The Relationship between Saudi English Major University Students’ Writing Performance and Their Learning Style and Strategy Use

Abstract

This study investigates the link between writing tasks, learners’ learning style preference, and writing strategy use. It also investigates if students with various proficiency levels stem from different learning style preference and use different writing strategies. This research attempts to answer the following research questions: what are the most common learning style preferences of Saudi undergraduate students majoring in English? what are the most common writing strategies used by Saudi students when writing an essay? Is the choice of writing strategy related to a learner’s learning style preference and writing task, and how might they be linked with one another? And finally does the use of writing strategies contribute to students’ writing performance? The sample of the study consisted of 74 Saudi female undergraduate students in their final year of their bachelor degree in King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia. Two questionnaires were used: (a) the Perceptual Learning Style Preference by Reid (1987), and (b) a writing strategy questionnaire by Petri and Czárl (2003). Moreover, students were asked to choose one of the two TOEFL writing prompts to write an essay. The data received from the returned questionnaires and writing tests were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS19. Results indicated that Saudi female students were mostly auditory and group learners. As for the writing strategies, Saudi learners used more “before writing” strategies than “during writing” strategies and “reviewing writing” strategies. Results revealed that there was no correlation between the participants’ learning style preference and writing strategies, nor their use of writing strategies and their writing proficiency. As a whole, this study contributed to the ESL/EFL field by providing information on Saudi undergraduate female learners in terms of their preferred perceptual learning style, their level of writing proficiency, and indeed their use of writing strategies.

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