Ali roohani - Shahrekord University
sima samanian - Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch

Writing is a demanding, complicated, and fundamental skill which is highly noticeable in the process of learning a foreign language. Thus, it is so important to teach English as a foreign langauge (EFL) learners how to write effectively in English through effective strategies and instructions and prompt their reflective thinking during EFL learning.This study investigated the effectiveness of using self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) instruction in improving Iranian EFL learners' descriptive writing and reflective thinking skills and compared the effectiveness of such instruction with nonstrategic-based (i.e., traditional) instruction. To these ends, 30 Iranian advanced EFL learners were selected to participate in the two (experimental and control) groups in a pretest postest control group desing. To collect data, two-timed descriptive essays and a reflective thinking questionnairer were used. The analyses of covariance on the descriptive essay and reflective thinking scores in the control and experimental groups showed that both SRSD and non-SRSD instructions had a positive impact on the EFL participants' descriptive writing skill but, the participants in the SRSD group, in comparsion with the non-SRSD group, achieved better outcomes in their descriptive writing; the SRSD instrcution was effective in improving the completeness, length, and overall quality of the EFL learners' descriptive writing performance. Also, SRSD instruction improved the learners' reflective thinking more than the non-SRSD instruction by making them metacognitively aware of their cognitive processes and monitoring, analyzing, and evaluating their descriptive writing performance. The findings draw attention to the importance of using SRSD as a possible way for moving EFL learners away from traditional instructions to process-oriented strategies in writing courses

descriptive writing, SRSD, reflective thinking