Course paper

TEACHING WRITING TO EFL LEARNERS: AN INVESTIGATION OF CHALLENGES CONFRONTED BY INDONESIAN TEACHERS

One must concentrate on both productive and receptive skills in order to become proficient English speakers. The productive skills are writing and speaking, while the receptive skills are listening and reading. When it comes to communication, each skill is crucial. However, according to Browker (2007), writing is a skill that is required in numerous settings throughout one's life. You can, for instance, write essays for your homework or an email to local or international friends. Writing is a way of life in school that helps students succeed; You won't pass the class if you don't have the ability to write your thoughts down. In addition, it is the skill that is utilized the most frequently when assessing students' performance across all educational levels (Afrin, 2016).More importantly, one of the requirements for receiving a scholarship (such as LPDP) or even a job is the ability to write in English, specifically essays, for Indonesian students.

However, given the significance of writing, many EFL teachers found it challenging to teach writing (Thuy, 2009).This means that teaching writing to EFL students can be challenging. In fact, teaching writing skills in English LANGKAWI Journal 4(1):21-31 ISSN (p):2460-2280;ISSN (e):2549-9017-22 is a challenging task because it requires the learner to develop their linguistic and communicative competence (Bilal, Tariq, Din, Latif, &Anjum, 2013).Notwithstanding,
educators are expected to have an expert obligation regarding students' composition improvement. According to Leki, Cumming, & Silva (2008), p. 83, they are assumed to have proficiency in the L2 language, knowledge of writing and the local curriculum, and a repertoire of relevant strategies for responding to their students' writing.
A few works has been finished in the space of instructing keeping in touch with EFL understudies,
answering the troubles of educating composing. For instance, a study that was carried out in Palestine and focused on critiquing traditional writing teaching methods They discovered that traditional approaches result in passive and sterile classroom activities. Instead, they proposed incorporating blended writing activities into the blended learning outcome. According to another study (Mustika, 2016), teaching Thai students to write effectively can be accomplished through the use of STAD (Student Team Achievement Divisions).In Pakistan, a study (Bilal, Tariq, Din, Latif, & Anjum, 2013) looked into teachers' difficulties in teaching writing to students in urban and rural areas. The study's findings suggested that controlled writing should receive more attention in classroom activities.
In Indonesia, there have also been other studies on writing. According to Sumarsih & Sanjaya (2013), the majority of these focused on either contemporary or traditional approaches to teaching writing, such as the TPS (Think-Pair-Share) method, which was found to be adequate. Cahyono & Mutiaraningrum (2016) also looked into Indonesian teachers' familiarity with Internet-based writing instruction. The study found that Indonesian EFL teachers valued Internet-based writing instruction because it helps students develop confidence, autonomy, flexibility, and writing quality and quantity.
The teaching of writing has received a lot of attention. However, the majority of the literature in the field is concerned with either contemporary or conventional methods of teaching writing, and very few authors focus on the difficulties teachers face and how to overcome them. As a result, the purpose of this study is to discuss potential solutions to help overcome the obstacles to the actual teaching and learning process of writing.
In order to comprehend the demand for proficient writing skills both now and in the future, it becomes crucial to investigate the difficulties teachers face when teaching it. According to Bilal, Tariq, Din, Latif, &Anjum (2013), students with weak English writing skills may fall behind in their academic and professional endeavors. The study's findings are relevant to Indonesian educational quality, particularly in teaching writing, as they provide an important picture of the formidable challenges faced by Indonesian EFL teachers. This study investigates the difficulties teachers face when instructing EFL students in writing through in-depth interviews with Indonesian teachers. What's more, to answer the main examination question, another inquiry emerges; How can teachers overcome the difficulties of teaching writing to EFL students? As a result, the goal of this study is to examine the difficulties that EFL teachers in Indonesia face when teaching writing. The Idea of Writing Writing is the process of communicating with others through writing, in which a writer conveys his or her ideas and thoughts to readers. It is a way of thinking that the writer discovers, organizes, and conveys to the reader his or her thoughts (Wingersky, 1999, p. 4).In addition, it entails conveying meaning through the use of carefully selected words in written or printed form (Farbrain&Whinch, 1996, p. 32).Overall, writing is the process of communicating information and expressing ideas in written form. In a nutshell, writing is a means of written communication.
One of the most challenging tasks a learner faces is learning to write in either their first or second language (Richard, 1990, p. 100).According to Esmeralda (2013), native English speakers also face difficulties when learning the language.In fact, a good piece of writing must take into account the following elements:(Hartfiel, Hughey, Wormuth, & Jacobs, 1985, p. 89) grammar, vocabulary, mechanics, content, and organization According to Farbrain & Whinch (1996), p. 108, grammar is a set of rules that help students construct sentences that make sense and are acceptable in English. The English words that students choose to use in their writing to express their ideas are one aspect of vocabulary. Furthermore, according to Hartfiel, Hughey, Wormuth, & Jacobs (1985, p. 93), organization refers to a student's capacity for logical coherence and cohesion in the organization of their ideas in a paragraph.
b. Teaching Writing Since the 1980s, numerous theoretical studies on the nature of L2 writing and learning have been conducted (Brown, 2000, p. 334)."The role of the teacher" and "the principles of designing writing performance" are two topics that can be discussed in this study's focus on writing instruction.
c. The Teacher's Role In CLT, the role of the teacher in teaching writing is discussed. Due to its emphasis on learner-centered instruction, student-to-student negotiation, and strategies-based instruction that values the variability of learners' pathways to success, it is an appropriate location for process of writing (Brown, 2000, p. 340).As a result, the teacher must be a facilitator and coach rather than an authoritative arbiter.
According to Brown (2000, p. 340), a teacher's role as a facilitator is to provide direction to students in order to encourage them to participate in the creative thinking process. However, in order to respect the opinions of the students, the teacher should avoid imposing their own ideas on the writing of the students.
d. Important Factors That Influence EFL Writing Ability There are a number of factors that have an impact on a learner's ability to write in English:
1) English competence (Brown, 2004, p. 233) English competence is a broad term that encompasses learners' grammatical competence, vocabulary mastery, and ability to organize an effective paragraph of English. Absence of either language capability or jargon specifically, makes students hard to create not just a passage yet additionally a sentence, even. "When students simply do not have the words or the grammar they require to express themselves, they can become extremely frustrated while engaged in a productive activity (Harmer, 2001, p. 252).
2) Interference from native language The influence of a learner's native language on their ability to write English is closely linked to their English proficiency. Therefore, native language is also regarded as a significant factor in the success of a student's writing in EFL (Harmer, 2001, p. 250).The learners' native tongue is Indonesian in this setting.
"Transfer" occurs when Indonesian has positive effects on a particular aspect of the writing of students. Otherwise, it is referred to as "interference" when it has negative effects. The morphology, semantics, and syntax of English writing are the areas in which Indonesians interfere.
3) Motivation and Reading Habits While some students are concerned about their writing, others are not so much. Reading habits will also be influenced by the extent to which students' intrinsic motivation motivates them to improve. The only other option the teacher has is to try to motivate students. The issue is that motivation is a very intricate concept. According to Atkinson (2002), motivation is defined as a group of factors that "energize" a behavior and give it "direction. "Attention should also be paid to a person's reading habit, which is known to be closely linked to their writing skills.