Rhetorical Strategies for Teaching Essay Writing: A Case Study Involving Saudi ESL Students

Abstract

The use of rhetorical strategy in teaching writing has been a topic of discussion in ESL training programs since most teaching methodologies do not give the mother tongue a substantial role. This article presents findings from research on the rhetorical techniques pre-service teachers employ in writing both before and after receiving process-based writing instruction. The study focused on determining the writing techniques student teachers employ to complete an argumentative essay, and finding out how much pre-service teachers’ usage of writing methods is improved by using a rhetorical process approach to writing. The significance of the present study lies in the fact that it examines the writing abilities of Saudi students with different levels of language abilities and evaluates how rhetorical strategies help them in writing English easefully and with little or no flaws. The fundamental question to be probed through this study is to what extent rhetorical strategies can help teach successful writing to Saudi ESL learners. The data was obtained via the performance of an essay task utilizing two think-aloud protocols and based on a sample of 98 student teachers from Saudi Arabia. The findings of this study show rhetorical strategies such as generating ideas and rewriting are very essential in writing final essays by students. It is clear from the results that after students have mastered the choosing ideas process, they may include concepts that are relevant to the text. Professors should spend time, particularly teaching this kind of approach to help students become competent method users and writers generally, regardless of their audience. In concluding writing an article, it seemed like the strategy of translating from the native tongue to a foreign language was being utilized