EURASIAN JOURNAL OF APPLIED LINGUISTICS

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Examining Writing Self-Efficacy in Arabic and English and Its Impact on Students’ L2 English-Writing Achievement

Muhammad A. AL-Roomy
Department of English, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Keywords: Writing, Self-Efficacy, L1, L2, Academic Performance. ,

Abstract

Writing is an increasingly important area in the process of teaching and learning. Teaching writing plays a very significant role in the field of non-native language (L2) instruction, so it is important that teachers pay special attention to continuous writing instruction. However, writing has been considered a demanding and tedious process for both students and teachers because it requires much time and effort compared to other academic skills. The current study investigated students’ writing self-efficacy in Arabic and English and its impact on the academic-English-writing performance of health sciences students in the context of Saudi Arabia. This study deployed a quantitative, more specifically, a correlational research design. Self-Efficacy for Writing Scale (SEWS) questionnaire was implemented for data collection. The students’ responses for their Arabic and English writing self-efficacy along with their grades in an English academic writing course were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The relationships between students’ responses for their Arabic and English SEWS questionnaires were also measured. The English SEWS data and students’ academic writing were measured using a correlation coefficient test. The results showed that students reported a higher level of writing self-efficacy in Arabic than in English. Although the highest-rated dimension in Arabic was ideation, the highest-rated dimension in English was conventions. Additionally, the lowest-rated dimension in both Arabic and English was self-regulation. Overall, the relationship between students’ self-efficacy of writing in Arabic and English was positive among study participants based on their Arabic and English SEWS questionnaires. Findings showed that there was a significant positive relationship between study participants’ overall scores on all dimensions of the English SEWS questionnaire and their grades in an academic writing course. Finally, the findings offered several implications for further studies.