The Application of Bandura's Social Learning Theory in the Teaching of Academic Writing

Abstract

Objective - This experimental study seeks to ascertain whether Bandura's (1977) Social Learning Theory can be used to teach academic writing. Interpreted in terms of an approach to the teaching of writing, the theory suggests that students can learn to write a particular text by observing closely the structural as well as the linguistic features of that text. Methodology/Technique - By observing how the text is written, students obtain an idea of how it is formed, and on later occasions they can use this information as a guide to produce similar texts. The sample of this study consists of 100 students from College University Poly-Tech MARA, Kuala Lumpur. The study adopts a pre/post-assessment of the students' writing performances for three types of academic essays. T-tests were used to compare the results of the 3 pre-tests with the results of the 3 post-tests which were administered to the participants after they underwent each of the 3 treatment sessions. Findings - The study reveals that the Social Learning Theory speaks the truth about the human natural learning process. Thus, this implies that this potent theory be used in designing varying approaches to teaching students the skills to write academic texts. Novelty - The study suggests that observational learning of sample texts provides students with guidance on how to improve their writing as it makes them aware of the different ways texts are organized for different communicative purposes, thereby promoting their confidence and positive attitude towards writing. Type of Paper - Empirical Keywords: Academic Writing; Social Learning Theory; Observational Learning; Analyzing; Emulating; Model Text.