CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The process of teaching and learning English as a second language (ESL) requires
using different techniques to the teaching of language skills. These skills are listening,
speaking, reading and writing. This study focuses on writing which is a productive
skill in language learning. Writing in the context of this study refers to acquisition of
skills that would improve the writing performance of students of English. Writing
performance means the ability of the students to communicate effectively in different
forms of writing tasks such as letter writing, essay writing, report writing and writing
article for publication. Writing is not simply a matter of choosing words to convey
meaning, it also requires systematic acquisition of some basic skills that would enable
students communicate their ideas effectively.
Writing consists of three essential parts which are introduction, body and conclusion.
Each part is as important as the other because they perform specific functions towards
organization of thoughts (Ekwueme-Ugwu, Adeniyi & Olaluwoye, 2017:70).
However, there are four areas of focus while assessing students‟ writing tasks. These
are content, organisation, expression and mechanical accuracy (Ohakwe, 2018).
Content in the context of this study refers to the ability of the writer to develop points
in line with the given topic and specified length. Organisation in this study means the
writer‟s ability to present points logically and sequentially. On the other hand,
Expression means grammatical accuracy in writing. Mechanical accuracy is the
writer‟s ability to use punctuation marks, correct spellings and proper tenses.
It is appropriate at this juncture to define the following terms: direct and indirect
feedback strategies and essay writing as a task. Feedback can be defined from various
perspectives. Gezegin (2015) defines feedback as information that is given to the
learner about his or her performance of learning task usually with the objective of
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improving this performance. Hattie & Timperly (2007) define feedback as
information provided by an agent with respect to one‟s performance or understanding.
Feedback in this study refers to the corrective information given by a teacher to
students or given by the students themselves relating to a particular writing task. The
purpose of feedback in any teaching/learning situation is to assist the learners to
perform better in the next learning activity. However, feedback could be effective
when learners understand what it means and how to respond to it. Hence teachers‟
feedback could be for reward or corrective purposes. Feedback could be provided
directly or indirectly. Direct feedback is a situation whereby the teacher writes the
correct linguistic form above a student‟s writing errors. Indirect feedback on the other
hand is when the teacher indicates the location of an error by underlining or encircling
without providing the correct linguistic form. However, feedback encompasses the
consequences of performance. Hattie & Timperley (2007:81) explained further that a
teacher or parent can provide corrective information or encouragement. Likewise, a
peer and a book can provide information to clarify ideas; a learner could also check
the answer himself to the correctness of a response.
Essay writing performance means the ability of the students to compose a piece of
writing on a given topic with relevant content and organization, good expression and
correct use of mechanical accuracy. Essay writing could be in form of narrative,
descriptive, argumentative and expository.
In the Nigerian educational system learners of ESL are introduced to writing skills
right from primary education level. As the students progress into secondary education,
they are also exposed to different forms of writing. In tertiary educational institutions
such as Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, writing is regarded as product-oriented
whereby teachers assigned topics for students to make choices and write their first
draft. The teachers will mark the draft and return the scripts to the students (Kamal
cited in Yahaya, 2018). At this stage the forms of feedback given to the students could
be helpful in the next writing tasks.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Students of English at NCE level in Nigeria are expected to acquire necessary skills in
order to communicate effectively in all forms of compositions. Such forms include
letter and essay writing, articles for publication and autobiography. However, Akano
(2005) observed that for over three decades the performance of students in essay and
letter writing has been consistently discouraging right from secondary schools. Hence,
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developing good skills for effective writing is invaluable for the students as they
progress into future academic writing challenges.
In fact, the researcher‟s experience and observations have shown that the writing
performance of NCE students of English is below expectations. This low performance
could be due to lack of acquiring the necessary writing skills in terms of content,
organization, expression and mechanical accuracy. The lack of acquisition of
necessary writing skills by these students of English could result into continuous low
writing performance even after their graduation at NCE level. Consequently, this
situation could have negative effect on their job performance as teachers at basic
education level.