Exploring English Descriptive Writing Vocabulary Acquisition through Creative Pedagogical Strategies

Nur Ehsan Mohd. Said, Vanitha Thambirajah, Melor Md Yunus, Kim Hua Tan, Fazal Mohamed Mohamed Sultan

Abstract


Review on previous English as a second language (ESL) interventional programmes in Malaysia has indicated limited emphasis on creative pedagogy. Particularly in writing classes that include descriptive writing, a genre that requires writers to be creative and expressive, a significant portion of learners were found to suffer from poor proficiency. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore the impact of creative pedagogical strategies on ESL learners’ descriptive writing. Under classroom research, it adopted the action research design with a single case study to monitor upper secondary school learners’ writing with an emphasis on sentence construction and vocabulary. The data collection involved focus group interviews, written tests, and evaluation of students’ written work. It was revealed that creative pedagogical strategies were effective in improving students’ descriptive writing performance. The main findings derived included five themes as the following: ability to describe pictures using complex vocabulary, learning new words, acquisition of various adjectives and verbs, ability to show emotion or feelings, and acquisition of skill for delivering meaning with precision. We propose a chain of parallel action-related research plans to further investigate creative teaching approaches and to encourage similar creative pedagogical strategies by English teachers in the country.

 

Keywords: action research; ESL writing skills; sentence-construction; vocabulary; creative pedagogical strategies; descriptive writing


Full Text:

PDF

References


Al-Naibi, I., Al-Jabri, M. & Al-Kalbani, I. (2018). Promoting students’ paragraph writing using EDMODO: An Action Research. TOJET: The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 17(1), 130–143.

Annamalai, N. (2018). A case study of the online interactions among ESL students to complete their narrative writing task. Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Technology, 6(1), 1-17.

Bono, D. (1992). Serious Creativity Using the Power of Lateral Thinking to Create New Ideas. Harper Business.

Brown, H. D. (2007). Teaching by Principles. Addison Wesley Longman Inc.

Carbajal, R. V., Francisco, U. & Salvador, G.-E. (2018). Introducing drama for ESL. Boletin virtual – Marzo, 7(3), 3-8.

Coghlan, D. & Brannick, T. (2005). Doing Action in Your Own Organization. SAGE Publications Inc.

Cremin, T. & Barnes, J. (2018). Creativity and Creative Teaching and Learning. In: Teresa, T. & Burnett, C. eds. Learning to Teach in the Primary School. (4th edition). Routledge.

Cremin, T., Burnard, P. & Craft, A. (2006). Pedagogies of possibility thinking. International Journal of Thinking Skills and Creativity, 1(2), 108-19.

Davut, N. (2020). Using Task-Based Language Teaching in English Writing Classrooms: Students’ Perception of Motivation, Writing Behavior, and Challenges. Journal of Foreign Language Teaching and Translation Studies, 5(3), 45-62.

Fareed, M., Ashraf, A. & Bilal, M. (2016). ESL learners’ writing skills: Problems, factors and suggestions. Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 4, 81-92.

Fauziah, A. (2018). The use of boggle game to improve student’s vocabulary in writing descriptive text. Jurnal Pendidikan dan Pembelajaran, 7(1), 1-8.

Halimatus Sa’diyah. (2017). Improving Students' Ability in Writing Descriptive Texts through a Picture Series- Aided Learning Strategy. The English Teacher, 40, 164-182.

Hapsari, E. W. & Sukavatee, P. (2018). Second Language Writing Instruction: A Recent Practice in Indonesia. Journal of Linguistic and English Teaching, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.24903/sj.v3i1.154

Harmer, J. (2004). Review of how to teach handwriting. Journal of Applied Psychology, 3(2), 246-248.

Harwati Hashim, Melor Md. Yunus, Mohamed Amin Embi & Nor Azwa Mohamed Ozir. (2017). Mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) for ESL Learners: A review of affordances and constraints. Sains Humanika, 9, 1-5.

Imy Tracy Madut & Melor Md, Yunus. (2016). Popsicle simile: An innovative tool in promoting creative writing among rural primary school ESL learners. International Conference on Education, pp. 425-431.

Jaelani, S. R. (2017). Treating of content-based instruction to teach writing viewed from EFL learners' creativity. English Language Teaching, 10(11), 156-161.

Jeffrey, B. & Craft, A. (2006). Creative learning and possibility thinking. Creative learning Practices: European Experiences, 73-91.

Jesson, R., McNaughton, S., Rosedale, N., Zhu, T. & Cockle, V. (2018). A mixed-methods study to identify effective practices in the teaching of writing in a digital learning environment in low-income schools. Computers and Education, 119, 14–30. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2017.12.005.

Kemmis, S. A. & McTaggart, R. (1998). The Action Research Planner. (3rd Ed). Victoria, BC: Deakin University.

Kandasamy, S., Hua, T.K. & Sultan, F.M.M. 2022. The Impact of a Debriefing Strategy in Online ESL Classrooms. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 21(3), 247–262.

Kim Hua, T. & Mohd Nor, N. F. (2012). Bridging Theories and Practice through Research: The Malaysian experience. 3L: The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies, 18(3), 1-4.

Kusuma, I., Adnyani, N. L. D. S. & Taharyanti, G. A. P. (2017). Developing 10 interesting games as the breakthrough of monotonous implementation of flashcards to vocabulary learning and assessments. Script Journal of Linguistics and English Teaching, 2(1), 68-82.

Laufer, B. (2005). Focus on form in second language vocabulary learning. EUROSLA Yearbook, 5(1), 223-250.

Lewis, M. (2000). Introduction. In M. Lewis (Ed.), Teaching collocation: Further developments in the lexical approach. Hove: Language Teaching Publications

Lidawan, M. W. & Joaquin Gaciles Gabayno, Jr. (2018). Underpinning film elements’ pedagogical feasibilities for creative writing. European Journal of Education Studies, 4(2), 221-246.

Lim, T. D. & Varghese, M. (2013). Analyzing Malaysian English classrooms: Reading, writing, speaking & listening teaching strategies [Doctoral Thesis, University of Washington].

Manara, C. (2015). Experimenting with language through creative Writing Tasks. Indonesian JELT, 10(2), 69-83.

Marhatus Sholeha, Imam Ghozali, & Mohd Arif Mahbub. (2019). Undergraduate Students’ Difficulties in Writing Descriptive Paragraph. LINGUAPEDIA: Journal of English Education, Literature, and Linguistics Studies, 1(1), 1-47.

Mashhadia, F. & Jamalifar, G. (2015). Second language vocabulary learning through visual and textual representation. ProcediaSocial and Behavioral Sciences, 192, 298-307.

Mohamed Ali, Mohamed Kassem. (2018). The effect of a suggested in-service teacher training program based on mall applications on developing EFL students’ vocabulary acquisition. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 9(2), 250-260.

Nunan, D. (1999). Second Language Teaching and Learning. Heinle & Heinle.

Nur-Ehsan, M. S. & Yunus, M. M. & Doring, L. & Asmi, A. & Aqilah, F. & Li, L. (2013). Blogging to Enhance Writing Skills: A Survey of Students’ Perception and Attitude. Asian Social Science, 9(16), 95-101. doi:10.5539/ass.v9n16p95

Nursazwani, D., Daud, B., Din, W.A. & Al-saqqaf, A. (2018). Exploring the VAW method of writing: The module development the cognitive process theory of writing in Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 3(2), 40-47.

Nachiappan, S., Osman, Z., Hassan, N. M., Jamil, N., Hussein, H., Othman, M. & Suffian, S. (2018). An Analysis of the Criteria and Effectiveness of Using Teaching Aids in Preschool Science and Technology Components in Malaysia. Development, 7(1), 63-82.

Nation, I. S. P. (2001). Learning Vocabulary in Another Language. Cambridge University Press.

Nim, S. (2017). The effectiveness of self-directed learning strategy to teach writing viewed from students’ creativity. PhD Thesis, English education department, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta, Indonesia.

Nurul Kamalia, Y., Melor, M.Y. & Mohamed Amin, E. (2018). Workplace writing in L2 experiences among millennial workforce: Learning to write in English. 3L: Language, Linguistics, Literature, 24(1), 145-161.

ORELT. (2012). Effective writing. www.orelt.col.org. [24 May 2018]

Philip, B., Tan, K.H. & Anak Janda, W. (2019). Exploring Teacher Cognition in Malaysian ESL Classrooms. 3L: The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies, 25(4), 156-178.

Rashid, R. A., Abdul Rahman, S. B. & Yunus, K. (2017). Reforms in the policy of English language teaching in Malaysia. Policy Futures in Education, 15(1), 100-112.

Robinson, K. (2001). Out of Our Minds. Capstone Publishing Limited.

Sahathevan, Nisha, E & Hamidah Yamat. (2020). Learning Simple Sentence Construction Using Colourful Jenga Blocks. International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development, 9(1), 1-14.

Soffianny, N.K. (2017). The effectiveness of project-based learning to teach writing in relation to students' creativity [Doctoral Thesis, Yogyakarta State University, Indonesia].

Soraya, K. (2016). The effectiveness of collaborative writing strategy (CWS) in writing lesson regarded to the students’ creativity. Lingua Cultura, 10(2), 63-67.

Stringer, T.E. (2007). Action Research. (3rd Edition). SAGE Publications. doi:10.1360/zd-2013-43-6-1064.

Sulaiman. (2017). Improving Students’ Achievement in Writing Narrative Text Through Modelling Technique in the Second Semester of the Eight-Year Students of Public Junior High School 2 Blitar. International Research-Based Education Journal, 1(1), 46-57.

Sulaiman. (2018). Improving Students writing by using Inside Outside Circle at IKIP PGRI Pontianak. Research and Innovation in Language Learning, 1(4), 17-28.

Tan, K. H., William Jospa, M.E., Nur-Ehsan, M. S., Mohd Mahzan, A. (2021). Speak like a native English speaker or be judged: a scoping review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(23), 1-16. doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182312754

Thirusanku, J. & Yunus, M. M. (2014). Status of English in Malaysia. Asian Social Science. 10(14), 254.

Omar, W. & Mohd Said, N. E. (2019). The Effect of Tarsia Puzzle on Vocabulary Learning in a Primary School Setting. International Journal of New Technology and Research, 5(7), 86-91.

Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological process. Harvard University Press.

Yunus, M. M. & Chien, C. H. (2016). The use of mind mapping strategy in Malaysian University English test (MUET) Writing. Creative Education, 7(4), 619-626.




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/3L-2022-2804-15

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


 

 

 

eISSN : 2550-2247

ISSN : 0128-5157