Writing Self-efficacy

The purpose of the present study was to compare writing high achievers and low achievers TEFL (teaching English as foreign language) learners’ writing self-beliefs. Subjects, based on their officially recorded scores on the writing course, were assigned in two 22-member groups of high and low achievers. The adapted English version of Mills’ and Péron’s (2008) questionnaire and the Foreign Language Writing Self-Beliefs Instrument which assesses writing self-efficacy in the areas of organization, expression, content and grammar as well as writing self-concept, writing anxiety, perceived value of writing, and self-efficacy for self-regulation in writing were administered to evaluate each group’s writing self beliefs. The results of the two-way ANOVAs suggested that high achievers’ writing self beliefs were significantly higher than low achievers. Implications for researchers and educators are discussed.

The study aimed to investigate students’ self-efficacy, self-esteem, and attitude as determinants of their writing performance. The participants for the study were 373 South Gonder Zone Preparatory School students who were chosen using multistage sampling technique. Questionnaire and writing test were employed to gather data. Pearson’s Correlation technique was used to analyze the associations among the variables of this study. A standard multiple regression technique was used to check the combined effect of the students’ self-efficacy, self-esteem and attitude on the writing performance of students; a Stepwise regression technique was used to check the effect that each predictor variable could have on the students’ writing performance. Also, ANCOVA was employed to compute the independent effects of the students’ self-efficacy, self-esteem and attitude on the students’ writing performance after age and gender were adjusted. The study revealed that (1) the variables were significantly and positively correlated to each other; (2) the combined effect of the independent variables on students’ writing performance was R2 = .222 which means that 22.2% of the variation in the students’ writing performance was explained by the composite impact of self-esteem, attitude and self-efficacy of writing; (3) the independent effects of the three predictor variables on writing performance were found to be significant although attitude was identified as the only predictor of writing performance when age and gender were controlled. The study concludes that self-efficacy, self-esteem and attitude have significant roles in predicting performance of writing though attitude takes the lion’s share in determining the latter.

The significance of alternative assessment in second language (L2) has been widely acknowledged in the literature. However, the implementation of alternative assessment in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context has not been much welcome by L2 educators and practitioners.  To contribute to this line of inquiry, the aim of the present research was set to explore the impact of implementing self-assessment and peer-assessment practices on writing performance and writing self-efficacy of EFL learners in Iran. To this end, a total number of 36 homogeneous intermediate learners were selected as the participants who were then randomly assigned to a self-assessment group (N= 17) and a peer-assessment group (N= 19). As for the treatment of the present study, the participants of the self-assessment group were taught to self-assess their writing tasks, whereas the participants of the peer-assessment group were taught to assess the writings of their peers.  Two timed-writing essays and the Writing Self-Efficacy Scale (WSES) wereadministered to collect the data. The results obtained from performing paired-samples t-tests and ANCOVA indicated that both self- and peer-assessment activities significantly contributed to improving writing performance and writing self-efficacy of the participants. Nevertheless, it was revealed that the participants of the peer-assessment group performed better than those in the self-assessment group in terms of both writing performance and writing self-efficacy, showing that peer-assessment activities were more effective than self-assessment activities in increasing writing competencies and self-efficacy of the participants. The findings of the study offer theoretical and pedagogical implications for L2 researchers and practitioners.

The present study examined the comparative effects of Etherpad-based writing instruction and face-to-face writing instruction on EFL learners' writing quality and writing self-efficacy. It also aimed at finding the learners' attitude towards the influence of Etherpad and their reason for success/ failure in this writing course. To this end, ninety students were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to one of the two instruction groups. In addition to an IELTS writing task, Self-efficacy in Writing Scale (SWS) was administered. During the course, the students received instruction on writing an argumentative essay. After the treatment, the SWS and another IELTS writing task were given. Subsequently, a semi-structured interview was conducted with twenty Etherpad-based learners to find their attitudes towards the reason for their success/ failure and the effectiveness of Etherpad. The results revealed that the Etherpad-based group significantly outperformed the face-to-face group in the writing posttest and demonstrated a higher level of writing self-efficacy. The interview data showed that the students attributed their success to both internal and external factors. Whereas, they ascribed their failure to internal factors rather than external ones. It was also revealed that the students found Etherpad as a predictor of their success in writing performance.