The effectiveness of peer discussion in picture-guided composition writing: a study among primary 6 pupils at SK. St. John Sebayor, Kota Samarahan / Agnes Mit Johnny Pising

This study is carried out to determine the extent ofusefulness ofpeer discussion as an aid to learners in picture-guided composition writing. A total of 20, Year 6 pupils of SK. St. John Sebayor are randomly selected as samples to be used in this study. In determining the extent to which peer discussion encourages greater quantity of learner input for their compositions, subjects are given 4 sets ofpicture-guided writing tasks to engage in. In the 1st task, subjects are given 2 picture-guided compositions and they are asked to complete the compositions without any discussion. In the 2nd task, subjects are given another 2 picture-guided compositions and they are asked to complete the compositions with
discussion. Before the composition stage began, subjects are required to discuss the given tasks. After the subjects have completed their compositions, a set of questionnaire is administered to the subjects to gauge their responses to peer discussion in relation to the tasks given. Findings derived from the study show that majority ofthe subjects perceived peer discussion as a highly useful aid in their writing. A considerably high percentage, i.e 90 percent ofthe subjects preferred to discuss the picture-related tasks before starting to write their compositions. In conclusion, it can be deduced through the study that peer discussion is a highly rated pre-writing activity among young learners.