A mixed study on secondary school students' attitudes, motivation and anxiety towards writing

This study aims to explore secondary school students' attitudes, motivation, and anxiety levels toward writing. The study employed a convergent parallel design, one of the mixed methods research approaches. The quantitative sample consisted of 174 fifth-grade, 183 sixth-grade, 171 seventh-grade, and 159 eighth-grade students. The qualitative sample included six students from each grade level, totalling 24 participants. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through using different measurement tools. The quantitative data were gathered through the "Writing Attitude Scale for Secondary School Students," the "Writing Motivation Scale," and the "Writing Anxiety Scale." Qualitative data were collected using a semi-structured interview form. Quantitative data were analysed through inferential statistical techniques and presented in tables. Qualitative data were examined through content analysis and were coded and interpreted based on student responses. The results suggested that secondary school students generally exhibited positive attitudes toward writing. However, these attitudes varied across gender and grade level. A positive correlation was identified between writing attitude and writing motivation, while a negative correlation was found between writing attitude and writing anxiety. Quantitative data revealed that students' writing motivation was at a moderate level, whereas qualitative data suggested it was generally positive. Both data showed that writing motivation differed across gender and grade level. Besides, writing motivation was positively associated with writing attitude and negatively associated with writing anxiety. The study concluded that secondary school students' writing anxiety was at a moderate level based on quantitative data, while qualitative findings indicated that most students experienced writing anxiety. Both quantitative and qualitative results suggested that writing anxiety varied across gender and grade level. In addition, writing anxiety was determined to have a negative relationship with both writing attitude and writing motivation. Based on these findings, various recommendations were provided to enhance students' writing attitudes and motivation and to reduce their writing anxiety. Key Words: Turkish Language Teaching, Writing Skills, Attitude Towards Writing, Writing Motivation, Writing Anxiety