Understanding the Challenges Faced by EFL Postgraduate Writers and Their Self-initiated Writing Strategies

Abstract

This paper reports on a study investigating ESL postgraduate students’ writing problems and the self-initiated strategies they developed to meet these challenges at a University in Hong Kong. Research students’ academic success is partly determined by the quality of their thesis writing. However writing at this level can be problematic, especially for second language writers, and writing teachers and supervisors need to understand their students’ challenges in order to fully support them. Case study students from different disciplines were interviewed over a two year period and a questionnaire was sent to over 150 postgraduate students to investigate their major writing challenges and their self-initiated strategies. The findings suggested that writing challenges related mainly to linguistic, cultural, institutional and disciplinary issues. In particular two main difficulties were identified: difficulties with expressing complex ideas in a second language and difficulties with developing confidence and a convincing academic voice as students attempted to make the transition from novice to expert members of the academic community. The paper focuses specifically on two case studies and discusses the strategies these two students developed to deal with their writing challenges and how these challenges evolved over a two year period. Strategies used consistently and successfully included using expert writing such as academic articles as writing ‘models’ and the use of peer support networks which provided support, advice and feedback on the students’ writing and also offered opportunities for academic collaboration. The paper will also focus on the implications for both academic writing teachers and for supervisors of second language postgraduate students.