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Chapter 3 - L2 Writing and Technology

From word processors to AI and the Lean Framework for teaching it well

The four waves as a diagnostic, not a history lesson

Wave	What changed	Permanent insight that survived
1. Word processors (1980s–90s)	Revision became keystrokes, not hours	Lower the cost of revision and students revise more
2. Internet & email (1990s–2000s)	Writing gained a real, distant audience	Authentic audience produces better writing than teacher-as-sole-reader
3. Collaborative platforms (2000s–2020s)	Writing became visibly social and traceable	Collaboration is a skill that must be taught, not a setting that happens automatically
4. AI / LLMs (2022–present)	The act of writing itself became optional	Different in kind: AI can replace writing, not just assist it - the acquisition risk is new

Every wave produced panic, followed by adaptation. AI is currently moving from Stage 2 (panic) toward Stage 3 (experimentation). Every previous wave reached Stage 5 - invisible infrastructure.

A diagnostic exercise: which wave trained you, and which wave are your students in?

Ask yourself which wave most shaped your own training as a teacher, then ask which wave is most visible in how your current students relate to technology. The gap between those two answers is usually where the most useful professional growth happens - it tells you exactly which instincts you need to build deliberately rather than rely on from your own training.

Additional activities for Chapter 3

Individual10 minReflection

Activity 3.A - My Wave. Teachers identify which wave shaped their own training and name one permanent insight from it they already apply, consciously or not.

Pair15 min

Activity 3.B - Audience Audit. Pairs review one regularly-assigned writing task and ask: does it have a real audience beyond the teacher? What is the smallest change (a partner class, a public class blog, a real recipient) that would give it one, per Wave Two's permanent insight?

Further resources

Appendix B - The Four Waves and the Lean Framework ↗
Warschauer, M. (1996). Computer-assisted language learning: An introduction.
Godwin-Jones, R. (2021). Big data and language learning.