An Assessment of the Effectiveness of CALL in Teaching English Language Writing Skills in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) is playing a vital role in teaching English language to English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students. However, to best of my knowledge a little has been done in this regard to keep the students in line with the most recent advancements in this paradigm in Saudi Arabia. This paper evaluates the efficacy of CALL in improving students' writing skills and provides innovative techniques and robust strategies for long-lasting learning. The research seeks to fill in the knowledge gap regarding prospects of using CALL in the Kingdom with these main research questions; 1) how is the technology presently used for teaching the writing skills?; 2) what is the true impact of using CALL on students' writing skills?; 3) which area of the language (organization, structure, content, grammar) sees the most improvements by CALL to make them better writers? A quantitative research design was used for this study. The sample was sixty female students of a Saudi University divided equally into control and experimental groups. The elicited data analysis indicates that the performance scores of two groups differ significantly when taught through CALL. The research contends that using CALL can enhance students' writing skills over a short period of time when compared to the traditional ways of improving the writing skills. The current study also recommends that language classrooms should be equipped with all the latest technological facilities to encourage the use of CALL.

Strategies of Teaching Writing at Saudi Tertiary-Level Institutions: Reality and Expectations

“…The data show the main reasons for this situation among Saudi learners are attributed more to external factors, i.e. institutional policies, faculties and the predominant culture, than internal causes, students' own accountability for their learning, with the latter having significantly lower average values (Al-Saleh, 2018Alhujaylan, 2019Khan & Khan, 2016;Al-Mudhi, 2019;Tanrıkulu, 2020). Students in Saudi Arabian schools still shun and/or postpone writing.…”