EFL Writing Teaching / Learning Could Go Online: Instructors’ Perceptions, Students’ Perceptions, and Achievement

Abstract

In light of the COVID -19 pandemic and government policies to conduct online learning, the present study aimed to examine how EFL faculty and students perceive teaching and learning EFL writing online, whether they differ significantly in their perceptions, and to examine if the scores of the students who study face to face are significantly different from those who studied online .21 EFL teachers and 104 EFL students voluntarily participated in this study via Google Form. Both EFL faculty and students were asked to complete a five-Likert point questionnaire about EFL teaching and learning of writing online. In addition, the scores of 54 students who studied in person were compared with the scores of 52 students who studied online regarding EFL writing. Descriptive statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS for data analysis. The results showed that EFL instructors had both positive and negative perceptions toward EFL writing online teaching. However, the positive perceptions outweighed the negative ones. In addition, students perceived online writing instruction as a useful tool to compensate for face-to-face learning during the COVID -19 pandemic. Moreover, the students preferred ODeL writing courses to traditional courses whereas the instructors did not. Furthermore, the students who studied online outscored those who studied in person. The important implications of the findings for research on teaching and learning EFL writing online are discussed.