1

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM

Introduction

The English language is considered as an International language because it is

easy to understand. As, English becomes the universal language, people become more

interested in how to write compositions using the said language. Writing plays a

significant role in students life because it reflects the writer's character, personality,

intelligence and education. Writing is a means of communicating ideas and giving

information. Writing improves one's ability to think concisely and clearly. A person who

had writing skills is capable of expressing their thoughts, ideas, opinions, stories and

any academic writings in a clear and comprehensible manner. Students often lack skills

in the area of writing that makes their thoughts unsaid and uncertain. Writing difficulties

in English Composition is one of the most common dilemma of students not only in

school but lots of people are experiencing this difficulties and find the said problem too

hard to be solved. Learners who do not have interest in composition results to low

scores in essays, time consuming on editing and analyzing the grammatical errors, poor

vocabulary, trouble in generating ideas and difficulty in writing task that requires

creativity and critical thinking. Students who had difficulties in writing is still hidden on

teachers until the educators hand in exams or make learners an essay mostly in English

subjects, then the deficiency in writing becomes obvious. School works often requires

learners to do academic writing such as essays, report papers, reflection and research

papers. For this reason, it is important to develop and practice the pupils writing skill.
2

Writing skills are not automatic but must be taught and practiced. Teachers had

given the responsibility of improving and enhancing students writing in both content and

grammar. Learners need an educator who can guide and read strategies, effective

methods and techniques in writing composition. Students learn more easily when

learners have a desire to learn, so teachers should put an effort in teaching

compositions. The students need a help of an adviser to make a good composition and

learn from instructor to construct an academic writing. Every student in school have

their own writing skills and ideas that can be expressed in writing a composition.

Learners mostly cannot voice out owns opinion because pupils find organizing and

using the mechanics in writing hard. Students should therefore exert every effort to

acquire the proper writing skills that will enable learners to write correctly and

confidently. Due to the requirements that academic writing demands to learners when

delivering an English composition, students must improve writing skills and avoid

failures and errors.

The researchers came up with the study “Difficulties in English Composition for

the selected Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences students from Saint Claire

Academy Lian Batangas Inc. S.Y. 2019-2020” with the aim of informing everyone about

the difficulties in writing English composition of the Grade 12 Humanities and Social

Sciences students and the strategies and methods that the students can use to improve

writing.

Statement of the Problem

This study aimed to asses the difficulties in English Composition for the selected

Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences students.

3

Specifically, it will attempt to answer the following questions:

1.What are the writing difficulties in English Composition of the students at Saint

Claire Academy?

2.What are the reasons of the Writing Difficulties?

3.What are the cultural factors that affect writing difficulties?

5.What are the strategies and methods that students should use to improve

writing?

The Scope, Delimitation and Limitation

The proposed study will be able to identify the main difficulties of the students

and to know what methods and techniques may be proposed to address the needs of

Grade 12-Humanities and Social Science students regarding writing English

Composition. The students who has lots of English Composition will be the direct

beneficiaries of this study. The research is in explanatory in nature and focused on

secondary statements.

The study is delimited to listening, reading and speaking skills in the language

learning. The study does not include Elementary, Junior High School and Grade 11

students.

The research sample is composed of one hundred eighteen (118) Grade 12-

Humanities and Social Sciences students residing in three sections at Saint Claire

Academy. The primary data gathering method was validated interview sheets to

determine the learner's perspectives in writing based on the students experiences. The
4

information was gathered from 10 students from Grade 12-Humanities and Social

Sciences Section I, Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences Section II and Grade 12-

Humanities and Social Sciences Section III with a total of 30 responses. The responses

and data are collected, encoded and analyzed.

Significance of the Study

This study may be helpful to Saint Claire Academy. It is expected that the result

and findings of the study would had a great impact to the following: Saint Claire

Academy, faculty, students and future researchers.

Saint Claire Academy. This research responds to the School's mission to develop

knowledge and skill of the student through instruction and research to meet the growing

need of the country and become globally competitive in terms of writing.

Faculty. This study would hopefully be a welcome addition to the knowledge

about proper writing that may help the faculty to conduct strategies for better learning.

Students. This may serve as guide for students to know better about writing good

composition.

Future Researchers. This study may contribute to the existing literature on the

subject and may be used by the future researchers as a fabricate of reference when the

students conduct studies related to this topic. The learners can use it as a guide for this

study.
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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND SYNTHESIS AND HYPOTHESIS

This chapter presents the conceptual literature and research literature after the

thorough and in-depth search done by the researchers. This will also present the

synthesis of the study and conceptual framework to fully understand the process of

research and lastly the definition of terms for better comprehension of the study.

Conceptual Literature

The following review of related literature yields four (4) types of concepts

including (1) Definition of Academic Writing, (2) Basics of Academic Writing, (3)

Neurodevelopmental problems and their potential impact on writing, and (4) Factors

affecting academic writing performance.

Definition of Academic Writing. Writing is a mental and cognitive activity, since

writing is a product of the mind. The image of an individual working alone in a quiet

environment has furthered the view of writing as a mental and cognitive activity (Burke,

2010). According to Chappell (2011) Academic writing is essential. It brings about a lot

of advantages since it helps to express one’s personality, foster communication,

develop thinking skills, make logical and persuasive arguments, gives a person to

reflect the student’s ideas, provide and receive feedback and prepare for school
6

employment. Walsh (2010) added writing is important because it’s used extensively in

higher education and in the workplace. If students do not know how to express

themselves in writing, students would not be able to communicate well with professors,

employers, peers, or just about anyone else. Much of professional communication is

done in writing: proposals, memos, reports, applications, preliminary interviews, e-mails,

and more are part of the daily life of a college student or successful graduate.

Basics of Academic Writing. Academic Writing is expected to address on

intellectual community in which the students engage in active learning. Some basics or

rules must be established. Using information to one’s advantage is a key part of

learning. Success at the post graduate level depends on the student’s ability to access,

evaluate and synthesize the words, ideas and opinion of others in order to develop their

own academic voice. When presenting what they have learned, it is therefore vitally

important that students are able to show clearly what they have drawn from others and

what is their own. The students must follow certain rules to ensure good academic

writing, including punctuation guidelines. The students must be honest about how much

ownership he or she can claim over the ideas formed, the answers found and the

opinions expressed. Based on Boscoloa ( 2017) The accepted form of academic writing

in the social sciences can vary considerable depending on the methodological

framework and the intended audience. However, most college-level research papers

require careful attention to the following stylistic elements: The Big Picture; Unlike fiction

or journalistic writing, the overall structure of academic writing is formal and logical. It

must be cohesive and possess a logically organized flow of ideas; this means that the

various parts are connected to form a unified whole. There should be narrative links
7

between sentences and paragraphs so that the reader is able to follow your argument.

The introduction should include a description of how the rest of the paper is organized

and all sources are properly cited throughout the paper, Tone; the overall tone refers to

the attitude conveyed in a piece of writing. Throughout your paper, it is important that

you present the arguments of others fairly and with an appropriate narrative tone. When

presenting a position or argument that you disagree with, describe this argument

accurately and without loaded or biased language. In academic writing, the author is

expected to investigate the research problem from an authoritative point of view. You

should, therefore, state the strengths of your arguments confidently, using language that

is neutral, not confrontational or dismissive, Diction; Diction refers to the choice of

words you use. Awareness of the words you use is important because words that have

almost the same denotation [dictionary definition] can have very different connotations

[implied meanings]. This is particularly true in academic writing because words and

terminology can evolve a nuanced meaning that describes a particular idea, concept, or

phenomenon derived from the epistemological culture of that discipline. Therefore, use

concrete words [not general] that convey a specific meaning. If this cannot be done

without confusing the reader, then you need to explain what you mean within the

context of how that word or phrase is used within a discipline, Language; the

investigation of research problems in the social sciences is often complex and multi-

dimensional. Therefore, it is important that you use unambiguous language. Well-

structured paragraphs and clear topic sentences enable a reader to follow your line of

thinking without difficulty. The students language should be concise, formal, and

express precisely what you want the learners to mean; Punctuation; Scholars rely on
8

precise words and language to establish the narrative tone of their work and, therefore,

punctuation marks are used very deliberately. For example, exclamation points are

rarely used to express a heightened tone because it can come across as

unsophisticated or over-excited. Dashes should be limited to the insertion of an

explanatory comment in a sentence, while hyphens should be limited to connecting

prefixes to words or when forming compound phrases . Finally, understand that semi-

colons represent a pause that is longer than a comma, but shorter than a period in a

sentence. In general, there are four grammatical uses of semi-colons: when a second

clause expands or explains the first clause; to describe a sequence of actions or

different aspects of the same topic; placed before clauses which begin with

"nevertheless", "therefore", "even so," and "for instance”; and, to mark off a series of

phrases or clauses which contain commas. If students are not confident about when to

use semi-colons [and most of the time, learners are not required for proper punctuation],

rewrite using shorter sentences or revise the paragraph, Academic Conventions; Citing

sources in the body of paper and providing a list of references as either footnotes or

endnotes is a very important aspect of academic writing. It is essential to always

acknowledge the source of any ideas, research findings, data, paraphrased, or quoted

text that is used in the paper as a defense against allegations of plagiarism. Equally

important, the scholarly convention of citing sources allow readers to identify the

resources used in writing your paper so the students can independently verify and

assess the quality of findings and conclusions based on the review of the literature.
9

Neurodevelopmental problems and their potential impacts on writing. In the book

Developmental Variation and Learning Disorders by Dr. Mel Levine identifies the

following neurodevelopmental problems and their potential impacts on writing.

Attention Problem, Children who struggle with attention may be inattentive and

impulsive. An attention problem may manifest itself as: difficulty getting started on

writing assignments, easy distractibility during writing, tasks mental fatigue or tiredness

while writing, inconsistent legibility in writing, uneven writing tempo, many careless

errors, poorly planned papers and reports. Spatial Ordering Problem, Children who

struggle with spatial ordering have decreased awareness regarding the spatial

arrangement of letters, words, or sentences on a page. A spatial ordering problem may

manifest itself in a child's writing as: poor use of lines on the paper, organizational

problems, uneven spacing between letters and many misspelled words. Sequential

Ordering Problem, Children who struggle with sequential ordering have difficulty putting

or maintaining letters, processes, or ideas in order. A sequential ordering problem may

manifest itself in a child's writing as: poor letter formation, transposed letters and

spelling omissions, poor narrative sequencing, and lack of transitions. Memory Problem,

because so many writing processes need to be automatic, active working memory is

critical. Children may have difficulty recalling spelling, grammar, and punctuation rules,

accessing prior knowledge while writing, or organizing ideas. A memory problem may

manifest itself in a child's writing as: poor vocabulary, many misspelled words, frequent

capitalization, punctuation, and grammar errors. Language Problem, Good writing relies

on a child's language abilities improving steadily over time. A language problem may

manifest itself in a child's writing as: poor vocabulary awkward phrasing and
10

unconventional grammar inappropriate use of colloquial language difficulty with

sentence structure and word order trouble reading back what is written, difficulty with

word sounds, spelling, and meanings. Higher-Order Cognition Problem, Children who

have difficulty with higher-order cognition are often unable to use writing to present a

sound argument or convey sophisticated or abstract ideas. A higher-order cognition

problem might manifest itself in a child's trouble generating ideas or elaborating on the

child, difficulty in developing and organizing ideas, lack of opinion or sense of audience,

difficulty with writing tasks that require creativity and critical thinking. Graphomotor

Problem, Children with graphomotor problems struggle to coordinate the small muscles

of the fingers in order to maneuver a pen or pencil, especially as assignment length

increases. A child with a graph motor problem might write only a very short passages

write exceptionally slowly and with great effort use an awkward pencil grip lack fluidity in

cursive writing find it hard to form letters.

Factors affecting academic writing skills. Al-Khsawneh (2010) indicated that the

students identified that the teaching method and the environment are the main causes

of their weaknesses in English. Their Weak qualification in English is either related to

the lack of student motivation, or the teacher’s interest. Many learners use their mother

tongue because of the isolated culture. Yet, methods of teaching English included the

medium of instructions, using Arabic in English classes, writing done in Arabic, teachers’

low proficiency in English, and lack of writing practice in educational institutions. English

language learners have limited vocabulary. Therefore, students end up repeating the

same words; this hinders creativity. Rababah (2003), clarified that students could not

give voice to their thoughts because lack the adequate stock of vocabulary. English
11

language learners do not use invented spelling and their written texts are restricted to

words which the students know. The present tense is the only tense used in their

writing. . The students writing is difficult to understand because of the ill-structured

sentences in composition. Students are unwilling to share their work with other students

and learners do not get the suitable feedback. When the learners read their writing

aloud, students cannot distinguish whether what they read or write is right or wrong.

Gomaa (2010), indicated that students first language affects learning the target

language. This is why students make certain mistakes and repeat them. Here are some

of the common mistakes she has experienced while teaching writing: Run on

sentences, Arabish, Punctuation and Writing Organization.

Research Literature

According to Sengupta (2000) in an exploratory study investigated the effects of

explicit instruction in revision on second language learners performance and

perceptions about writing. The learners were from two classes of a secondary school in

Hong Kong, who learned to revise. Both groups received instructions in revision after

they finished writing the first draft. All students completed questionnaires before and

after the study and interviews were conducted with a selection of students. Writing

performance at the beginning and end of the study was measured holistically and

compared with a third group that did not learn revision strategies but completed the

same pre and post study task. The data indicated that explicit teaching of revision

strategies had a measurable influence on writing performance. Student questionnaires

and interview showed a difference in the way writing and revisions were received. It is

suggested that language teachers should consider multiple drafting as an alternative to

12

completing a new writing task in their classrooms, as explicit instruction on revision may

contribute towards developing an awareness of discourse related features in writing.

The study done by Sengupta (2000) showed that teaching of revision strategies was

found to have a measurable influence on writing performance. Hence the researcher

has adopted repeated practice of using various exercises for developing writing skill.

As stated by Bassett (2001) in the study aimed at describing a course for

improving writing skills. The targeted sample students consisted of first and third

graders in two middle class communities in the southern suburbs of Chicago. The need

for improving writing skills was documented through inspection, checklists, writing

samples and surveys. The suggested strategies for teaching writing skills were parents

association, through newspapers and articles, using writing centers, the make use of e-

mail, letter writing, free option of topics, the sue of literature to read writing, author's

chair, interactive journals or notebooks, allowing inventive spelling, cross curricular

writing and encouraging at home writing. Findings showed an increase in the targeted

students` writing abilities, a positive attitude towards the writing process, an increased

self -confidence in the editing and revising of student work and increased parental

involvement in the area of writing.

Along with the study of Hopkins (2002) who applied and developed the study to

assist low- achieving tenth grade students` essay writing skills. According to first term

examinations in the academic year 2002, many students were not performing well in the

writing process. The goal was to help students write successfully and understand the

elements of the essay. The objective of the study was to help students write

successfully and understand with 70% accuracy in prewriting, drafting, revising, and
13

finalizing the essay writing. The posttests were implemented to test the writing process.

The researcher developed various stages of writing, such as, prewriting, drafting,

revision, proofing and publishing essay. To achieve the objectives, the researcher used

graphic organizers for clustering diagrams, charts, revision charts, and peer editing and

scoring rubrics. The researcher recommended that the time spent on peer editing

clustering methods and writing portfolios be increased and rubrics be used to help

students in essay writing. The study was conducted in Bethel High school in Virginia.

The school had 966 male students and 984 female students. The population of tenth

graders was 504:255 male students and 249 female students. The study lasted for six

weeks, 18 interventions were implemented to help low achieving students with their

ability to improve essay-writing skills. This study is useful for the present one as it gives

clear ideas about the stages of the writing process.

According to Kamala (2003) who has developed communicative strategies to

enhance the written communication skill in English among college students. The

researcher has chosen the task of constructing a story out of a given title or outline. The

strategies developed proved to be effective. The objectives of the study are: (i) To

introduce a task-based genre- oriented approach to teaching writing and measure its

effect on written communication, (ii) To find out the influence of the nature and type of

task on the performance of the learners, (iii) To find out the relationship between input

enhancement and the quality of intake in the process of enhancing written

communication skill, (iv) To study the effect of the teaching of the process of writing on

the enhancement of written communication skill, (v) To find out the relationship between

training in strategy use and skill development, (vi) To find out the process in content and
14

form in the process of the enhancement of written communication skill, (vii) To find out

the relationship between the students knowledge of the subjects learnt at the major

level and written communication skill. The findings of the study are: (i) there is progress

both in content in writing and form in writing in the performance of the students over the

progressive tests measuring the development of written communication skill, (ii)

Literature students employ the strategies of conceptualizing, coherence detection,

inference, Word identification, looping forward in chunks, and knowledge transforming

effectively. Their use of organizing strategy is not effective and (iii) The use of

communicative strategies facilitates the enhancement of written communication skill.

A study was conducted by Jimenez (2013) together with a group in which the aim

of the study is to investigate the things that affects a student’s writing performance. This

study conveyed that most students prefer to write more about personal opinions rather

than real facts, situations or something related to get informed, investigate or analyze.

Only minimal numbers of learners are using writing techniques such as editing,

mapping, making a list, free writing, and brainstorming. Majority of the students have

difficulties in English Composition in applying some writing techniques such as mapping

and editing because students do not know what those techniques are about due to the

fact that learners did not have a previous explanation about them. FLD students writing

quality is close to the superficial way in which English Composition is taught, as well as

the lack of practice, the few times invested studying this subject and the deficient

methodology applied. Professors argue that the main problem for students in organizing

their pieces of writing is that students do not usually read and this is the reason why

they cannot organize their ideas because they do not know what to write about. The
15

said researchers recommended that students must apply the writing techniques by

practicing them they will be able to write good essays Teachers must provide a

supportive environment where students can feel comfortable to share opinions and to

have a better teaching-learning process. Professors must clarify the students what is

expected about the subject provide enough information and ideas to write about give

and adequate feedback and not programmed texts. Just in that way students will create

good compositions and with the time learners will improve writing skills.

Synthesis

The foregoing reviewed conceptual and research literature have provided the

researchers profound its insights on writing skills and contributed a lot in structuring of

the study itself.

The concepts discussed show significance of this study because of its

contribution to the frame ground that helps proving the study. The discussion of the

study of Burke, Chappell and Sengupta are similar in expressing ideas or thoughts in

writing but different in focus. Burke and Chappell’s study main focus are to give the

meaning and importance of academic writing while Sengupta's study investigates the

learners writing capacity and the influence of teaching strategies in writing.

The study of Boscoloa and Bassett aims to improve writing skills and to learn the

proper way of writing. Boscoloa’s study explains about the proper usage of punctuations

and the proper way of writing that most of the students failed to do. The study explains

the importance of expressing ideas in a written form in a formal way while Basett

explains how to improve writing skills.

16

The study of Dr. Mel Levine and Hopkins are similar in explaining about the

students poor writing process. Dr. Mel Levine's literature is about the possible reasons

of the child's difficulties in writing. Unhealthy mind emphasizes on Dr. Mel Levines

literature on the other hand Hopkins literature develop stages of writing, such as,

prewriting, drafting, revision, proofing and publishing essay that can help to give clear

ideas in essay writing.

The study of Al-Khsawneh , Rababah and Kamala do not have much something

in common only on the effect of the learners first language. Al-Khsawneh explained that

the reasons why students have difficulties is because of its environment and teaching

method while Rabbabah describes the skill difficulties, and lastly Kamala’s study is

about enhancing the learners written skills.

The study Gomaa and Jimenez are both about the things that affects the

students writing performance. Jimenez study has lots of explanation and has possible

solutions while Gomaa states that the first language affects the target language.

In other words, there are similarities appeared. Some studies focused on the

causes of problems that affect the writing skills necessary to succeed in school and its

importance to be a good writer. Predominantly, questionnaire is used as the main data

gathering instrument. Other students have used interview also. Of course, the present

study uses the same data gathering instrument. Although these studies have utilized

survey questionnaire, there is a difference on how they are formulated.

The present study is different from the reviewed studies because other studies

used teachers as their respondents particularly Jimenez and his group while the other
17

studies used secondary level of students. There is also difference in a way that these

studies come up with different collected data and findings.

These findings bring out the general relationship among the studies presented

but highlight a difference in specific manner and content. These differences make this

study unique behind these relations of the said studies to present one.

Conceptual Framework
 Gathering of data
 Assessment of
The conceptual framework of the study presents the systems of concepts
writing skill
assumptions, difficulties in
 Writing expectations and outcomes that support this research study.
Difficulties in English
English Composition of
The researchers come up to this study guided by the concepts presented
Difficulties in Writingin
Composition the students
English
 Reasons
research of
paradigm  Assessment
below. This made use of the Systemof ApproachComposition
with Input-Process- of
Writing Skill reasons of writing Selected Grade 12-
Difficulties
Output as framework. skill Difficulties Humanities and
 Cultural Factors Social Sciences
 Assessment of
thatInput
affect writing Process students Output
from Saint
performance cultural factors
Claire Academy,
 Strategies and that affect writing
Lian Batangas Inc.
methods that performance S.Y. 2019-2020.
students should  Assessment of
use to improve the strategies and
writing
methods that
students should
use to improve
writing
18

Figure 2.1

Figure 2.1
Research Paradigm Difficulties in Writing English Composition of
Selected Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences students
from Saint Claire Academy, Lian Batangas Inc.

Frame I represent the input which includes the Writing Difficulties in English

Composition, Reasons of Writing Skill Difficulties, Cultural Factors that affect writing

performance and Strategies and methods that students should use to improve writing. It

introduces the ideas as the foundation that build up the study. These are the concepts

that have been discussed in the line with presentation of data.

Frame II includes the gathering of data Gathering of data, Assessment of writing

skill difficulties in English Composition of the students, Assessment of reasons of writing

skill Difficulties, Assessment of cultural factors that affect writing performance, and

Assessment of the strategies and methods that students should use to improve writing.

Lastly, frame III pertains to the result of the study which is Difficulties in Writing

English Composition of Selected Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences students

from Saint Claire Academy, Lian Batangas Inc. S.Y. 2019-2020.

Theoretical Framework

Throughout the history there have been many cases of the writing difficulties in

English composition and it is important to say that this problems happen not only in our

country but also around the world. In the theory of Hyland, K (2008) a theoretician who

stated that there are four stages in writing that is emphasize in language structures such
19

as Familiarization; learners study a text to understand its grammar and vocabulary,

Controlled writing; students manipulate fixed patterns often from substitutions, Guided

writing; students imitate model text, usually filling in gaps, completing texts, creating

topic sentences, or writing parallel texts and lastly, Free writing; learners use the

patterns they have developed to write an essay, letter and any English composition.

Students often concerned about much intervention. Students are not taught the

language structures of the genre they are writing but are expected to discover them in

the process of writing itself or through. The four stages theory of Hyland can draw

students to improve writing by using the stages that Hyland presented. Using these

stages students can write a better and good composition.

Definition of Terms

For clarification, the terms conceptually used in this study is defined as follow:

Difficulty. The fact of not being easy, or of being hard to do or understand

(https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/amp/english/difficulty). In this study the researchers

investigate the difficulty of students in terms of writing.

Academic writing. It is clear, concise, focused, structured and backed up by

evidence. Its purpose is to aid the reader’s understanding. It is not complex and does

not require the use of long sentences and complicated vocabulary

(https://library.leeds.ac.uk/info/14011/writing/106/academic_writing). In this study, it is

the English activity that most students failed to do.

Revision. It literally means to see again, to look at something from a fresh,

critical perspective. It is an ongoing process of rethinking the paper: reconsidering your

20

arguments, reviewing your evidence, refining your purpose, reorganizing your

presentation, reviving stale prose. (https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/revising-

drafts/). In this study revision is mentioned on the literature and is part of the study.

Students attitude. It is a pre-disposition or a tendency to respond positively or

negatively towards the certain idea object person or situation

(http://www.boundless.com/mangement/textbooks/organizational-behavior-5/drivers-of-

behavior-44/defining-attitude-227-7241). In this study, it is used as one of the factors

affecting students writing skill difficulties.

English Teacher. He or She is someone who teaches English class. A person

who helps you improve writing public speaking spelling etc.

(http://www.thefreedictionary.com/english+teacher). In this study, it is used as one of the

factors affecting students writing

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CHAPTER III

RESEARCH METHOD AND PROCEDURE

This research provides the discussion on the research methods and procedures

that will be used in this study. It includes the research design, subjects of the study,

data gathering instrument which include the construction, validation, administration and

data gathering procedure.

Research Design

This study is made use of explanatory method which is designed for the

researchers to gather information about the evaluation of students difficulties in writing

English composition of the selected Grade 12 Humanities and Social Sciences from

Saint Claire Academy, Lian, Batangas Inc. S.Y. 2019-2020.

Explanatory research is conducted in order to help researchers find the problem

that was not studied before in-depth. The researcher focuses on explaining the aspects

of the study in a detailed manner (Taboola, 2018). Relatively, the method is appropriate

to the study since the study focused on the writing skill difficulties in English composition
22

to understand and interpret the weaknesses of the learner's in the said skills and collect

richer information on such case.

The researchers used qualitative approach in this study. Qualitative research is

intend to deeply explore, understand and interpret social phenomena within its natural

setting. Qualitative data use a wide range of techniques such as in-depth qualitative

interviews; participant and non participant observation, field notes, focus groups,

document analysis and a number of methods of data collection.

Relatively, researchers used interview sheet as their instruments to test validity

and reliability of the said study. Interview sheet is used to explore opinions from the

respondents that can represent a whole population. Such things are useful for

observations that seeks solution in its natural setting. So, for instance, an interview

sheet may be used to establish the weaknesses or the reason behind the condition.

Likewise, the survey approach is frequently used to collect information on attitudes and

behavior.

Subjects of the Study

The participants in this study were students of Saint Claire Academy, Lian,

Batangas, Inc. in Humanities and Social Sciences strand. The researchers choose the

school and the strand to conduct this study since the school and the strand had done

and had lots of experiences in making English compositions and can easily gather

information regarding to the said study.

23

The respondents of the study are the Grade 12 students from the strand

Humanities and Social Sciences of Saint Claire Academy, Lian Batangas Inc. The total

number of the respondents who were chosen to answer is 30.

Table 3.1 Subjects of the Study

Grade/Level No. of respondents

Grade 12-Humanities and Social 10
Sciences-Section I
Grade 12-Humanities and Social 10
Sciences-Section II
Grade 12-Humanities and Social 10
Sciences-Section III
TOTAL 30
The respondents of this study consists of 10 students from Grade 12-Section I,

10 students from Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences-Section II, and 10 students

from Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences-Section III with a total of 30

respondents.

Data gathering Instrument

Construction of the Questionnaire. In this study, the researchers employed the

questionnaire as the main data gathering instrument to assess the writing difficulties of

the selected Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences Senior High School students in

Saint Claire Academy Lian Batangas Inc. This is said to be a five part questionnaire.

The first part aims to know the profile of the selected students with regards to name,

age, gender and section. The second part aims to know the difficulties in writing English

Composition of the students, the third part aims to know the reasons of writing

difficulties, the fourth part aims to know the cultural factors that affect writing difficulties
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and lastly, the fifth part aims to know the strategies and methods that students should

use to improve writing.

Validation of the Interview Sheet. Validation is a process of confirming that an

existing program of study or newly designed one can continue or commence operation

(Harvey, 2000).

The first draft of the questionnaire was presented to the adviser for corrections

and suggestions. The researchers selected experts whom who went through each item

and suggested for its improvement. The corrections and suggestions were given which

incorporated in the second draft. It was presented again to the adviser for further

comment and refinement. After going through it all, all of them agreed that the

questionnaire measures what is intend to measure. The draft was submitted for

approval.

Administration. Upon the approval of the adviser, researcher coordinator and the

principal of Senior High School, the researchers distributed the questionnaires to the

Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences Senior High School students to asses the

writing skills that will serve as a framework.

Data Gathering Procedure

Prior to the selection of the participants, the researchers made a letter request to

the Senior High School Principal and their thesis adviser for the permission for the

administration of the interview sheets to the students. Upon approval, the researchers

gave the letter to ensure an effective delivery and to solicit assistance from the teachers

and the respondents.

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After the approval, the researchers distributed the interview sheet to the Grade

12-Humanities and Social Sciences Senior High School students. The researchers then

analyzed the data manually after the respondents were done.

CHAPTER IV

PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

This chapter presents the presentation, analysis and interpretation of data.

1. Writing Skill Difficulties in English Composition of the students

It is common for the student's in today's educational system to dislike or avoid

the writing process. Student's face a number of challenges producing correct and

appropriate texts. Writing is a difficult skill even in our Mother Tongue consider how

often students have to write continuous impressive pros in learners lives, especially

when writing English composition. The biggest reason of writing an composition is hard

because learner's mostly focus on external rewards like getting a passing grade or

teacher's approval.
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When the respondents were asked of what are the writing skill difficulties in

English Composition of the students, ten respondents cited:

"The main writing skill difficulties that I have experienced is to write an English

Composition with correct grammar."

Some learners are confused on the word order and rules in writing a correct

English composition that held them back on writing a good composition.

Furthermore, seven respondents cited:

" I have experienced difficulties in proper use of punctuation marks."

Learning the proper use of punctuation is challenging for people of all ages.

Students are used in writing informal compositions that makes it hard for them to write

with proper punctuation marks.

Moreover, six of the respondents cited:

"The arrangement of letters, words or sentence in a paragraph or composition is

hard."

Some students find arranging of words into a sentence and a sentence into a

paragraph too complicated. The sentences in a paragraph should be connected with

each other to form a good composition which the students failed to do.

Also, three of the respondents cited:

"The main writing skill difficulties I had experience is insufficient word stock."
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Some pupils pass incomplete paragraph and unfinished papers due to

insufficient word stock or memory problem.

Additionally, two of the respondents cited:

“I often had sequential ordering problem"

Students mostly write with personal opinions without writing it in a proper order or

sequence.

As well as one of the respondents cited:

"I always had hard time in doing margin and indents in English composition."

Margins and indents are told by the teacher depending on the subject and

composition. Students have hard time in doing margin and indents because the learners

do not know on how to do the proper layout in the said composition.

In addition, one of the respondents cited:

" I often had weak argumentation in English composition."

Students often write premises that are not true and fail to support the conclusion .

Students had experienced lots of difficulties in writing English composition.

Students have difficulties in organizing own made piece and prefer to write personal

opinions rather than facts or something related to get informed. Students do not know

how to use the techniques that can help them in writing English compositions(Jimenez

2013).

2. Reasons of Writing Skill Difficulties in English Composition

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Students with writing challenges may struggle from visual processing difficulties,

challenges with working memory, lagging executive functioning skills or difficulties with

the physical motor skills necessary for forming compositions. When students lack skills

in the area of writing there are such factors that affect them to write well free from

having poor grammatical usage to a lack of cohesion and coherence when expressing

the learner's idea.

When the respondents were asked of what are the reasons of writing difficulties

in English Composition, fifteen respondents cited:

"The reasons of this is poor writing skills comprehension"

Students had limited vocabulary and failed to connect the student’s ideas

properly.

Furthermore, five respondents cited:

"Lack on reading books, novels, newspapers and letters."

Reading books and any English compositions can add information’s and can help

the students to widen the pupils vocabulary but with the absence of it is impossible to

write a composition with full content.

Moreover, six of the respondents cited:

"Students are easily distracted by gadgets and phones."

The modern technology has a big effect on the behavior of the students and can

get the learners distracted in doing school works including writing English compositions.

Also, three of the respondents cited:

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"Its difficult to recall the spelling of the word, grammars and punctuation rules."

Memory problem is one of the common problem of the students and some

learners do not follow the rules on the composition that makes the pupils composition

wrong.

Additionally, one of the respondents cited:

"Students are not interested in writing."

Once the learners struggle in organizing and using the mechanics of writing the

student will loose interest in writing.

This result in some way bears out the study presented by Dr. Mel Levine who

wrote the book Developmental Variation and Learning Disorders who examined the

behavioral struggle of students that affects such as difficulty getting on started writing

assignments, easy distractibility during writing, tasks mental fatigue or tiredness while

writing, inconsistent legibility in writing, uneven writing tempo, many careless errors,

poorly planned papers and reports. Spatial or sequential ordering problem, memory

problem, language problem and graphomotor problem are also discussed in the study.

3. Cultural Factors that affect writing English composition

Culture has a big effect on writing. Thus, written language is not a biological

inheritance, but a cultural product, learned and meditated by adults in formal situations.

This way, researchers understand that there are many factors that may interfere with

the acquisition and development of written language.

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When the respondents were asked of what are the cultural factors that affect

writing English Composition of the students, twenty respondents cited:

"One of the cultural factor that affects writing is the translation of words, Students are

Filipinos and often find translating Tagalog into English hard."

There are some words that pupils find too hard to translate, there are same

words but different in meaning. Its hard to find the exact equivalent words.

Furthermore, five respondents cited:

"Learning English language is hard especially the grammar."

Learning English language is difficult and confusing. Using English language is

pretty challenging but it depends on the similarity of the native language of the students.

The hardest part of learning the language is its phrases, expressions, sense and

grammar.

Moreover, five of the respondents cited:

"When you are writing in another language and not in mother tongue, the accuracy in

information’s are absent."

Writing in your native language is much more easier than writing in another

language. In writing a composition the writer must ensure that the information is correct

because the message will be taught and delivered.

As it was cited in the study conducted by Al-Khsawneh (2010) indicated that

many learners use Mother tongue because of the isolated culture. Yet methods of

teaching included the medium of instructions using Arabic in English classes, teachers
31

low proficiency in English and lack of writing practice in educational institutions. English

language learners have limited vocabulary. The study was somehow connected

because both study discussed the cultural factors that affect writing English

Composition.

4. Effective and Easy Strategies and methods in creating Composition

There are such techniques and strategies that can be used to create a good

composition. Techniques can serve as a guide to make a better English composition. In

this way, learners may avoid mistakes in writing English compositions. Strategies help

to identify and use available resource, it serves as a written advice to the students.

When the respondents were asked of what are the cultural factors that affect

writing English Composition of the students, 10 respondents cited:

"The respondents must follow the patterns and writing skill manual."

The writing skill manual will help the students to develop and improve writing.

Furthermore, nine respondents cited:

"Students should read the own made compositions twice or more and do a final

editing."

When students read the own made compositions twice or more the mistakes will

be seen and revised instantly.

Moreover, five of the respondents cited:

"Students should practice writing to be better in the said area."

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The quotation “practice makes progress” is applied on writing. If an individual will

practice writing it will improve.

Additionally, three of the respondents cited:

"Students must improve their vocabulary."

When the students improve vocabulary the learners will be able to express the

ideas the students want to write.

As well as the two respondents cited:

"Students should read a journal, article and book for resources."

Reading writing compositions can improve writing.

In addition, one of the respondents cited:

"Students should watch K-drama and read a lot to somehow improve

understanding and to widen vocabulary."

Learners can improve writing through watching by understanding the subtitles

and flow of the story.

A study was conducted by Kamala (2003) has developed communicative

strategies to enhance the written communication skill in English among college students

and find out that the strategies developed proved to be effective.

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CHAPTER V

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter presents the summary, summary of finding, conclusion and

recommendation of the study.

Summary
34

This study aims to discover the Difficulties in Writing English Compositions of

Humanities and Social Sciences students.

Specifically, it seeks to answer the following questions:

1.What are the writing difficulties in English Composition of the students at Saint

Claire Academy?

2.What are the reasons of the Writing Difficulties?

3.What are the cultural factors that affect writing difficulties?

4.What are the strategies and methods that students should use to improve

writing?

This study employed the explanatory research. Interview sheet were used as the

main data gathering instrument.

The respondents of the study were 30 Grade 12-Humanities and Social Sciences

Senior High School students from Saint Claire Academy, Lian Batangas Inc. S.Y. 2019-

2020.

Summary of Findings

This study yielded the following findings.

1.Writing difficulties in English Composition

The main writing skill difficulties of the students in writing English Composition

are to write with correct grammar, proper use of punctuation marks, arrangement of
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letters, words or sentence in a paragraph or composition, insufficient word stock

sequential ordering problem, margin and indents, weak argumentation in English

composition.

2.Reasons of Writing difficulties in English composition

Learners often had difficulties in writing and the reasons are poor writing skills

comprehension, lack on reading books, novels, newspapers and letters, Students are easily

distracted by gadgets and phones, difficult to recall the spelling of the word, grammars

and punctuation rules and lastly students are not interested in writing.

3.Cultural Factors that affect Writing Difficulties

One of the cultural factors that affect as difficulties are the translation of words,

Students are Filipinos and often find translating Tagalog into English hard, Learning

English language is hard especially the grammar and the accuracy in information’s are

absent when using another language.

4.Strategies and method that students should use to improve writing

The strategies and methods that students can use are patterns and writing skill

manual, read own made compositions twice or more and do a final editing, practice

writing to be better in the said area, must improve their vocabulary, read a journal,

article and book for resources and watch Korean drama and read a lot to somehow

improve understanding and to widen vocabulary.

Conclusions

Based on the findings of the study, the following conclusions were drawn.
36

1. The students had lots of difficulties in writing English composition based on the

data the researchers gathered.

2. Majority of the respondents stated that the reasons of the difficulties is poor

writing skills comprehension. The researchers concluded that teaching strategies

and the level of interest of the students on writing has a big impact on the said

skill.

3.In terms of Culture, It has a big effect in writing English Composition because

of the attitude, environment, language and grammar. Consequently, It would be

easy to write if the native language and the used language has similarity.

4. All of the students had difficulties in writing. Therefore, the researchers

concluded that the technique and strategy that was taught by the teacher should

be used to enhance and practice the writing skills of the students.

Recommendation

From the findings and conclusions of this study, the following recommendations

are hereby advanced.

1. The students must apply the writing techniques, by practicing writing the

students will be able to write good , organized and clear English compositions.

2. The students should attend English clubs in order to enrich their vocabulary,

knowledge and fluency to better organize the student’s ideas at the moment of

making a composition about a specific topic.

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3.The students must read the pieces of writing many times before delivering any

composition or essay in order to clarify their ideas about the message they want

to give to the reader and correct some possible mistakes.

4. Students do not have to be afraid of asking any question to the teacher. He or

she is the one that will help the pupils to understand the different topics and

clarify doubts.

5.Students must look for more information in magazines, books or the internet if

the explanation about specific topic was not clear enough; there is a lot of

teaching material and websites related to writing that will be very helpful for the

students.
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