The relationship between preservice English teachers' domain specific beliefs about writing and writing performance: A sample study

For various parts of the population from school children to university students, or to working adults, foreign language writing has become a fundamental competence. This crucial role of foreign language writing in such different contexts suggests that analyzing preservice English teachers' beliefs about writing might be valuable for both teacher educators and teacher candidates while proceeding on the road of learning college composition writing skills. For that reason, the current study aims to investigate first-year undergraduates' beliefs about writing and the relation of these beliefs to writing performance in essay writing. A total of one-hundred [and] forty-seven (147) students studying in the ELT department of Faculty of Education at Anadolu University participated in this research. Their domain-specific beliefs about writing were determined through the Beliefs about Writing Survey and structured interviews. Writing performance was measured on a particular essay writing task by calculating both the overall grade and six component grades. Multiple regression analysis affirmed that beliefs about writing accounted for writing performance independently. Pearson correlation values showed that some beliefs about writing were adaptive and associated with higher writing scores (e.g. "Adapt to the Audience"). This study also describes the findings from structured interviews of twenty-six (26) students. In those interviews, beliefs about good foreign language writing and good foreign language writers, the nature of writing ability, preservice teachers' practices during revision process, and the elements shaping their beliefs about good writing were questioned. Preservice teachers addressed some characteristics of good writing related to the organization, content and language use. As for writing ability, preservice teachers provided three different types of point of view. Most of them viewed writing both as an innate gift and an improvable skill while the rest of them regarded it either as an innate gift or as an improvable skill. Their beliefs about good writing characteristics fell into two main categories: characteristics related to the writing process and personal characteristics. During revision process, it was found that participants revised their drafts in terms of language use, coherence/cohesion/unity, idea and paragraph development, justifications and examples for arguments, and lastly writing mechanics. Their responses for factors and individuals that had shaped their beliefs and truths about good foreign language writing fit into three categories which were feedback and inspiration they had got from their teachers (especially writing instructors they met in university), their previous confrontations with good pieces of writing, and their personal experiences and background knowledge. The outcomes of the study revealed that by exploring preservice teachers' beliefs about writing, teacher educators could modify the coursework and writing practices in addition to guiding them about good writing and being a good writer throughout first-year composition classes.