INVESTIGATING THE CONTRIBUTION OF COMBINED TEACHER AUTOMATED FEEDBACK TO STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILLS IN AN EFL CLASS

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate students' perceptions of the writing assessment tool MyAccess and the extent to which teachers support students in enhancing their writing abilities. This case study examined the progress of five students who attended preparatory classes at Fırat University for a duration of six weeks. The study specifically focuses on their writing lessons. The students were required to produce at least three drafts of four different kinds of articles. Immediately after finishing the initial draft, they got comments on the tool. They received comments from the teacher on their improved writing and made the necessary revisions. The feedback from many sources was merged to create the final drafts. The students routinely wrote down their thoughts and discussed them with the teacher after finishing each set of drafts, which also included the final draft for each type of essay. Journal entries were used to carefully compile the opinions of the pupils regarding the tools and teacher feedback. In order to clarify any points in this material that needed more clarity and to get a broad perspective, post-interviews were also conducted. Students indicated enthusiasm for the writing assessment tools, according to the study's findings. It is crucial to remember that while these techniques are useful, they should not be used as the only method of assessment. Research has demonstrated the importance of effectively combining teacher feedback and technological writing assessment techniques in order to enhance writing proficiency. Teachers should utilize writing assessment tools in conjunction with their own feedback to assist students in enhancing their writing abilities, as indicated by the outcomes.