THE DEGREE OF USE AND THE VARIETY OF PREWRITING

ACTIVITIES EMPLOYED IN UHB 1412 CLASS IN UTM

RAJA INTAN DEWIASYIKIN BINTI RAJA ABD RAHMAN

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA

PSZ 19:16 (Pind. 1/07)

DECLARATION OF THESIS / UNDERGRADUATE PROJECT PAPER AND COPYRIGHT

Author’s full name : RAJA INTAN DEWIASYIKIN BINTI RAJA ABD RAHMAN Date of birth : 3rd APRIL 1983

Title : THE DEGREE OF USE AND THE VARIETY OF PREWRITING ACTIVITIES EMPLOYED

IN UHB 1412 CLASS IN UTM

Academic Session : 2008/2009 I declare that this thesis is classified as : I acknowledged that Universiti Teknologi Malaysia reserves the right as follows :

1. The thesis is the property of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. 2. The Library of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia has the right to make copies for the purpose

of research only. 3. The Library has the right to make copies of the thesis for academic exchange.

Certified by :

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE OF SUPERVISOR 830403-01-5278 DR SARIMAH BINTI SHAMSUDIN

(NEW IC NO. /PASSPORT NO.) NAME OF SUPERVISOR Date : 30th APRIL 2009 Date : 30th APRIL 2009

NOTES : * If the thesis is CONFIDENTIAL or RESTRICTED, please attach with the letter from the organisation with period and reasons for confidentiality or restriction.

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA

√

CONFIDENTIAL (Contains confidential information under the Official Secret Act 1972)*

RESTRICTED (Contains restricted information as specified by the organisation where research was done)*

OPEN ACCESS I agree that my thesis to be published as online open access (full text)

“I hereby declare that I have read this thesis and my opinion this thesis is

sufficient in terms of scope and quality for the award of the degree of Bachelor

Science in Education (TESL)”

Signature :

Name : DR SARIMAH BINTI SHAMSUDIN

Date :30 APRIL 2009

THE DEGREE OF USE AND THE VARIETY OF PREWRITING ACTIVITIES

EMPLOYED IN UHB 1412 CLASS IN UTM

RAJA INTAN DEWIASYIKIN BINTI RAJA ABD RAHMAN

A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree of

Bachelor Science in Education (TESL)

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA

APRIL 2009

ii

I declare that this thesis entitled “The Degree Of The Use And The

Variety Of Prewriting Activities Employed In UHB 1412 Class In UTM” is the

result of my own research except as cited in the references. The thesis has not

been accepted for any degree and is not concurrently submitted in candidature of

any other degree.

Signature :

Name : RAJA INTAN DEWIASYIKIN BTE RAJA ABD RAHMAN

Date : 30 APRIL 2009

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Dedicated to:

My most beloved father & mother Raja Abd Rahman & Mutiah,

Raja Emy Arfah & Raja Noor Hidayah & Raja Muhammad Alief,

To the love of my life, Mohd Hafiz

And last but not least,

The prince of my heart,

Baby Muhammad Danish Hariz

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ALHAMDULLILLAH,

All praise be to ALLAH, the Almighty, for His guidance to me in finishing this

project.

First and foremost I offer my sincerest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Sarimah

Binti Shamsudin , who has supported me throughout my project with her patience and

knowledge whilst allowing me the room to work on my own way. Without her

encouragement, patience and effort, this project, would not have been completed or

written. One simply could not wish for a better or friendlier supervisor.

Second, to the examiners PM. Dr Noor Zainab Binti Abdul Razak and En. Mohd

Nasir who not only encouraged but challenged me in completing this project.

Third, to all lecturers and students who were willing to participate as my

respondents in this project.

In my daily work, I have been blessed with family and friends who gave their

support to make this project a reality.

Finally, thanks for those who helped me directly and indirectly in this project.

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ABSTRACT

This research aims to investigate the types of prewriting activities conducted in

UHB 1412 class and to what extent it has been used. The effectiveness of the prewriting

activities that have been used is also being identified. Besides that, it also investigates

the students’ and teachers’ perceptions on the importance of the prewriting activities in

the writing class. A total of 100 students in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) who

are taking the UHB 1412 class and four Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) lecturers

who are teaching UHB 1412 class participated in this study. The research instruments

used for this study were questionnaires and interview. 100 sets of questionnaires were

distributed to get feedback from the students on the use of prewriting activities when

they are learning writing in the UHB 1412 class. Interview sessions were conducted with

four lecturers to identify the types of prewriting activities that they used in their UHB

1412 class and to what extent these activities have been used in their teaching of writing

in the UHB 1412 class. It is to ensure that there is no contradiction in the data collected.

Thus, giving this study greater validity. Results from the findings indicate the following:

1) All the lecturers do conduct prewriting activities when teaching writing in their UHB

1412 class. 2) The most frequent prewriting activities conducted in the classroom are

brainstorming and discussion. 3) Students are aware that prewriting activities could

improve their writing. 4) Lecturers find it helpful for students to improve their writing.

Finally, the pedagogical implications of the findings and recommendations for the future

research are being suggested.

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ABSTRAK

Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji jenis-jenis aktiviti pra - penulisan yang

dijalankan di dalam kelas UHB 1412. Keberkesanan aktiviti pra - penulisan yang telah

digunakan juga dikenalpasti. Selain itu, ia juga merangkumi pandangan daripada pelajar

dan guru tentang kepentingan aktiviti pra - penulisan di dalam kelas penulisan. Seramai

100 orang pelajar Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) yang mengambil kelas UHB

1412 dan empat orang pensyarah Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) yang mengajar

kelas UHB 1412 terlibat di dalam kajian ini. Instrumen kajian yang digunakan untuk

kajian ini ialah soal selidik dan temuduga. 100 set soal selidik telah diagihkan untuk

mendapatkan maklumbalas daripada pelajar mengenai penggunaan aktiviti pra -

penulisan semasa pembelajaran penulisan di dalam kelas UHB 1412. Sesi temuduga

dengan empat pensyarah telah dilaksanakan untuk mengenalpasti jenis-jenis aktiviti pra

- penulisan yang mereka gunakan dalam kelas UHB 1412 dan sejauh mana

kepenggunaannya dalam pengajaran penulisan di dalam kelas UHB 1412. Hal ini adalah

untuk memastikan tiada kesangsian terhadap data yang dikumpul. Sekaligus,

memberikan kesahihan yang tepat pada kajian ini. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan: 1)

Semua pensyarah menjalankan aktiviti pra - penulisan semasa pengajaran dalam kelas

UHB 1412. 2) Aktiviti pra -penulisan yang paling kerap digunakan adalah percambahan

idea dan perbincangan. 3) Pelajar menyedari bahawa aktiviti pra - penulisan dapat

memperbaiki penulisan mereka. 4) Pensyarah mendapati bahawa ia membantu pelajar

dalam penulisan mereka. Akhir sekali, implikasi pedagogi tentang keputusan yang

diperolehi dan cadangan untuk kajian yang akan datang telah diutarakan.

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TABLE OF CONTENT

CHAPTER TITLE PAGE

THESIS STATUS DECLARATION

SUPERVISOR’S DECLARATION

TITLE

DECLARATION ii

DEDICATION` iii

ACKNOWLEDEGMENTS iv

ABSTRACT v

ABSTRAK vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS vii

LIST OF TABLES xii

LIST OF FIGURES xiii

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study 1

1.2 Statement of the problem 2

1.3 Purposes of the study 3

1.4 Objectives of the study 4

1.5 Research questions 4

1.6 Significance of the study 5

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1.7 Scope of the study 5

1.8 The definition of terms used in this study 6

1.8.1 Writing Processes 6

1.8.2 Prewriting 6

1.8.3 Prewriting Activities 6

1.8.4 Degree 7

1.8.5 The degree of use 7

1.8.6 Lecturer 7

1.8.7 Student 7

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction 8

2.2 Writing Process 9

2.3 Process Approach 9

2.4 Prewriting 11

2.5 Types of prewriting activities 12

2.5.1 Brainstorming 12

2.5.2 Listing 13

2.5.3 Discussion 13

2.5.4 Freewriting 14

2.5.5 Combining information 14

2.5.6 Cluster diagramming/Mote-making 15

2.5.7 Organizing ideas 16

2.5.8 Grouping 16

2.6 The Combination of Various Kinds of 16

Prewriting Activities

2.7 Previous Study Related with This Research 17

2.8 Conclusions 18

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3 METHODOLOGY

3.1 Introduction 19

3.2 Research instrument used 19

3.2.1 Questionnaires 20

3.2.2 Interview 20

3.3 Respondents of the study 20

3.3.1 Students 21

3.3.1 Lecturer 21

3.4. Research procedure 21

3.4.1 Piloting Questionnaires 21

3.4.2 Piloting the Interview 22

3.5 Data Collection 22

3.5.1 Questionnaire 22

3.5.2 Interview 23

3.6 Data Analysis 23

3.6.1 Questionnaires 23

3.6.2 Interview 23

4 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS

4.1 Introduction 24

4.2 Analysis of data– Students’ Questionnaire 25

and Lecturers’ Interview

4.2.1 Demographic data 25

4.2.1.1 Respondents’ Gender 25

4.2.1.2 Respondents’ Age 26

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4.3 Research Question No 1: 27

What are the difference types of prewriting activities used

in teaching of writing?

4.3.1 Students’ Questionnaire 27

4.3.2 Lecturers’ Interview 28

4.4 Research Question No. 2: 30

What is the degree of usage of the prewriting activities

used in UHB 1412 writing class?

4.4.1 Students’ Questionnaire 30

4.4.2 Lecturers’ Interview 31

4.5 Research Question No.3: 32

What are the students’ perception on the use of prewriting

activities in the learning of writing?

4.6 Research Question No.4 35

What are the Lecturers’ perception on the use of prewriting

activities in the teaching of writing?

4.7 Conclusions 37

5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Introduction 38

5.2 Summary 38

5.3 Conclusions 39

5.4 Pedagogical Implications to teaching 40

5.5 Limitations of the study 41

5.6 Recommendations for the future research 41

BIBLIOGRAPHY 42

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APPENDIX

Appendix A - Questionnaire 44

Appendix B – Teacher’s Interview Question 48

Appendix C - Transcription of the Teacher’s Interview 50

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1 Students’ view on the types of prewriting activities 27

that their UHB 1412 lecturer use in the UHB 1412.

following activities

Table 4.2 Lecturers’ Most Frequently Used Prewriting Activities 29

Table 4.3 Lecturer’s comments on the degree of usage of 31

prewriting activities in UHB 1412 class

Table 4.4 Student’s responses on whether the activities 33

that their UHB 1412 lecturer carries out before they

begin their writing helps to improve their essay writing in

the UHB 1412 class.

Table 4.5 Lecturer’s perception on the prewriting activities. 35

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1 Watkins-Goffman and Berkowitz (1990) 15

Figure 4.1 Respondents’ Gender 25

Figure 4.2 Respondents’ Age 26

Figure 4.3 UHB 1412 Lecturers’ Teaching Experience 28

Figure 4.4 Percentage of students who agree that their lecturer 30

conducted prewriting activities in UHB 1412 class

Figure 4.5 No. of students who conducted prewriting activities 31

before they start to write in UHB 1412 class.

Figure 4.6 Students’ perception that prewriting activities help to 32

improve in their writing

Figure 4.7 Students’ awareness on the importance of 34

prewriting activities

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

It is the intention of this study to look at the degree of use and the variety of

prewriting activities employed in UHB 1412 class in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.

In this chapter, the researcher looks at the background of the study, statement of the

problem that leads to this study, the purposes of the study, objectives of the study,

the research questions, significance of the study and scope of the study.

1.1 Background of the study

Writing is one of the most important skills for students to acquire. Although it

is essential, not all students are capable of writing due to its tedious process.

Moreover, writing style differs from language to language and this makes teaching

writing to English as a second language (ESL) learners quite frustrating for many

lecturers.

Some students manage to write good essays but unfortunately there are also

some who are at loss when it comes to putting down their ideas on paper. They

cannot achieve the coherence of writing and will waste their time thinking about the

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title or topic given. They face difficulties in elaborating on ideas and organizing it in

an effective manner. Therefore, a lecturer has to play important roles in choosing the

correct approach and activity which can help students to overcome this problem. The

lecturer also needs to train their students to follow steps in the process of writing

based on the approach chosen in order to assist them to be more organized. There

are several approaches in writing that can help students to write, namely the process

approach, the genre approach, and the product approach.

This is also reiterated by Elbow (1981:358) who says:

“They have to get the right pencil or chair or paper. If they get any steps

wrong in the ritual dance they use in writing, they feel as though words won’t

come or that the wrong words will come or that the words won’t be

effective.”

Apparently, the writing skill is taught in most cases using the traditional

approach which stresses on the finished product rather than the writing process.

Some teachers are also unaware of the importance of prewriting activities which can

guide their students to generate ideas to write.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

UHB 1412, English for Academic Communication is an elective course in

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). This course is to equip students with relevant

skills in English language as this will help them to function effectively in the course

of their study. This course also fulfils the students’ academic requirements such as in

the acquisition of reading skills, note-making skills, referencing skills, library skills,

speaking skills and also writing skills in English. In addition, this course is offered to

UTM students in different programmes and with different levels of proficiency.

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Not all students are good at writing. This is in line with Chitravelu, et. al

(2006), who state that writing is the skill that most students are least competent in

and also does not give much reward. Therefore, lecturers have to find the most

efficient way to teach writing in order for their students to obtain good results. The

first step is during the prewriting activity. Prewriting activity is a part of the process

approach which comprises brainstorming, discussion, mind mapping and so forth. It

is important for students to get some ideas on what they will write. This is to avoid

them from having difficulties at the beginning, as this will affect the quality of the

whole writing. However, during the prewriting activity, some of the students

especially the lower proficiency students might face problems in identifying the ideas

that are related to the topic. Hence, they need another guide like a model or a sample

of an essay for them to look at.

Due to the problem above, the researcher would like to look at the types of

prewriting activities that are being used and to what extent they have been used in the

UHB 1412 class.

1.3 Purposes of the study

Writing is the most difficult skill to be acquired among the four skills and are

least preferred by students. In order to motivate them to write, lecturers have to use

the correct yet simple techniques for students to apply.

The purposes of this study are:

a) To establish the types and extent of prewriting activities that are

currently being used in UTM.

b) To develop awareness of the importance of prewriting activities in

writing class.

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1.4 Objectives of the study

The objectives of this study are:

a) To identify the variety of prewriting activities used in the teaching of

writing.

b) To identify the degree of use of the prewriting activities in the

teaching of writing.

c) To investigate the students’ perceptions on the use of prewriting

activities in the learning of writing.

d) To investigate the lecturers’ perceptions on the use of prewriting

activities in the teaching of writing.

1.5 Research Questions

This study aims to answer the following questions:

a) What are the different types of prewriting activities used in the

teaching of writing?

a) What is the degree of usage of the prewriting activities used in the

UHB 1412 writing class?

b) What are the students’ perceptions on the use of prewriting activities

in the learning of writing?

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c) What are the lecturers’ perceptions on the use of prewriting activities

in the teaching of writing?

1.6 Significance of the study

This study attempts to look at the degree of use and the variety of prewriting

activities employed in the UHB 1412 class. It is also to help students boost their

potential in writing by generating their ideas in writing and at the same time

obtaining good results in writing.

1.7 Scope of the study

This study of the degree of use and the variety of prewriting activities

employed in UHB 1412 class will concern only the first year students in UTM who

are taking the English for Academic Communication course and lecturers in UTM

who are teaching the UHB 1412 course.

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1.8 The definition of terms used in this study

The terms related to this study are as follow:

1.8.1 Writing processes

In teaching writing, Nagin, (2003:26) states that it is:

“Any of the activities used to compose a piece of writing. These are

sometimes described as cycles of planning (generating ideas, setting goals

and organizing), translating (putting a plan into writing) and reviewing

(evaluating and revising); or they can be categorized as activities such as

prewriting, drafting, revising and editing”.

1.8.2 Prewriting

Hedge (1988) indicates that in the prewriting process, the writer will determine

the purpose and the audience of the writing.

1.8. 3 Prewriting activities

Prewriting activities include brainstorming, discussion, mind map,

freewriting and others that are conducted before a person begins to draft a piece of

writing.

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1.8.4 Degree

According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2000), degree is a level

in a scale of how serious something is.

1.8.5 The degree of use

To what extent or how much the prewriting activities have been used in UHB

1412 Course.

1.8.6 Lecturer

Lecturers in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) who are teaching the

UHB 1412 course.

1.8.7 Students

First year students in Universiti Tekologi Malaysia (UTM) who are taking the

UHB 1412 course.