Using Writing Assessment Rubrics to Assess English Paragraphs of Pakistani College Level EFL Learners

Abstract

Despite studying English for many years, Pakistani students, like other L2 learners, encounter difficulties while writing in the language for academic and professional success, especially when attempting to convey the intended idea in a paragraph. The study's objective was to assess Pakistani L2 learners' writing abilities, with a particular emphasis on the quality of English paragraphs produced by EFL students, both male and female, enrolled in public sector colleges. Ten English language teachers and fifty-three BS English semester I beginners served as the research's subjects in a mixed-methods approach. Semi-structured interviews, paragraph writing samples and Writing Assessment Rubrics (WARs) were used to gather data. The findings demonstrated that BS English students had difficulty in producing well-written English paragraphs, as seen by their lower scores on structured assessment instruments. Additionally, they displayed issues with organization, coherence, and language. The paragraphs written by female students were determined to be superior to those among students who are male. The study revealed the difficulties Pakistani students encounter while writing in English for academic and professional success, which has ramifications for both academia and pedagogy.