A Model for Topic Closers: Improving Paragraph-Ending Sentences in English L2 Academic Writing

Abstract

Topic closers refer to strategies for constructing paragraph-final sentences in academic English writing. Their functional relationship to topic sentences is comparable to that between discussion and introduction sections in research articles. This study evaluates a model of ten topic-closer types (Labels) by examining whether English L2 student writers can learn to judge their functional appropriateness more consistently. Using a pretest–intervention–posttest design, participants rated 100 topic-closer sentences for suitability as paragraph endings. Learning was assessed using two complementary measures: appropriateness ratings and rating inconsistency. Mixed-effects analyses revealed a reliable overall increase in appropriateness ratings following instruction, with no corresponding time × label interaction, indicating that improvement was general rather than category-specific. In contrast, rating inconsistency showed a significant and uniform decrease across labels, suggesting that participants converged on more stable evaluative criteria for paragraph-final function. These findings indicate that brief instruction can strengthen discourse-level judgment even before fine-grained categorical distinctions emerge. Therefore, the model shows promise as both a pedagogical framework for teaching paragraph endings and a foundation for computational applications, including automated feedback systems for L2 academic writing.