English Academic Writing Research Articles

Students' Perceptions of Using ChatGPT for Academic Writing in English

This article explores the perceptions of university students on the use of ChatGPT for academic writing in English. Participants (n = 79) are all students on mandatory English-language courses at a university Language Centre in Finland. They are predominantly first-year bachelor’s degree students from various degree programmes in different faculties. Participants’ insights were collected via a survey that was administered to several intact groups during the autumn semester of 2023. The survey collected quantitative and qualitative data which were analysed and discussed in light of students’ developing academic writing skills in English. The study sheds light on students’ specific uses of the AI-driven tool as well as their perceptions of its impact on not only the writing process and product, but also on their own writing skills. The results indicated that students perceived ChatGPT to have above average usability, a finding which was supported and elucidated by students’ free responses concerning ways in which they have used this technology. Conversely, the reasons that some students had not used it included, amongst others, a lack of need, ethical concerns and doubts about its usefulness. Given the continued development and availability of large language models such as ChatGPT, this research has clear implications for all stakeholders in higher education. In particular, by illustrating how students utilise ChatGPT in their academic writing, the study provides university language teachers with the insights needed to ensure that their course outcomes, content and assessments remain reflective of students’ developing knowledge and study practices.

A Qualitative Inquiry Into Metacognitive Strategies of Postgraduate Students in Employing ChatGPT for English Academic Writing

ABSTRACTRecent years have witnessed a growing application of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) technology in writing instruction. Students should mobilise their metacognitive strategies during this endeavour to maximise the benefits of GenAI while avoiding the potential negative impacts. Within the context of tertiary education in Hong Kong, this qualitative research investigates 13 postgraduate students' metacognitive strategies when utilising ChatGPT for English academic writing. Using data collected from audio recordings, semi‐structured interviews and human–GenAI chat logs, we explored students' metacognitive strategies within five dimensions, namely, planning, monitoring, evaluating, information management and debugging. The identified themes and subthemes within each dimension exhibited similarities to those observed in other educational settings. Meanwhile, certain metacognitive strategies (e.g., debugging) were found to be unique to the context of GenAI‐supported academic writing. This study contributes to the literature in two ways. Firstly, it provides a detailed and thorough understanding of metacognitive strategies, complementing the extensive quantitative research in this area. Secondly, this research expands the framework of metacognitive strategies to the context of GenAI‐supported academic writing learning.

Efficacy of WeChat Instant Messaging Platform for Peer Feedback on Undergraduate Students’ English Academic Writing Performance: A Systematic Literature Review

Peer feedback has become a crucial element in the field of English as a second/foreign language (ESL/EFL) writing. There has been a notable scholarly interest in the integration of peer feedback in English writing instruction. Among Chinese undergraduate students, there is a growing tendency to use instant messaging systems, such as WeChat, for peer feedback. WeChat distinguishes itself from other platforms by its extensive usage in China, particularly owing to its user-friendly features. However, there is a lack of systematic research in the current literature to explore the effectiveness of using WeChat for peer feedback in English writing. In particular, there is a lack of research on five aspects of students’ English writing performance when using WeChat as a platform for peer feedback, such as content and idea, coherence and cohesion, grammar and form, word choice and vocabulary, and organization and structure. This article aims to provide an overview of the investigation of the effectiveness of using WeChat as an instant messaging platform through a literature review. The authors adhered to predetermined criteria for what literature were included and excluded. Ultimately, the authors reviewed a collection of 30 research articles from the year 2011 to 2023 that are directly related to the topic at hand. This review encompasses an evaluation of the research designs, findings, discussions, and gaps in research identified in these articles. This review offers a comprehensive comprehension of the present status of research in this field. Moreover, it emphasizes the need for additional academic investigation, specifically targeting the task of filling the recognized gaps in knowledge. Furthermore, the conclusion highlights the necessity of further studies, which needs to explore the long-term effects of incorporating WeChat and peer feedback on enhancing students’ writing performance. This encompasses various aspects, such as content and idea, coherence and cohesion, word choice and vocabulary, organization and structure, as well as grammar and form.

Enhancing English Academic Writing: The Effects of Movie Trailers on Structure Comprehension, Motivation, and Critical Thinking*

This study explores the use of audiovisual media, specifically movie trailers, in English language teaching and their potential benefits in improving structure comprehension, critical thinking and learner motivation. This research focuses on Japanese English education students. It presents a case study using movie trailers and videos of fairy tales to help students understand the structure and usefulness of academic writing, develop critical thinking attitudes, and increase their motivation toward learning English. The study involved 105 Japanese-speaking university students, who worked on assignments using six movie trailers and two fairy tales as teaching materials. The experimental procedures included ten sessions on reading and listening assignments, and five on integrating movie trailers, where students learned the relevance of movie trailers to academic writing and created original trailers for assigned short stories. Data were collected through questionnaires and completed assignments. The results show that integrating movie trailers into English language teaching significantly enhances students’ comprehension of academic writing structures, increases their motivation to learn English, and develops their critical thinking skills. The use of familiar audiovisual materials, like movie trailers, proved effective in making the learning process more engaging and practical, ultimately contributing to better academic performance in English language writing and presentation skills.

Metacognitive awareness and learning and performance goals as key predictors of writing performance

Effective writing involves more than just grammatical correctness and vocabulary choice. A deeper understanding of one’s thinking processes while writing, coupled with clear writing goals, is crucial for producing high-quality text. Thus, this study explores the correlation between students' metacognitive awareness, their orientation towards learning and performance goals, and their performance in English Academic Writing (EAW). Specifically, it investigates participants’ current metacognitive awareness and goal orientation in relation to their English Academic Writing. By examining participants’ understanding of their writing processes and goal they set, this research seeks to establish baseline for exploring potential connection between metacognition, goal orientation, and writing outcomes. The research employed a qualitative design using a survey involving 252 non-English major students across three universities in Indonesia. Participants completed two inventories; the Metacognitive Awareness Inventory (MAI) and the Goal Inventory (GI), along with summative assessments of their writing performance. Their English Academic Writing proficiency was evaluated through standardized assessment. As a result, multiple linear regression analysis indicated a significant positive impact of metacognitive awareness on EAW performance, explaining 73.5% of the variance with a regression coefficient of 1.171 (p < .001). However, learning and performance goals did not significantly affect EAW performance, as evidenced by a regression coefficient of 0.026 (p = .343). These results underscore the pivotal role of metacognitive awareness in enhancing EAW performance among non-English majors, suggesting that further research is needed to explore the influence of goal orientation, and to explore its potential moderating effects on the relationship between metacognitve awareness and EAW performance. Understanding the complex interplay of these factors is essential for developing effective pedagogical interventions to enchance EAW abilities among non-English major students.

A Study on Teacher’s Regulative Discourse in Online Academic English Writing Course

This study investigates the use of teachers’ regulative discourse in an online academic writing course from the perspective of Bernstein’s pedagogic discourse theory. By observing and analyzing the data from the “Academic English Writing” course on the China University MOOC platform, the study examines the forms, syntactic expressions, and functions of directives used by teachers in online classes and explores their impact on teaching and student learning. The findings reveal that teachers prefer to use direct regulative discourses, such as imperative sentences while utilizing indirect and more polite discourses less frequently. The findings help to provide references for MOOC teachers to optimize their use of regulative discourse.

Leveraging AI to Optimize English Academic Writing (EAW) in Intelligent Decision Support Systems (IDSS)

Many students and academics face difficulties in English academic writing, particularly non-native speakers of English. This paper examines the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in optimizing English academic writing in intelligent decision supporting systems (IDSS). Various literatures were studied to find out how AI can help improve English academic writing. The findings reveal that AI can improve grammar, spelling, sentence construction and make suggestions for clarity and cohesion through tools like Grammarly. Furthermore, integrating AI into IDSS also promotes more efficient and data driven decisions. However, there are still barriers like complex data analysis, ensuring accuracy and reliability of AI-generated content, and addressing ethical issues including bias and transparency. This simple paper highlights the importance of developing more sophisticated and user-friendly AI technologies and the need for further research to explore the long-term impact of using AI in English academic writing for Indonesia context. The results are beneficial to learners, educators and learning institutions as they employ AI tools with the purpose to improve the English academic writing quality and support better decision making.

Exploring the interplay of English academic reading and writing proficiency among international doctoral students

Academic English is discipline-specific and requires a high level of linguistic knowledge as well as expertise in respective fields. Therefore, doctoral students with limited exposure to academic English tend to face challenges in dealing with its demands, especially when they come from non-native English-speaking (NNES) backgrounds. At the doctoral level, research students are expected to work independently. Therefore, the ability to critically engage with academic materials written in English and the ability to write a dissertation in English at an expected standard play essential roles in successful PhD completion for students studying in international PhD programs where everything is conducted in English. This study investigates the relationship between English academic reading (EAR) and English academic writing (EAW) abilities among NNES doctoral students. We conducted a survey by employing a 1–6 Likert scale, following Dörnyei and Dewaele (2022), in the 2021–2022 academic year. A total of 255 international doctoral students studying in 65 PhD programs across Hungary voluntarily participated in the study. The students came from 49 countries and represented 48 mother tongues. The analysis revealed that students were positive about their abilities in both EAR and EAW, even though there was a significant gender difference at the p < 0.01 level. Additionally, students with the highest English proficiency level (C2) were found to be the most confident about their EAR and EAW abilities. The most junior students from 1st-year PhD programs were less confident about their abilities compared to their peers from 2nd, 3rd, 4th-year PhD programs. The analysis showed a significantly positive correlation between EAR and EAW (r = 0.792, p < 0.001). This study highlighted the inseparable role of EAR in fulfilling doctoral requirements and submitting a dissertation within a contracted PhD time framework, indicating the importance of targeted language support in facilitating academic progression within PhD programs.

Analyzing Academic English Writing Needs of Natural Sciences Researchers

Analyzing Academic English Writing Needs of Natural Sciences Researchers

A Scoping Review of Research on English Academic Writing for Chinese Graduate Students

Based on 16 studies on Chinese graduate students' English academic writing, this paper summarizes the current research trends in China from the aspect of research methods and content. After combing and summarizing, it is found that: (1) most relevant researches in China have adopted three forms of research methods, which are: questionnaire survey or interview survey, classroom observation and text analysis. (2) currently, challenges in the English academic writing process for Chinese graduate students primarily revolve around inappropriate language usage and insufficient writing skills. (3) The solutions proposed at present mainly include improving students' writing ability in practical exercises, implementing new teaching models and introducing new teaching methods. It is helpful to find and summarize the problems existing in the current English academic writing courses in China, as well as the difficulties existing in the process of English academic writing for Chinese graduate students, so as to help them improve their English academic writing ability.

Exploring the Complexities of L2 English Academic Writing

L2 English academic writing, now a well-established field of study, incorporates a large number of interrelated issues from the perspectives of context, participants, process and textual realisation, informing various instructional models of English for academic purposes in university contexts globally. This paper looks at a number of major theoretical traditions and relevant research findings focusing on the characteristics of academic texts, writers, readers and the writing process, and shows how each tradition has inspired the development of particular approaches to teaching L2 English academic writing. Textual features are discussed from the points of view of genre and register analysis, and contextual features are looked at in terms of individual novice L2 writer characteristics, including writing strategies, the relationship between L1 and L2 academic writing, and the cultural background of writers. Related instructional models include product-, process-, and genre-based approaches whose operationalisations are closely linked to particular theoretical traditions. The paper argues that the pedagogical considerations stemming from different theoretical backgrounds and empirical research results can complement each other in a useful way leading to a more comprehensive pedagogical approach, and that the application of a well-informed, carefully selected and carefully sequenced combination of teaching techniques and accompanying materials can contribute to the successful development of L2 English academic writing skills.

Research on Academic English Writing Teaching Based on Production-oriented Approach

Academic English writing is a challenging task in college English. Under traditional teaching methods, although teachers invest a lot of energy and time, little effect is achieved. This paper is based on the Production-oriented Approach proposed by distinguished Professor Wen Qiufang. Under the guidance of the teaching concept and teaching assumptions of this theory, this paper, taking a specific writing topic as an example, elaborates on how to design the three phases of motivating, enabling and assessing. In order to verify the effectiveness of this teaching method, the paper also analyzes and summarizes the collected questionnaires and interview texts. Academic English writing teaching guided by the Production-oriented Approach can help students reduce anxiety, make students' input learning more targeted, and greatly improve their reading and writing abilities.

Decolonizing English Academic Writing education through translingual practices

This study investigated the predominance of English in the academic discourse and its potential to marginalize multilingual individuals and explored how translingual practices could be a means to decolonize English Academic Writing (EAW) education within the specific context of a Sino-U.S. joint-venture university. A case study centered on the academic experience of a multilingual student from China delved into the interplay between established EAW norms and the student's language practice, identity, and ideology. The findings revealed that EAW norms that prevail in global academic communication significantly affected the student's linguistic choices and self-perception. These findings also indicated that translingual practices could contribute to the decolonization of EAW education by advocating for inclusivity and diversity. Therefore, this study calls for a pedagogical reorientation that not only acknowledges but also incorporates translingual practices in EAW education to actively confront colonial legacies.

Reviewing the Usage of ChatGPT on L2 students' English Academic Writing Learning

This paper reviews previous literature to explore the usage of ChatGPT in helping L2 students with English academic writing. There are several types of views on the usage of ChatGPT in assisting writing. Generally, researchers regard ChatGPT as beneficial for it can maximize the efficiency and accuracy of writing, which can facilitate students’ learning. There are also previous empirical studies showing that ChatGPT is a useful tool in English academic learning, especially in the writing area. This paper concludes that 1) Proofreading is one of the most crucial functions to support English writing. It can help with spelling, grammar, word precision, and sentence cohesion. 2) Brainstorming is another application of ChatGPT which is useful for coming up with ideas for writing topics, suggesting an outline, and searching appropriate literature evidence. 3) Translating is one of the most widely used functions of ChatGPT, because it can automatically translate and paraphrase with a high standard of accuracy. The significance of this paper is that it can be adopted in the students' independent writing process, and in the classroom to help students better complete the writing task under teachers’ guidance.

Language as a means of expression rather than purpose: Chinese postgraduate students’ translingual ideologies in English academic writing

ABSTRACT This study employs a mixed-methods design to explore the attitudes and expressed beliefs of Chinese postgraduate students regarding the strategic use of their entire range of languages in English academic writing (EAW). The survey findings suggest that while students generally accept the idea of mixing languages during the writing process, they have reservations about incorporating such practices into their written products. Qualitative analysis expands the quantitative dataset by elucidating the diverse stances of students—be they resistant, pragmatic, or transformative—towards translingual practices in EAW within institutional settings. The results indicate the coexistence of hegemonic ideologies that promote English dominance and counterhegemonic ideologies that advocate the reclamation of indigenous linguistic and cultural practices. Morever, students' nuanced and complex translingual orientations are both reflective and transgressive of the established monolingual norms. The article concludes by proposing implications for integrating translingual writing to reject deficit language ideologies and amplify multilingual voices in non-Anglophone higher education contexts.

The Impact of Data-Driven Learning on Medical Students' English Academic Writing

Introduction: Data-driven learning has emerged as a powerful method in language teaching and has drastically changed the traditional methods of teaching and learning, especially in academic writing. So, the present study was conducted to investigate the effect of data-driven learning on the English academic writing of medical students.&#x0D; Method: In this quasi-experimental intervention study, 29 MSc students of different fields of medical sciences participated in a training intervention program using a data-driven learning approach focusing on self-generated corpora of academic articles related to their fields of study. Students were asked to write an academic text related to their fields at the beginning and end of the course. Written texts were graded based on the Hemp-Lyons academic writing rubric, and the data collected from the pre-and post-test assessments were analyzed using the paired-sample t-test.&#x0D; Results: Comparison of pre-test scores with a mean of 59 (SD = 2.26) and post-test scores with a mean of 78.53 (SD = 2.33) indicated a significant improvement in the writing of the participants of this study (p &lt; 0.05).&#x0D; Conclusion: In light of confirming the educational suitability of the data-driven approach and recognizing the need for students to engage in English article writing and publication, these findings serve as a valuable aid to MSc students studying medical sciences, facilitating their academic writing in English.

Academic English Writing Challenges in a Blended EFL and ESL Learning Environment: Insights from Chinese International High School Students

In the wake of China's educational internationalization policy and the technological shifts post-COVID-19, the mode of educational globalization has undergone significant transformations. In this context, this study investigates the academic English writing challenges of Chinese international high school students (CIHSSs) in a blended English as a foreign language (EFL) and English as a second language (ESL) learning environment. Drawing on Vygotsky's sociocultural theory and prior research, the study examines the specific hurdles CIHSSs face in academic writing. Previous research has highlighted various difficulties in academic English writing for international students; however, a significant research gap exists concerning high school students, especially in blended learning context settings. To fill this gap, this qualitative case study explores CIHSSs’ English language learning experiences, focusing particularly on their academic writing challenges in a blended EFL and ESL context. Through semi-structured individual interviews with three CIHSSs, the study conducts a thematic analysis to identify key challenges across five areas: cultural differences, unfamiliarity with academic norms, language proficiency limitations, communication barriers, and technological adaptation issues. The findings emphasize the importance of communication, especially peer support and collaborative learning, underlining the need for effective English language learning strategies (ELLSs). These insights are vital for educators and learners to navigate the complexities of blended EFL and ESL learning environments effectively.

The Effects of Using Scientific Genre to Promote Undergraduate Students’ English Academic Writing in an ESP Course

Argumentative writing is problematic for Thai EFL learners. This study aims to determine the effects of an argumentative correspondence writing course in an ESP for Science classroom. The course was designed from the genre-based approach, including stance and engagement by Hyland (2005) and ESP material design by Hutchinson and Waters (1987). The experiment involved 40 participants studying in a science field in a public university in Thailand. The study used a one-group pretest and posttest design. The research instruments were a knowledge test and a writing test for scientific argumentative correspondence. The results revealed statistically meaningful differences between the pretest and posttest scores, indicating that the students increased their abilities and gained higher test scores through completing the course. The findings suggest that instruction of writing scientific argumentative correspondences is effective and should be included in ESP science courses, especially as a foundation for writing longer texts in scientific genres.

Bangladeshi Students’ Challenges of English Academic Writing in an International University

At present, many Bangladeshi students go abroad to pursue their undergraduate and postgraduate studies. However, most often, it is seen that they have a difficult time in understanding the rules of academic writing in the new institution. This qualitative multiple case study explores challenges related to writing assignments faced by 11 Bangladeshi students from Madrasah, Bengali and English medium schools studying at an international research university International Islamic University, Malaysia. A qualitative thematic analysis of the students’ semi-structured interviews revealed that the students felt that Bangladeshi English curricula should include components of close reading, academic writing, and basic computer skills for writing assignments so that all the students are prepared for writing assignments in academia in future. The study is significant for the education policymakers of an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) country such as Bangladesh where English is taught as a second language to the students. Keywords: writing challenges, Academic writing, Bangladesh.

Delinking from Monolingual Norms: A Case Study of Chinese Postgraduate Students’ Translanguaging Practices in English Academic Writing

Delinking from Monolingual Norms: A Case Study of Chinese Postgraduate Students’ Translanguaging Practices in English Academic Writing