scholarly journals Teaching Writing in EAP Contexts

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viorica Condrat
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Process Development ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Teaching Writing ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Discourse Community ◽  
State University ◽  
Efl Students

Academic writing is a particular type of scholarly interaction which signals the writer’s affiliation to a specific discourse community. Developing academic writing skills should become a priority for higher education. This paper describes a small-scale study which investigates the role of blogging in developing academic writing skills in undergraduate students. Blogging is viewed as a platform where the scholarly interaction between members of the same discourse community can take place. The paper is based on the survey data and observation during the experiment conducted at Alecu Russo Balti State University of Moldova. It reports on how EFL students reacted to the use of blogs for academic writing tasks. The findings suggest that students seem to have a positive attitude to blogging pointing out to such benefits as: enhanced self-efficacy, awareness of the writing process, development of reader awareness, increased responsibility for the quality of the writing. We argue that blogging can yield significant improvement in undergraduate students’ academic writing.

scholarly journals The role of information literacy competence and higher order thinking skills to develop academic writing in Science and Engineering learners

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Kranthi Kumari
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Teaching Writing ◽  
Rhetorical Situation ◽  
Entry Level ◽  
Academic Texts ◽  
Raising Awareness ◽  
Writing In Science

<p>The English syllabus for learners pursuing engineering courses includes teaching writing as one of the objectives. Learners who enroll for these courses are not equipped with the general writing skills that they should have mastered at the entry level. In this context, a study was organized to develop academic writing skills of the undergraduate learners who are pursuing engineering courses.  The study focused on raising awareness in the learners of the nature and characteristics of academic texts in order to develop academic writing skills. The study also emphasizes that involving the learners in the cognitive processes of writing that include defining the rhetorical problem, identifying the rhetorical situation, the audience and setting goals for writing, planning for the text by generating and organizing ideas is necessary. The study further suggests that discussions between learners and teachers regarding the construction of a text and the way language works in various text types facilitates better writing.</p>

scholarly journals An Attempt at Promoting Undergraduate Sudanese EFL Students’ Performance in Academic Writing Skills

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ammar Mohammed Ahmed Mudawy
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Extensive Reading ◽  
Reading And Writing ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
Holy Quran ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
University Level

The study aims at suggesting effective methods and techniques that could improve English as a foreign language EFL students’ performance in writing skills. The researcher uses the descriptive, analytical method. Four tools were adopted pretest, post-test, supporting program, and a questionnaire for teachers for collecting data. Twenty-five students in Holy Quran University, Sudan, were chosen purposively, and thirty EFL teachers at a university level were randomly selected as a sample for the study. Ninty percent of the teachers agree on the suggested program and techniques. The findings of the study indicate that: using varied techniques and activities in pre-writing stage promotes students’ performances in writing, integration of reading and writing skills in the classroom improves students’ writing skills, as well as encouraging extensive reading outside the classroom promotes students’ performance in writing skills. Accordingly, the researcher recommends that: teachers should focus on the prewriting stage through different activities as well as reading and writing should be used in an integrated way in-class writing to guide the writing process.

scholarly journals The Autonomy of Indonesian EFL Students: A Mixed Method Investigation

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (11) ◽  
pp. 422-443
Author(s):  
M Melvina ◽  
Nenden Sri Lengkanawati ◽  
Yanty Wirza
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Mixed Method ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Independent Learning ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
State University ◽  
Mixed Method Design ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Second Year

The present study sought to scrutinize undergraduate EFL students’ learning autonomy in a state university in Indonesia. This study employed a triangulation study of mixed-method design by distributing questionnaires and conducting interviews to get quantitative and qualitative data. The questionnaire was distributed to 40 second year participants enrolled in listening, speaking, reading, and writing for academic purposes classes, whereas 15 participants were selected for the interview Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used to analyse the data collected from the questionnaire and the interview. Findings revealed that the level of students’ learner autonomy was classified as moderate level of autonomy. This indicated that Indonesian undergraduate students were considered somewhat autonomous learners. In addition, the Indonesian undergraduate students defined learner autonomy as independent learning with or without the teacher’s assistance, students responsible for their own learning, and learner autonomy was the student’s self-awareness and self-initiated to learn outside the classroom to find ways of learning and collaborate with others. The study recommended that teachers should consistently develop learner autonomy in their teaching practice.

Need Analysis for Developing Writing Skill Materials Using Facebook for English Undergraduate Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 542
Author(s):  
Geminastiti Sakkir ◽  
Syarifuddin Dollah ◽  
Safnil Arsyad ◽  
Jamaluddin Ahmad
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Academic Writing ◽  
Writing Process ◽  
Lesson Plan ◽  
Teaching Writing ◽  
Needs Analysis ◽  
Visual Aids ◽  
Need Analysis ◽  
Online Social Media

This research is aiming at giving a contribution to the lecturers’ knowledge on the design materials in using social media Facebook in teaching writing process to English Department students. Before conducted the developing module for Facebook-based writing instructional course, we surveyed and explored the student’s need. The stages of this research consisted of need analysis and document analysis. We conducted needs analysis to 141 English students and 2 lecturers of writing. Data were collected using need analysis questionnaire and interview. The analyzed documents in this research were lesson plan, syllabus and the existing textbooks. The data from questionnaire and interview were analyzed in quantitative and qualitative methods. The results concluded that: first, needs analysis is the basic of developing module for Facebook-based writing instructional course, in order that the material can be related to the students’ needs, levels and lecturers’ perception. The result of students need found urgent to develop module for facebook-based writing instructional course through the following criteria of interactive, self-contained, user friendly, online supporting, online social media, authentic, environmentally friendly, formal and informal environments, online evaluation, presented in visual  aids, support  and facilitate the students’  academic and non-academic writing activities, topics of the materials should be interesting which provides a cultural background of students, the materials should be implemented by applying vocabulary, reading texts, grammar and basic skills in writing process, implemented in beginner level (Writing 1), used in class and out- class and the materials globally/ international context. Second, the lecturers’ desires in teaching writing are to improve the students’ skill to comprehend the materials. Third, the existing materials are unsuitable for the students, they prefer learning facilitated by electronic social media, Facebook, so they will more motivate in write.

Enhancing and supporting the role of academic tutors in developing undergraduate writing skills: Reflections on the experiences of a social work education programme

2012 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 27-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Hughes ◽  
Sue Wainwright ◽  
Caroline Cresswell
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Academic Support ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Education Programme ◽  
Independent Study ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Consistent Manner ◽  
Effective Use ◽  
Work Education

Whilst approaches to the development of undergraduate academic writing skills vary between disciplines and institutions, academic tutors are consistently presented as playing an important role. One aspect of this role is supporting students to engage effectively with feedback in order to develop consciousness and competence regarding academic writing. This article reports on the use of a form, which was designed to encourage students to use feedback in a structured and consistent manner and to support subsequent tutor-tutee dialogue. Students and tutors who used the form suggest it encouraged students to reflect on their learning needs and identify priority issues for discussion with the tutor. However, barriers to its effective use remain. In particular, there was resistance amongst students to accessing academic support, due to anxieties that staff would look negatively upon those who seek help. Students expressed concern that tutors would perceive those seeking support as failing to cope with the demands of independent study, a set of skills they perceive that they were required to have on arrival at university, rather than to acquire during the course of their studies with the help and guidance of their academic tutor.

scholarly journals Use of Core Modal Verbs in Academic Writing of Thai EFL Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 277-291
Author(s):  
Saowadee Kongpetch
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Public University ◽  
Modal Verbs ◽  
The Third ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Thai Students ◽  
Efl Students

Modal verbs, as one of modality devices, play an important role in academic writing and argument. To gain insights into the use of modal verbs in academic writing of Thai EFL students, the in-depth analysis of 15 discussion essays written by the third-year English majors at one public university in Thailand was carried out. It focused specifically on the nine core modal verbs (can, could, may, might, will, would, shall, should and must) and examined their frequencies and semantic functions. The data analysis employed Sketch Engine, a corpus concordance, and drew on categories of semantic functions. The analysis revealed that can, will, may and should were the top four frequently favored items, respectively while must, could, would and might were found to be exceptionally underused. As for semantic functions, the most dominant meaning was “possibility” expressed by can. The results indicate that Thai students’ academic writing skills need to be significantly improved, particularly their ability to use modal verbs strategically in their essays. The curriculum design for academic writing needs to emphasize both syntactic structure and semantic functions of modal verbs and encompass activities urging students to practice using these modals systematically and purposefully.

scholarly journals Peer Feedback in Writing through Georgian EFL Undergraduate Students’ Eyes

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariam MERKVILADZE
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Peer Feedback ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
The Subject

Throughout the years educators, educational experts, teachers and tutors have been in the constant search of effective ways of teaching and assessing writing. The views about assessment of writing have encountered changes over the years. Therefore, feedback has become one of the fundamental aspects of teaching and learning writing. Peer feedback is one of the special ways to share the knowledge about writing and at the same time to contribute to creating the learner-oriented classroom environment within which students become active participants of their own path of learning writing. The primary objective of the present study is to investigate Georgian higher educational institutions’ (HEIs’) undergraduate EFL students’ perception of peer feedback and its role in the process of developing their writing skills. The findings of the present study show that peer feedback is appealing for the learners, since they believe it develops their critical-thinking and self-reviewing skills and gives them the sense of active participation. However, the present research has also revealed that the elements of friendship-related bias need special attention and should be the subject of further research in that field. 

scholarly journals Impact of Teachers’ Feedback in Improving Students’ Writing Skills: A Study of Tertiary Level Students in Dhaka

2021 ◽  
pp. 129-139
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
Tertiary Level ◽  
Proximal Development ◽  
Teacher Student ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Convenience Sampling ◽  
Giving Feedback ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Method Approach

This study sought to investigate the impact of teachers’ feedback in improving students' writing skills. Feedback is perhaps the most widely used method for responding to students’ writing. While various studies have investigated the effectiveness of providing error correction, there has been relatively little research in Bangladesh incorporating the impact of teachers' feedback in improving students’ writing skills. Supporting Vygotsky's concept of ‘Zone of Proximal Development’ a mixed-method approach was used to collect data. The data was analyzed in both numerical and descriptive manner. 90 undergraduate students were chosen for this research using convenience sampling. The major findings indicate that students find multiple benefits of feedback and have a positive attitude towards receiving feedback but the feedback they receive is not clear, specific, well explained, and immediate. This study finds that teacher-student conferencing is the feedback that students prefer the most. Finally, some suggestions are given to improve feedback quality for enhancing the writing skills of tertiary-level students in Bangladesh. This study will help teachers have a better understanding of giving feedback to improve the writing skills of EFL students. It will also facilitate educational administrators and policymakers.

scholarly journals A Systematic Review of the Challenges and Solutions of ESL Students‟ Academic Writing

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (5C) ◽  
pp. 1169-1171
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Teaching Methods ◽  
English Language ◽  
Writing Skills ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Teaching Writing ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Learning Collaborative ◽  
Cognitive Approach ◽  
Malaysian Students

Research studies on ESL writing are more interested in providing operational writing strategies for academic writing. However, there are not many studies on challenges faced by students and their solutions. The main aim of this paper is to provide a systematic literature review of academic writing studies which focused on investigating students’ academic writing challenges and their solutions. The papers used in this study were published from 2010 until 2019. A systematic search of literature proposed in this paper employs the exploratory approach for identifying and evaluating twenty-seven articles published in the authentic Journals. The themes of the review are divided into two categories, one which is related to ESL Malaysian students and another category is regarding non-Malaysians, this is due to the context of the study which will be conducted in Malaysia and therefore a review of studies done on Malaysian student academic writing is justified. The review shows there is a broader context of ESL students’ academic writing challenges and factors influencing students’ academic writing skills. In addition, as mentioned above, the review clearly shows the highlight of previous studies was on strategies which help improve students writing skills. As a conclusion, the review signifies that there are three major enormous challenges faced by ESL students in academic writing, such as teaching methods, students’ attitude towards English, and language ability. And the solutions to the challenges are to employ active learning English language teaching methods, for example, Task-Based learning (TBL), Blended learning, Collaborative learning and cognitive approach, in teaching writing.

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