PROFICIENCY OF GRADE 12 HUMSS STUDENTS IN CONSTRUCTING AN ENGLISH ESSAY

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Writing is frequently accepted as being the last language skill to be acquired.

Mastering written skills is a major challenge for learners. Particularly, writing in English

is considered a challenging task for students who learn English as a second language.

Interestingly, good writing is much more than just correct writing. It does not simply

mean writing that contains no errors of grammar, punctuation, or spelling but also

responds to the interests of readers. It should exhibit clearly defined purpose, should

present a certain point, should be supported by specific and clearly connected and

arranged pieces of information and should use appropriate words. Sentences are brief,

forceful and correct (Fareed, 2016).

There's nothing more frustrating than staring at a blank piece of paper or

computer screen. But that is often the reality when starting an essay. Whether it's a

narrative, a persuasive piece or a research paper, writing an essay is often quite

challenging. The writing process as a whole is a long road of false starts and lengthy

revisions. Not to mention dodging the bullet of writer's block and plagiarism. Correctly

citing sources, writing a thesis statement and elaborating on ideas are a few common

problems students may face. Knowing these pitfalls can help them remedy the situation

as they complete their essay. In the arts and social sciences, essay-writing is the

undergraduate’s Amazon. Throughout a degree course, the processes of studying often

proceed along a river of coursework essays – the equivalent of one essay every ten days

in some universities (Nimmo, 1977).

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 PROFICIENCY OF GRADE 12 HUMSS STUDENTS IN CONSTRUCTING AN ENGLISH ESSAY

Essay-writing occupies this central place within higher education because it

serves two fundamental purposes: it is both a tool of assessment and a bridge to learning.

An essay is generally a short piece of writing outlining the writer's perspective or story. It

is often considered synonymous with a story or a paper or an article. A basic essay

consists of three main parts: introduction, body, and conclusion. However, flexibility is

important. While keeping this basic essay format in mind, let the topic and specific

assignment guide the writing and organization. These are the most common form of

assessments at university. Comparable to other assignments, essays also require adequate

planning, preparation and research.

As a learning activity, essay-writing makes particularly exacting demands of the

student. The student must not only apprehend and make sense of a topic, but go further

and communicate what he or she knows within the framework of a formal, ordered

statement. Essay-writing thus involves putting learning on display. But the task of

constructing meaning is made doubly difficult because the student usually has to venture

beyond the comparative security of lecture and seminar notes. Other sources have to be

tracked down, digested, their relevance to the topic weighed in relation to all of the

material at the student’s disposal.

Finally, what the student chooses to make use of has to be marshaled and

deployed within a discussion of the topic. As a learning activity therefore, the process of

essay-writing is inherently more complex than reading and listening, and its product may

reflect even more strongly the personal sense which the student has made of what he or

she has learnt. The context in which essay-writing takes place is outwardly exceptionally

well-organized. Essays are woven into the structure of the course module, titles are

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 PROFICIENCY OF GRADE 12 HUMSS STUDENTS IN CONSTRUCTING AN ENGLISH ESSAY

announced well in advance and allow some measure of choice, sources of reading are

well-signposted and the tutor’s written comments on essays are acknowledged as

consistently thorough. In the students’ perception, however, this is a less than ideal

context for essay-writing. Most of the students not only comment on what they see as a

heavy essay workload but feel this has unfortunate consequences for how their time is

allocated.

Like all learning problems, difficulties in essay writing can be devastating to a

student's education and self-esteem. As they progress through school, they are

increasingly expected to express what they know about many different subjects through

writing. If a student fails to develop the certain skill, he/she will be unable to write with

the speed and fluency required to excel as these demands increase. Indeed, for a student

struggling with a writing problem, the writing process itself interferes with learning.

Students faced with such difficult odds have trouble staying motivated (Levine, 2002).

The purpose of this study is to know the proficiency of grade 12 HUMSS students

in essay writing and to distinguish the techniques and skills they use in doing the task.

The said techniques and skills can be helpful for other students to improve their essay

writing skill and may provide the teachers more guidelines in assisting their students.

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 PROFICIENCY OF GRADE 12 HUMSS STUDENTS IN CONSTRUCTING AN ENGLISH ESSAY

Statement of the Problem

The researchers aim to determine the proficiency of grade 12 HUMSS students in

essay writing. Specifically it seeks to answer the following questions:

1. How many students find essay writing easy?

2. How much time does it take them in writing an essay?

3. What are the students’ usual grade in essay writing?

4. How many students are still struggling in essay writing?

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 PROFICIENCY OF GRADE 12 HUMSS STUDENTS IN CONSTRUCTING AN ENGLISH ESSAY

Research Design

This research use quantitative approach specifically, it aims to know the

proficiency of grade 12 students in essay writing. The researchers will conduct survey

to the students to know their proficiency which causes it to fall under survey research.

Respondents

The research only covers the grade 12 HUMSS students as well as the English

teachers and will not include other grade level and strands. Because grade 12 students

are the upcoming college students wherein the demand in essay writing rises and on

HUMSS strand as it usually focus in the perceptions of students on their

surroundings, experiences, and the study of human behavior unlike other strands

which studies mathematics and other hard sciences.

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