assigned textbooks in schools to improve their writing, they get frustrated writing what they know in English and often begin to draw away from learning English. This frustration also affects students’ attitudes and abilities in regards to their English writing. In the past, conventional teaching approaches primarily focused on vocabulary learning and grammar drills in the classroom. However, the effectiveness of using such teaching approaches is limited. Most advanced students are still relatively incompetent in communicating with people in writing. As Graves (1983) mentions, most schools

ignore the child’s urge to show what he knows. We underestimate the urge because of a lack of understanding of the writing process and what children do in order to control it. Instead, we take the control away from children and place unnecessary road blocks in the way of their intentions (p. 3).

Since vocational students generally feel frustrated and are afraid to learn English, it is necessary for college teachers’ instructional methodologies to go beyond traditional textbooks in order to increase their students’ ESL writing skills. 

   A number of studies supported the notion that the use of wordless picture books is an effective way to improve students’ writing skills (Anderson & Lapp, 1988; Henry, 2003; Salminen, 1998);

wordless picture books can be used to encourage the development of writing skills, not only with young children who are beginning writers, but also with older students who already possess some skill in writing (D’Angelo, 1979, p. 813).

Saliminen (1998) also mentions that wordless books are a gift to ESL students as well as an ideal medium for initiating writing activities because wordless books actively stimulate readers’ imagination and thoughts which in turn stimulates students’ creative writing. Although wordless picture books are usually viewed as vehicles to enhance the reading and writing process, few empirical studies investigate the effectiveness of improving college students’ English writing skills through the use of these books in Taiwan. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of the use of wordless books in terms of college students’ writing skills in ESL classes in Taiwan, to see how wordless picture books serve as a resource for the English writing curriculum and to determine what difficulties and problems students encountered using this approach.

Definition of term
Wordless picture books in this study are defined as books that have no written text to accompany the pictures and are available in print.

Literature review
Using wordless picture books as a language experience is likely to connect visual literacy (learning to interpret images), cultural literacy (learning the characteristics and expectations of social groups) and print literacy (learning to read and write language) (Jalongo et al., 2002). Namely, these connections support the idea that wordless picture books offer a variety of topics, themes, and levels of difficulty to develop overall literacy skills in terms of language learning. 
   Wordless picture books are explained as ’pure’ picture books (Hillman, 1995). They are read by means of illustrations and the story depends on what the readers visualize. Picture books without text help students create their own story using the pictures they see rather than the words they read. Beyond the typical characteristics of a conventional beginning, a sequence of events, and a conventional ending, wordless picture books help students to be inspired and to have more creative ideas through using the pictures. In Reese’s (1996), through discussion and critical examination of the details of the illustrations, students wrote sentences that effectively complemented the pictures. This helped build their confidence as readers and writers because these books employ illustrations, therefore the possibilities for students’ understanding and enjoyment of the story are expanded (Bishop & Hickman, 1992).
   However, this does not mean wordless picture books are a replacement for books with text. Instead, picture books are used as an additional tool to motivate students to use pictures to expand their vocabulary by expressing their ideas more precisely. As Carter (et al., 1998) stated, by building on this skill, students can be guided to expand their sentences; in turn, they may also have the potential to integrate visual literacy skills into their writing. 
   Furthermore, Degler (1979) suggests that students are allowed to evaluate a character’s actions, focus on some aspect of the unfolding drama, and develop a variety of thinking strategies through the use of wordless picture books. Hopkins (1979) also argues,

using wordless picture books in your classroom can provide many opportunities for listening, discussing, writing, and dramatizing activities that stretch young minds and stimulate thinking (p. 28).

Apparently, the literature indicates that the use of wordless picture books encourages students to develop higher-order thinking skills and apply them to creative writing activities.
   As Lindauer (1988) suggests, “with wordless books, there are no ‘right’ words to read: a perfect foundation for purely creative thinking” (p. 138). Students have more flexibility and freedom to relay what they want to express using wordless picture books, and in turn, they feel safe and comfortable creating their work without the fear of making mistakes. These serve as a framework for students to become creative and successful writers through the presentation of pictures which clearly portray actions and sequences (D’Angelo, 1979).
   In Whalen’s (1974) study, wordless books allowed her students to write well-developed stories that they could share with others. This study also found that students enjoyed the writing process more while using wordless picture books. If students perceive writing to be enjoyable and fun, they will be confident enough to share their perspectives and feelings on paper. Given this assumption, students are able to feel like they have the whole world in their hands by using wordless picture books.
   The literature clearly reveals that utilizing wordless picture books improves student writing. However, these studies do not elaborate in detail how wordless picture books are used with ESL students in order to compensate for the language barrier. This literature also claims that wordless picture books are helpful when working with younger students, but there are a few suggestions offered as to how to use them for ESL writing. Moreover, wordless picture books are generally viewed as only for preschool and kindergarten students, even though their greatest asset seems to be that they ensure successful learning experiences. Cassady (1998) states,

wordless books enhance creativity, vocabulary, and language development for readers of all ages, at all stages of cognitive development, and in all content areas. Along with teacher guidance, wordless books can especially benefit linguistically or culturally different readers and struggling readers and writers, as well as more experienced ones in their middle or junior high school years. Those are crucial years in the development of lifelong readers. (p. 429)

   Wordless books are not just limited to younger readers but can now include older readers. However, few empirical studies have been conducted for their use with college students’ writing, especially for their use with students in vocational colleges in Taiwan. According to Heish (2001), in addition to general English, the proficiency and competency of English writing for technical and vocational students became essential after Taiwan joined the World Trade Organisation. Thus, there is a need to foster technical and vocational students’ English writing skills with the air of cultivating professionals who are good at English for private-run corporations or government organizations.
   This study attempts to examine the extent to which students in the Department of Applied English in one selected school learn to sustain their English writing by using wordless picture books, and the effectiveness of using wordless picture books in terms of students’ English learning. The research questions are

1. How do the students perceive the effectiveness of using wordless picture books?
2. What challenges and problems do students encounter in this alternative way to improve their English writing by using wordless picture books?

Methodology
Participants
Forty freshmen students at the Department of Applied English in one selected university of science and technology in Taiwan were selected to participate in this study. These participants included eight male students, and thirty-two female students. The range of students’ was from nineteen to twenty years old. Their English language level almost reached the Elementary level for General English Proficiency Test (GEPT), commissioned by Taiwan's Ministry of Education.
This research was conducted from September 2006 to January 2007. The participants were required to meet for at least 2 hours per week for this study.

Data collection
This study employed the following techniques to collect data: 1) teacher observations of student participation in whole-class and small-group activities; 2) students’ writing samples; 3.) pre-test writing samples; 4) class presentations; 5) informal interviews, 6) students’ reflective writing; and 7) questionnaires.

1. Teacher observations of student participation in whole-class and small-group activities. The teacher observed students’ behavior in their group discussions. Sometimes, the teacher conducted informal observations of students in the classroom, the lobby or in the teacher’s office. The information obtained through informal observations in the school allowed the researcher to gain a broader perspective of the role, form and functioning of students’ group discussions. Through these informal observations, the researcher learned first-hand information that cannot be gained from interviews about the dynamics within students’ groups. During all observations, field notes were used to record impressions, observations, and identify questions to be explored.
2. Students’ writing sample. Students’ writing samples (See appendix A) were considered as the data in this study. This makes clear how students responded to this teaching approach, and how they made efforts to write their books. Before writing their wordless picture books, students needed to do clustering activities (See Appendix B) to develop their story. Clustering can help students to construct their story development and some background about vocabulary they can use.   
3. Pre-test writing sample. Students were asked to take part in writing with pictures in GEPT as pre-test before conducting this study.
4.  Class presentations. Students were asked to present their e-books in English at the end of the semester. Students needed to upload pictures, add animation effects, and background music to their presentation.
5. Informal interviews. All participants who were interviewed were volunteers. The individuals were interviewed at a location most convenient to them. Interviews were tape recorded, and notes were taken during the interviews to stimulate future questions and clarification. Each was transcribed soon after the interview was concluded. The time for each interview was approximately one hour and followed a planned interview protocol designed by the researcher.
6. Students’ reflective writing. Students wrote their reflections on doing this project after finishing this study. Students wrote about their feelings about writing their own stories, described their problems and challenges and experiences about this writing process.
7. Questionnaires. All of the students were asked to answer the questionnaire (Appendix C) designed by the researcher.

Procedures and activities
Pair-and-share meeting
Students were encouraged to select a wordless picture book to read and develop an original storyline about the pictures. They had the opportunity to create their own storyline for the book and then tell the story to their partner. Using the “Story Map” method, students began to write their storyline by identifying the setting, main character, conflict, and resolution. Once students completed their “Story Map”, each map was used as a guide to further develop their story.
   Students then shared their storylines with another student for critique. Comments and suggestions were provided by their partner for further story development. The books students selected included Pancake for Breakfast by DePala (1978), Truck by Crews (1980), The Snowman by Briggs (1978), Changes, Changes by Hutchins (1971), and In my Garden by Cristini (1981). Any necessary revisions were made based on the pair-and-share, student-student meeting.

Whole-class sharing
Once completed, students were asked to read their original story to the class. Students were encouraged to use multimedia for the picture books during their presentation. For example, students had to add background music and animation effects into their wordless books in their oral presentations. The books students presented were a kind of e-book for the audience.  

Data analysis
A pre-writing sample was administered to the students on the first day of the study. The sample provided baseline data about the students’ writing skills. After all the participants carried out the tasks, the researcher administered a questionnaire on the assigned tasks in this study. All of the data were triangulated to interpret the information and clarify the research questions.
   Several steps were taken to establish the trustworthiness of data collection and analysis (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). First, data were collected over six months to validate the classroom observations. Second, multiple data sources were used to ensure methodological triangulation. In addition, an ‘audit trail’ was used to establish dependability and confirmability ((Lincoln & Guba, 1985). The audit trail in this study included informal interview transcripts, interview guidelines, lists of interviewees, students’ writing sample, students’ reflective writing, a pre-test writing sample, questionnaires and notes about the research procedure. The audit trail should allow the reader to understand the researcher’s thought processes and procedures in relation to collecting and analyzing the data.

Results and discussion
Perceived benefits of using wordless picture books
Students in this study found three benefits of using wordless picture books. These benefits included enhancement of enjoyment of the writing process, promotion of creative writing and thinking skills, and the fostering of cooperative learning. Each of these benefits will be discussed in more detail below.

Enhancing the enjoyment of the writing process
The majority of the students in the students’ questionnaires (70.97%) indicated that writing using wordless picture books was an interesting way to learn English writing, although they felt it was difficult to write their story based on the wordless picture books they selected. From students’ questionnaires and students’ reflective writing, more than 30 students reported that this was their first time to write using picture books in English. They felt proud of writing “a book” on their own when they read their story to the class. Data in this study show it was a valuable experience for students to write the first book in their life in English.  
   Most of the students (75 %) agreed that their English writing would be better if they kept on learning English by using wordless picture books. This evidence proves that this approach to teaching writing provides motivation to encourage students to learn English. Carter, et al., (1998) mentioned that when students perceive writing to be fun, they will be more confident in sharing their thoughts and feelings on paper. However, according to the teacher’s observation, the students in this study were not confident about sharing their story with classmates, although they felt it was an interesting way to learn English. One explanation might be that students’ English proficiency is limited so they had a hard time sharing their thoughts in English. Given the fact that students have difficulties with sharing in English, they really need a good way to motivate them to learn English other than traditional English teaching methods. This study suggests that using wordless picture books can be a successful way to motivate students in learning English writing because this way can enhance students’ enjoyment of the writing process.

Promoting Creative Writing and Thinking Skills
Seventy-one percent of the students in the questionnaire and 30 students from the student interviews reported that using wordless picture books can develop their creative thinking skills. Students in this study felt that they had more flexibility and freedom to develop their stories in their own words using English picture books. They also reported that this approach allows them to think about what they never thought about before. When the students invented their narratives, the students demonstrated an understanding of sequence in their stories, practiced oral and written storytelling skills, and expanded their cognitive abilities. Through this practice, students had a chance to develop logic in their story development, and in turn, foster their creative thinking and writing skills. Students have to create their own story using the pictures they see rather than the words they read, so they are more likely to add original text in English with wordless books. As Lindauer (1988) said, “with wordless books, there are no ‘right’ words to read: a perfect foundation for purely creative thinking” (p. 138). From the teacher’s observations in the classroom and from the students’ writing samples, the students’ writing tended to be very creative. For example, a group of students developed their story using Raymond Briggs The Snowman. Each page in this book consists of a series of pictures of a little boy interacting with a snowman. Students have to use their higher order thinking skills to explain their storyline. They ingeniously explained the adventures of a snowman that comes to life and how he interacts with the boy who made him. Another example of students’ work is using Truck by Donald Crews (1980). This book illustrates an enormous trailer truck loaded with tricycles and its trip on the road. Students in this study displayed the truck turning corners, going through a tunnel, moving up a hill, stopping at an all night diner, and traveling in the rain to deliver tricycles.
   After students worked through their wordless picture books, their writing improved and they became increasingly more willing to revise their stories. Their sentences were longer and more descriptive and used conversation. For instance “the big rabbit seemed to show something interesting to me” became “the big rabbit said ‘I would like to show you something interesting to you. Are you interested in it?’ asked the rabbit”.
   Throughout the 6 months of the project, the teacher believed that students learned to write stories in complete sentences, to expand their ideas to better describe the pictures, and to produce a meaningful story. They also learned how to link words to make the story cohesive, and how to begin sentences in different ways. Students also learned to use quotation marks for conversations, commas for items in a series, exclamation marks for emphasis, ellipses (to tell the reader that the thought was not yet complete) and correct verb tenses. Data from this study shows that using wordless picture books provides a writing context where students are free to explore and create.

Fostering Cooperative Learning
61.29 percent of students from the questionnaire reported that they learned new vocabulary by writing using wordless picture books. From the questionnaires and students’ reflective writing, students in this study reported that they usually used dictionaries and visited websites as references to complete their stories. In addition, the students also agreed that their biggest problem with writing storylines for wordless picture books was their limited vocabulary. Students in the study showed that they learned how to use their vocabulary in their writing. They said that they usually learnt difficult words from textbooks, but they did not know how to use them in their real life. The evidence in the study showed that students with limited vocabulary are likely to be guided to expand their vocabulary when completing sentences. When students are encouraged to invent their own stories by using pictures, the students’ vocabulary was expanded by expressing their ideas more precisely. For example, in the book Truck byDonald Crews (1980), students not only learned words such as tunnel, fire hydrant, diner, diesel, bridge, etc., but also consequential words such as first, next, then, last, and so on. This evidence corresponds to the argument of Carter (et. al., 1998) that says using wordless picture books helps students to develop their writing skills and enhances students’ vocabulary. Moreover, when students’ vocabulary increases, they are more likely to develop their English writing skills.
   Furthermore, more than half of the students believed that group discussion and editing helped their English writing. According to students’ reflective writing and questionnaires, the students thought that group editing is helpful for story development, especially in English writing. During group discussion, students can talk with their partners about how their story developed, how to make the story more logical and coherent, what words should be used, and what grammar structures should be. The map story tool makes students think about the settings, problems, possibilities, consequences, and solutions when they first read their wordless picture books. Then, they talk about their map story with their teammates, and modify their story. This process occurs prior to the initial writing of Draft 1. Overall, 61.29 percent of students who responded to the questionnaire said that they liked to work with their partners on writing using wordless pictures.
   In the students’ reflective writing and students’ questionnaire, most of the students believed that class presentation helped to improve their communication, and provided them with opportunities for them to practice English. Students also noted that they not only learned English, but also learned computer skills from this project. They had to learn how to up load the pictures onto the computer, how to modify text size when typing words under the photos, and how to present their own book with music as a narrator.
   From the teacher’s evaluation and assessment, although there were mistakes in the students’ writing samples, their English writing improved in comparison with their pre-test writing sample. The teacher found that the students’ writing tended to be more cohesive and logical in their writing samples, more organized with regards to the ideas used to enrich a theme, and more correct in terms of spelling, grammar, usage, paragraphing, and capitalization.
   Finally, according to the teacher’s observations, students’ informal interviews, students’ questionnaires, students’ writing samples and presentations, cooperative learning happened while conducting the wordless picture books tasks.

Problems students perceived using wordless picture books
What challenges and problems did the students perceive using wordless picture books as an alternative method to improve their writing? Limited oral language skills and a lack of time for teachers to teach and evaluate the writing process were examined in depth for this research question.

Limited Oral Language Skills
In examining the problems and challenges involved in student writing, students’ inability to communicate through written language involves oral language skills. Students in their class presentations had difficulties presenting what they had written in English. In the students’ presentations, the students presented their stories with minimal fluency. As Tiedt (1983) said, “without a strong oral language foundation, no student will write well” (p. 10). Obviously, students need to have opportunities to use the mode of communication that they are most familiar with to develop their oral language; “[s]tudent indifference to written composition is often due to the isolation of written composition from spoken discourse” (Haley-James, 1981, p. 10). Thus, this study suggests that teachers need to provide more opportunities for students to practice dialogue before and during the writing process in order to develop their ideas.

Lack of time for teachers to teach and evaluate the writing process
The second problem is that teachers often do not have enough time to teach or evaluate student writing because of big class sizes. The teacher found it hard to find enough time to edit and evaluate students’ writing in this study due to the large number of students. According to Anderson and Lapp (1988),

in a daily writing program, thirty children might generate sixty to ninety pieces of writing a week. Even if teachers spend only one and a half minutes per paper (most would probably spend two to three minutes) they would have to find approximately two more hours per week to grade written work (p. 330).

Corresponding to this study, teaching writing becomes a burden, and as such, less time is allocated for instruction. Large class size apparently increased the teacher’s teaching load and decreased teacher efficacy. The evidence in this study suggests that a writing class should be small in size otherwise teachers have difficulties finding enough time to edit students’ writing well.

Conclusions and Recommendations
Based on the presentation and analysis of the data on the study of wordless picture books, the students showed a marked improvement in their writing skills. The results of this study show that the students improved their sequencing skills by retelling the story in chronological order with details and consistent use of time-order words. The benefits of using wordless picture books show that students can improve their visual literacy and oral to written expression, promote their creative writing and thinking skills, and enhance their enjoyment of the writing process. Based on the data and observations, this research highly endorses the use of wordless picture books to improve student writing.
   There are some recommendations based on the data from this study. There are some vital components to the effectiveness of this approach. First, integrating lessons on vocabulary supports word development. Second, incorporating visual aids throughout the instructional process increases the awareness of specific skills (e.g. computer skills, story development, and English writing). Third, making real-world connections in curriculum planning is effective for students’ language learning. Fourth, organizing students in cooperative pairs and sharing fosters student enjoyment. Fifth, the costs are quite high if each student has one book to him or herself. But, for best results, each student should have their own book in order to completely see the pictures and visualize the actions of the story.
   This study encourages educators working with students to use wordless picture books to develop students’ writing skills. By doing so, both students and educators will be challenged to move toward new and exciting levels of accomplishment.

References
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Bishop, R., & Hickman, J. (1992). Four or fourteen or forty: Picture books are for    everyone. In S. Benedict & L. Carlisle (Eds.), Beyond words: Picture books for older readers and writers (pp. 1-10). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Briggs, R. (1978). The Snowman. New York: Random House.
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Cassady, J. K. (1998). Wordless books: No-risk tools for inclusive middle-grade classrooms. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy. 41, 428-432.

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Cristini, E. (1981). In my garden. New York: Scholastic.

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Henry, L. (2003). Creative writing through wordless picture books. Newark, DE: International Reading Association. (ERIC Document: Reproduction Service No. ED 477 997). 

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Hopkins, L. B. (1979). Look! No words. Teacher, 23(4), 28-31.

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Hutchins, P. (1971). Changes, changes. New York: Macmillan.

Jalongo, M. R. (Ed.). (2002). Using wordless picture book to support emergent literacy. Early childhood Education Journal, 29(3), 167-177.

Lincoln , Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Lindauer, S. K. (1988). Wordless books: An approach to visual literacy. Children’s Literature in Education, 19(3), 136-142.

Reese, C. (1996). Story development using wordless picture books. The Reading Teacher, 50, 172-173.

Salmien, J. (1998). Using wordless books in your ESL class. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Language. P. 17-21.( ERIC Document : Reproduction Service No. ED 423 693).

Whalen, L. (1974). Wordless picture books: Every picture tells a story, doesn’t it?        Emerging Librarian, 21 (5), 14-17.