Content area
Purpose
This study aims to explore computer-assisted language learning (CALL) activities to improve the English essay writing of Pakistani university students. It highlights the role of CALL in the language proficiency model cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP), which can enable second language learners to engage in more critical thinking skills effectively. Furthermore, it aims to explore English language teachers’ experience about the use of CALL-based activities in English language classrooms or labs.
Design/methodology/approach
This study followed a pre-post study design to examine whether the structure of an essay and computer-based activities helped to improve English language proficiency among non-native speakers. This design is adopted to investigate the effects of CALL activities on students’ English essays. This study used data from 198 students and after this, four English teachers were interviewed to know their opinions and observations about these CALL-based activities and students’ essay writings. Pre- and post-test data was analysed in percentages and further examined through a t-test. The findings of teachers’ interviews were further analysed through Nvivo software to develop an understanding of research questions through significant themes.
Findings
The pre-test results confirmed that students’ language proficiency is underdeveloped and informal. Students needed help constructing introductory paragraphs with the reader’s hook, background information, three-point thesis statement and transitional hook. Whereas, post-test results showed that students’ English language proficiency in essay writing was found improved with the use of technological tools and CALL-based activities. Furthermore, it was observed that structure and teacher feedback in essay writing are vital for English proficiency.
Originality/value
This study benefits English language teachers, administrators, language policymakers and syllabus designers at colleges and universities. The debate over how to improve English language proficiency and academic achievement presents diverse challenges across several countries. Non-native speakers, at an undergraduate level, can significantly improve academically and become proficient in English essay writing with the help of structural guidelines and the use of educational technology. This article demonstrates a two-way process to improve an objective definition of English language development, which is conceivable if the technology is adopted.
Introduction
All around the globe, computers have been used for language education but in Pakistan, integration of computers and specifically computer-assisted language learning (CALL) started a few years back (Ayesha, 2022). It is because higher education authorities felt the need to inculcate CALL in classrooms to facilitate the process of English language learning. Learning English provides opportunities to people to get jobs in the highly competitive labour market for trade, commerce, technology, education and numerous other fields (Garcia-Ponce, 2020). In education, it is a medium of instruction, the leading language for international communication and research (Mahboob, 2014). According to Pinon and Haydon (2010), business employers prefer candidates who are proficient in English and perform well in academics. That is why, from all over the globe, speakers of other languages are determined to learn English language throughout the year.
In Pakistan, the English language also has a distinctive status because of social and cultural needs that connect it to the education set-up (Anbreen, 2015). It is considered ubiquitous in the education set-up for two reasons: first, it is a core subject from preschool to higher education (Mahboob, 2017), and second, it is the medium of instruction (Coleman, 2010). Schools, colleges and universities have set the criteria that the medium of instruction should be English language (Jamil et al., 2016) because it helps to maintain a better understanding of subjects and improves students’ English language proficiency for the future workforce. In addition, a growing number of universities require a compulsory English exam from admission until degree completion (Waseem et al., 2015), which shows the importance of this language.
The importance of English will continue to flourish in Pakistani universities (Zaidi and Zaki, 2017), as it adds powerful elements inside and outside the education system (Khan et al., 2020). For example, dealing at an international level demands proficiency in English writing skills (Siddiqui, 2020). From all forms of English language skills, such as listening, reading and speaking, writing is considered at a more “elevated level” of intelligence (Khan et al., 2020). Fadda (2012) defined it as a thinking process that involves cognitive skills and requires ample training and exposure to the information. Similarly, academic writing is a cognitive activity that helps students score well in English courses. Research by Waseem et al. (2015) and Brown (2004) stated that English as Second Language (ESL) students find writing difficult because it demands high cognition for proficiency such as use of advanced vocabulary and maintenance of cohesion and flow in a piece of writing.
According to the Cambridge dictionary, proficient means very skilled or experienced. Mas (2018) explained further that “everyone can aspire to be proficient in any language”. However, a vast majority of Pakistani learners of the English language are not considered “proficient” when it comes to getting admission to foreign or even local higher education universities and acquiring high-level academic jobs for which they have been trained (Manan et al., 2016). The study by Lodhi and Akash (2019) shows that students of intermediate or 11th and 12th grade in Pakistan have a basic level of “seven language learning skills, i.e., reading, writing, listening, speaking, vocabulary, grammar, and sociolinguistic suitability”. It shows the greater need to expand their English language skills in higher education. In addition, it must be noted that writing is a complex but productive skill; students face challenges to improve their skills, especially in mechanics, i.e. punctuation, capitalization and spelling (Shweba and Mujiyanto, 2017).
Also, Collins dictionary defines essay synonymous to attempt or try. It is also defined as “a short piece of writing on one particular subject” by a writer (Collins, 2022). Writing an essay means tailoring information about a topic in a coherent order that makes sense to a reader. Therefore, it is necessary to make the main claim unique with a set of guidelines for construction. For example, introducing a topic with or without a hook (depending upon the word limit), background information and a thesis, analysis and explanation with examples, and then coming to a clear conclusion with or without suggestion(s) or recommendation(s).
A Pakistani study identified errors in essay writing and showed that students make the most common and frequent spelling mistakes, use inappropriate vocabulary and subject/verb agreement (Jamil et al., 2016). Another recent study by Siddiqui (2020) found that Pakistani students struggle to write paragraphs despite learning English for years. For instance, they need to appropriately organize their ideas in a paragraph (p. 173) in English courses. Also, studies found that students could not produce a well-organized text due to rote learning and a lack of teacher feedback.
To deal with a learner’s intellectual ability and proficiency in the academic sense, a theory is known as cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP). Simultaneously, becoming proficient in the English language is necessary to progress academically. To achieve this, technology can play an important role (Wolf and Lopez, 2022; Navarro-Martinez and Peña-Acuña, 2022). For example, CALL, a study in which computers or computer-based resources and applications are used as teaching-learning tools to teach language (Alotabi and Alzu’bi, 2022). CALL is considered to be effective because it covers a broad range of activities and applications including reading, writing, speaking and listening. It can play a significant role in fulfilling Pakistani university students’ needs who wish to get academic proficiency and whose English is the second language. It helps students to compete professionally by excelling in the English language and CALP. However, the innovation of CALL is familiar in Pakistan and could not be implemented well in English language classrooms. A few studies on the use of applications hinted at using technology to improve students’ writing with different online grammar checker applications. For instance, Harvey-Scholes (2018) pointed out that English language learners’ self-correction in writing exercises is now possible with several free software available on the internet. Students can correct their mistakes, for example, in spelling, punctuation and verb forms. Similarly, Jayavalan and Razali (2018) explored the computer and internet-dependent application named Grammarly, which helps students with sentence structures by improving spelling, articles, prepositions, and punctuation for clarity and correctness.
Despite knowing the advantages of computer-assisted tools, most institutes in Asia still need to implement them fully (Bahari, 2020). Moreover, the same has been noted in Pakistan, where most institutes do not have computers and internet facilities (Memon and Umrani, 2016). Therefore, it hinders its implementation for the betterment of all Pakistani English language learners. Only a few private institutes have adopted educational technology in English language classrooms (Hassan et al., 2019). They have realized the importance of computers in educational set-up and have sufficient resources for this need. A study by Hassan and Aziz (2017) showed that English teachers face various issues and challenges. For instance, the non-availability of computers or laptops, shortfall of electricity, no or less pre-induction training for teachers and staff, emphasis on theoretical-based course work and insufficient time for CALL implementation.
Similarly, Yasmin et al. (2018a) highlighted the need to establish language labs. It was suggested to improve the English language learning process and integrate four English language skills for interactive teaching. Another study about postgraduate students of a private university in Lahore highlights that Pakistan faces challenges such as dispositional, situational, institutional and academic challenges in pursuing their educational degrees (Yasmin et al., 2018b). Applications used to learn a second language need to be explored in the Pakistani context (Bashir and Anjum, 2019). Also, there is a sufficient amount of research about second language acquisition (SLA) and the Cummins model named CALP, as per the researcher’s best knowledge, there is a little research about CALP concerning CALL’s recent developments.
Statement of purpose
In Pakistan, only a few researchers shed light on CALL due to limited resources available at educational institutes, and it is limited to schools and college students. Here, computer labs and other resources are used for teaching other subjects, but for teaching English language, computer labs are rarely available. There is a need to explore CALL-based activities that can help to improve English essay writing at the university level in Pakistan. Therefore, this study aims to explore the role of CALL-based activities in improving the English essay writing of Pakistani university students. Also, it examines how English language proficiency can be improved from the basic interpersonal communicative skills (BICS) level to CALP with the help of language learning tools such as thesis builders and grammar websites at the university level in Pakistan. Furthermore, it aims to explore English language teachers’ experience about the use of CALL-based activities in English language classrooms or labs.
The present study aims to show that English essay writing can be improved if CALL-based activities and essay writing guidelines are adopted as shown in Figure 1. In addition, teacher feedback and marking criteria paves the way to achieve better English language proficiency in writing exercises.
Figure 1 provides a comprehensive overview to skillfully write an English essay. It manages to integrate CALL-based activities and essay writing guidelines are key elements for effective essays. Furthermore, the integration of teacher feedback provides invaluable insights and guidance to students to refine their writing skills.
Research questions
The current study focuses on the following research questions based on the aims mentioned above:
Simultaneously, this study looks at the progress from BICS to CALP from the essays written with the help of CALL-based tools, considering that participants are in the undergraduate programme.
Literature review
The present study focuses to explore CALL activities which are assumed to be beneficial for English essay writing worldwide. Following literature helps to understand the path to English language proficiency through CALL-based activities and structural guidelines.
Understanding the path to English language proficiency
Much has been discussed and researched about English as a second language, its acquisition and development. However, there is no doubt that developing high command or proficiency in English as a second language is a challenging process that requires gradual accumulation and development of a student's abilities in four skills, i.e. speaking, reading, listening and writing (Thompson, 2004; Ardasheva et al., 2012). Therefore, it is necessary to understand previous work regarding language proficiency and bilingualism to improve and develop the English language in Pakistan.
Research shows that students who wish to acquire English as a second language may require two to five years to develop mastery of English oral skills (Collier, 1987, p. 617). Command of English oral skills may include sound discrimination, listening comprehension and verbal expression. Students may need up to seven or more years to reach high literacy skills levels (Ardasheva et al., 2012). Simultaneously, research conducted by Tremblay (2011) has also pointed out the need for “assessment standards”, which should also be improved for proficiency in the education of second language learners. For second language learners, academic language and social language are inseparable and interwoven. A study by Haynes (2007) shows the distinction between BICS and CALP, which can be overcome through education administrators and effective instructional practices. It will help students to make significant academic progress each year (Moughamian et al., 2009). A study by Stephenson et al. (2003) highlighted that a matching proficiency level between a native speaker and a second language learner is not required to be known as proficient in English. A second language learner must be capable enough for an active role and participation in regular classes.
Figure 2 describes the vital connection between BICS and CALP in the context of SLA. Cummin’s model is based on language proficiency especially BICS and CALP (Abriam-Yago et al., 1999).
As this study is closely related to the development of CALP through CALL-based essay writing activities at a university level, it is important to understand these three concepts such as BICS, CALP and SLA. BICS refers to everyday social interactions, such as speaking with friends or engaging in casual conversation. On the other hand, CALP represents the more advanced language skills necessary for academic success, including reading complex texts, writing essays and understanding academic lectures. Furthermore, to acquire high level of proficiency in second language, learner should reach level to CALP from BICS.
Background of Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP)
Jim Cummins (1999) presented three models about bilingualism, namely common underlying proficiency, BICS and CALP. In other words, three aspects of language proficiency were discussed by Cummins in 1997; one is conversational fluency, the second is discrete language skills, and then comes CALP. He clearly distinguished two types of language proficiency: BICS, which demonstrates elementary-level skills that can be learned speedily within a year or two, includes simple listening and speaking of second language proficiency. Ardasheva et al. (2012) pointed out the connection between English proficiency and academic achievement. Their study restated Cummins’ (2008) belief that the definition of English language proficiency needs to be more evident across disciplines and states. Still, knowledge about vocabulary and sentence structure has a vital role in students’ academic achievements. Students who understand any concept with its context and convey it with (correct or close to real meaning/intention/idea) appropriate selection of words are high-score achievers. Conversely, ambiguity and incorrect sentence structures reflect students’ lack of English proficiency, ultimately hindering their growth in CALP and restricting them as BICS.
CALP is developed through reading a variety of academic texts and through years of repeated exposure to academic terminology in activities such as lectures and class discussions (Abriam-Yago et al., 1999). This type of language proficiency takes time in years to get fully developed. According to researchers, students (who are first exposed to at least two years of BICS exposure) take five to seven years in CALP (Cummins, 1999), and if a learner has no prior knowledge, it may take seven to ten years to reach the level of native English language speakers (Thomas and Collier, 1995). CALP is required for formal academic learning which includes reading, writing, listening and speaking. Also, it requires much more time than BICS (Manan, David and Channa, 2019). Students in Pakistan develop BICS after 12 years of education in English medium institutes. In this way, during tertiary education, more cognitively demanding CALP has more chances to be developed. Gómez and Gomez (1999) highlighted that literacy development is somewhere dependent on the first language which strengthens literacy development of the second language. If a non-native speaker understands the content in the first language, this “environment will be empowering”. But very few studies have explored CALP in relation to CALL that is why, it is significant to explore CALP in relation to undergraduate students’ English writing skills in Pakistani context.
Role of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL)
Research shows that computers can powerfully handle a broader range of activities and provide numerous benefits to their users, especially university students (Alotabi and Alzu’bi, 2022). Although computers have maintained an important place in language learning since the 1960s, CALL began in the early 1980s (Hubbard, 2019). Studies showed that CALL has excellent potential to raise the bar of language learning capacity among language learners. Today, CALL use has become so advanced that many educational institutions have made it compulsory in the classrooms. In addition, using computer-mediated technology for teaching, mentoring, examining and evaluating purposes is now becoming standard worldwide. Studies show that CALL-based learning gives students confidence and encouragement (Levy, 2009). According to Javid and Farooq (2015), “This global trend has influenced all walks of life, and the realm of English language teaching is no exception (pg. 39).”
Study by Arvand and Gorjian (2022) highlighted university teachers’ difficulties to implement CALL in English language classrooms. Most of the teachers complained about lack of internet facilities and training to provide online feedback on students’ assignments. The study concluded that teachers prefer to give feedback or comments on hardcopies instead of online submissions which shows their reluctance and lack of familiarity with the CALL activities. The study also mentioned that CALL activities can help language learners to “participate in CALL exercises independently”. Another study Weng and Chiu (2023) mentioned how artificial intelligence (AI) technologies help in language learners by providing feedbacks, hints, responses, explaining descriptions, questions and answers as per the requirement of individual needs. That is why, CALL activities are considered helpful because they can be designed to provide feedbacks and quick responses with AI technologies.
Jin et al. (2022) pinpointed the cognitive development among students due to the exchange of constructive comments, feedbacks and suggestions. They stated that CALL-based activities built online communities that further help to gain a sense of support and encouragement. Similarly, Zarrinabadi et al. (2022) mentioned that CALL activities are useful, effective and able to control anxiety of language learners. It was further suggested that language teachers should use CALL activities in classrooms to develop positive mindset of students. An Indonesian study on 10th grade students recommended that technology integration, such as computers and software, helps enhance English language learners’ vocabulary (Katemba, 2019). They have the potential to provide interactive learning accompanied by accuracy and spontaneity, impartialness and fairness.
In Pakistan, internet facilities and computers started penetrating the education set-up in 2000; computers and internet facilities were expensive (Malik, 2017). Several studies have also highlighted that in Pakistan, limited resources and a lack of computer labs for English language courses are another vital issue to address (Shamim, 2011; Khan et al., 2012; Hassan and Sajid, 2013; Siddiquah and Salim, 2017). The study of Bashir and Anjum (2019) pinpoints the relationship between English language teaching and CALL in Pakistan by highlighting the inadequacy of technological facilities, traditional methodologies and the scarcity of academic work in the field. Also, another study by Aziz and Hamzah (2020) emphasized that teaching English as a foreign language demands computer technology in Pakistan. Using multimedia and computers with additional internet applications may help English teachers, which can bring changes in the educational system, especially for English language proficiency in Pakistan. Therefore, in Pakistan, minimal CALL research has been available till now.
A study by Rashid (2017) highlights the importance of CALL in Pakistan. Rashid (2017) states that through CALL applications, students learning opportunities are increased because they also develop electronic communication with a teacher outside the classroom. This use can positively help build their interests, skills and abilities (Hassan et al., 2019) outside the classroom. Therefore, many teachers and institutes included technology and computer-based exercises in their instructional plans. Similarly, English essay writing and CALL demand attention and should be avoided in a large classroom setting. A study by Ariyanti and Fitriana (2017) showed that “limited time and a large number of students in one class became great barriers to improving the quality of the student's essay”. Therefore, special care about providing CALL guidance and writing structure in a limited classroom size is also required.
A quite relevant Pakistani study by Mirza et al. (2023) highlighted the efficiency of CALL-based activities for second language proficiency. Undergraduate students in educational institutions must be encouraged to adopt CALL to enhance learners’ language proficiency. Similarly, it was observed in a study by Talpur et al. (2021) that CALL activities are helpful to increase communicative ability of university students but there is a lack of technological facilities to implement CALL activities in the university classroom. Moreover, Pakistani teachers must adopt teaching English as a communicative language requires the use of technology. Due to the limited research in a Pakistani context, there is a need to explore CALL for essay writing in the Pakistani context. It is mainly because of two reasons highlighted in previous paragraphs: limited technological resources and a need for more awareness and training to use those resources.
The present study is critical because it will explore the effectiveness of CALL in Pakistani students’ essays. Also, it aims to check whether these CALL activities make any difference in students’ language proficiency. Thus, there is a need to explore the effects of CALL-based activities on Pakistani university students’ essays. Moreover, it could improve the CALL set-up in the Pakistani education system by exploring students’ essays pre and post-CALL activities. Interviews with English teachers can help to understand more about the effects of CALL-based essay writing for researchers, teachers and policymakers.
Methodology
This study followed a pre-post study design to examine whether the structure of an essay and computer-based activities helped to improve English language proficiency among non-native speakers. This design was adopted to investigate the effects of CALL activities on students’ English essays. This study used data from 198 students and four teachers from the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences, Lahore Campus, Pakistan. Students and teachers belong to Bachelor in Computer Science and Bachelor in Business Administration programmes. The technology-equipped English language labs were used to achieve the objectives of the study. Students, who lack technological resources at home, or outside the university are facilitated with these labs for learning.
Data collection
The study adopted pre-test and post-test method for data collection of students’ essay writing marks. Furthermore, it discussed the findings of teachers’ interviews. Students’ essays were marked according to the rubric prepared by the English language teachers of the department. Marks attained in tests were noted in percentages and further analysed through a t-test. It showed English language learners’ proficiency with a score range for each component in essay writing structure. During an interview discussion, English language teachers shared their experiences and observations regarding students’ improvement in English language proficiency and growth over 15 weeks due to an essay structure and CALL-based exercises.
Essay writing activities for pre- and post-test analysis were designed to understand the English proficiency level in structured essay writing. The students’ writings were assessed using an analytic criterion-referenced marking guide consisting of a rubric containing nine marking criteria and samples. It carries the necessary elements of introduction, quality of ideas, paragraphing, conclusion, sentence structure, cohesion, spelling, punctuation and word count. (Please see the Appendix for a complete essay rubric, Table A1.)
Treatment
During treatment and practice sessions, students were taught and given structure and guidelines about five-paragraph essay writing based on nine-marking descriptors (please see Figure A6 in Appendix). The setting of English language computer labs which are fully equipped with internet facilities, was used to make students explore new words/vocabulary and literature available on the internet. Students were allowed to Google information for the clarity of ideas.
Developing a thesis statement in an introductory paragraph requires serious attention from Pakistani students. Two different websites named, PapersOwl (Figure A4 in Appendix) and ozline.com (Figure A5 in Appendix), for persuasive essays, have made the process of developing a thesis statement easier and more efficient. Participants practised thesis statements during the study. Similarly, making compound and complex sentences and using punctuation marks and transitions helped students use these websites to become proficient in essay writing. For example, grammar and punctuation exercises from the University of Bristol (ole.bris.ac.uk) (please see Figure A1 and A2 in Appendix) and Oxford (elt.oup.com) (Please see Figure A3 in Appendix) Practice grammar student’s site in English lab sessions were used. Learning through online or web-based applications and more specifically CALL-based activities can enhance English language skills of second language learners. These tools help students to learn from experts around the globe and help them to progress towards CALP and English language proficiency. Different websites such as elt.oup.com and ole.bris.ac.uk help to improve English grammar rules by providing a variety of exercises and feedbacks. Moreover, it was also made sure that a limited number of students, a maximum of 25 in each lab session/section are enrolled. Research by Ariyanti and Fitriana (2017) showed that a limited number of students in a classroom could positively impact students’ essays and helps to gain maximum English language proficiency benefits. Also, teacher attention is expected to be better for limited students for 1.15 h long face-to-face English lab session. Therefore, eight practice sessions of each section were recorded to improve their essay writing skills through CALL.
After treatment and post-test, English language teachers were interviewed to know their opinions and observations about these CALL-based activities and students’ essay writings. Semi-structured interviews were arranged based on teachers’ availability. Complete interview questions are given at the end of Appendix.
Data analysis
Pre- and post-test data was analysed in percentages which was further explored through the t-test. Whereas, qualitative data, the findings of teachers’ interviews were analysed through Nvivo software to develop significant themes.
T-Test
Quantitative analysis to evaluate the hypothesis mentioned above for students’ test scores was done by paired sample t-test. The t-test was used to measure the significance of the difference between the two means. In the analysis, the level of significance was set at 0.05. The mean score of the pre-test is 13.8, while the mean score of the post-test is 19.7. Therefore, the t-values is 4.89219, and the p-value is 0.00085683. Since the value of p is significantly less than the significance level, i.e. 0.05, H0 is rejected and H1 is accepted. Furthermore, these test scores also re-confirmed that 80% of students earned a higher post-test score.
Thematic analysis
In this study, Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phase framework for doing a thematic analysis was adopted. It covers six steps including becoming familiar with the data, generating initial codes, searching for themes in the Nvivo, reviewing themes, defining themes and write-up. For example, teachers observed a difference in students’ essay writing after the instruction of the essay rubric and the use of CALL activities. It was further confirmed with the help of Nvivo, which helped to interpret qualitative data in a sequential order and theme creation. The nodes were created and then thematic analysis was performed where different queries, word tree and word cloud, were made to get visuals of the qualitative data.
Results
The results are divided into three main parts, pre-test, post-test and teachers’ interview discussion findings.
Pre-test
Pre-test scores (Table 1) showed that students belong to the BICS model category as they can complete simple tasks to write essays in the English language. However, it was observed that students generally need help with planning, consistency, coherence, text structure (introduction, body and conclusion), the formation of sentences and punctuation. In addition, most students needed help constructing introductory paragraphs with the reader’s hook, background information, three-point thesis statement and transitional hook. The results confirmed that students’ language proficiency is underdeveloped and informal. The pre-tests are marked according to the rubric and marking descriptors given in Table A1 (please see Appendix Table A1).
Post-test
The post-test results (Table 2) showed that students had developed cognitive abilities according to the demands of the CALP model and could write complex language structures in English essays. In addition, it was found that students showed a visible improvement in the introduction, which consists of a thesis statement. Practice sessions to make thesis statements on mentioned websites showed that 76% of students had gained maximum marks in the essay’s introduction. Also, other elements have shown improvement in overall English language grammar and punctuation. Students were given a treatment (structure of the essay and CALL based practice exercises), a visible difference was seen in essay writing. Introductory paragraph had a clear thesis statement, use of transitions and a variety of compound and complex sentences was managed in the allowed word count. The tests scores were marked according to the rubric and marking descriptors shown in Table A1(please see Appendix).
Table 1 shows pre-test marks and students count in separate parts of an essay.
Table 2 shows post-test marks and students count in separate parts of an essay.
Exposure to CALL-based activities, practice sessions to improve punctuation marks, compound sentences, complex sentences, transitions and three-point thesis statement exercises helped students develop higher-level language abilities. That is why, a visible change occurred in post-test results.
Teachers Interview Discussion findings
In this study, Nvivo software was used to analyse data because it helps to add accuracy to qualitative research (Richards and Richards, 1991). After the creation of nodes and thematic analysis, different queries, for example, word tree and word cloud, were made to get visuals of the data. After reading students’ responses twice, a thematic analysis was performed. Different themes were identified in light of the research objectives to shed light on the research findings. Two main themes were highlighted with the help of Nvivo-based thematic analysis (Figures 3 and 4): first theme, improvement in English writing skills and second theme is reduction in teachers’ workload.
Qualitative analysis of focus group interviews showed that CALL-based activities bring improvement in English language writing skills because of the multiple resources and exercises available on the internet (as shown in Figure A3). The language teachers further confirmed that CALL activities helped undergraduate students explore their sentence structure capabilities. Efficient and quick feedback about the wrong punctuation mark also made the English writing process easy. Students get quick feedback on their attempts, which decreases the teachers’ workload.
Improvement in English writing skills
Teachers’ interviews highlighted that CALL-based activities improved students’ English writing skills. For example, students started using more advanced, improved and varied sentences. Web tools (from Figure A1 and Figure A3 in Appendix) were used to let students practice a variety of sentence structures, i.e. compound and complex, to bring more advancement and variety in their English writing skills which are highly required for a good essay. Such exercises related to grammar, prepositions, punctuation marks and transition brought refinement to writing. In addition, thesis-builders (Figure A4 and A5 in Appendix) helped to improve introductory paragraphs with thesis statements.
One of the teachers said that the “difference was obvious compared to the results of a pre-test. Students practised English compound sentences on the websites and then applied essay structure guidelines in their writings”. Another teacher said, “They used computer-based sources. I saw a huge improvement, and generally how they wrote, practised better, and I noticed that the punctuation also was better. […]”. One of the teachers expressed some disappointment, though, despite the improvement. She thinks they should have improved even more as she had made it clear to them how to structure the text, but a few students did not seem to care about this and lacked to achieve higher scores. However, all teachers reported a significant improvement in the student's writing skills with practice sessions on the World Wide Web.
During interviews with teachers, most of them confirmed that students faced difficulty building introductory and concluding paragraphs. It was taught to them that a strong thesis statement should be included in the introduction of an essay. Simultaneously, the conclusion is the restatement of already explained points and should contain no new ideas. Teachers revealed that this process needs tolerance, practice and proper use of web resources. Students are more comfortable expressing themselves without structure, which leaves many important details.
Another common structural flaw in essays is the lack of transitions and joining words. One teacher said that students could not manage the use of transitions in a pre-test, but after practising through several websites, most of them can use it. All the teachers agreed that a generally positive student attitude emerged after learning something valuable from the structured sessions and exercises in the computer lab. Though, in the start, some students hesitated to use computers but then became used to them.
Reduction in teachers’ workload
In response to a question based on CALL-based activities and time management, it was highlighted that teachers' workload had been reduced due to the inclusion of CALL-based activities. There are several websites available with ready-to-use exercises. It lessens teachers' work not only to prepare worksheets but also to check them as hints, results and further suggestions to bring improvement. All are readily available to facilitate students of the English language. All teachers agreed that CALL-based activities are effective and time-saving for teachers. One teacher said, “[…]. best thing is that student can check his work without waiting for me to come […] it saves time and provides spot results”. Another teacher added, “We select CALL activities very carefully. If a student answers wrong, they must provide a correct answer and an explanation. It clarifies students and saves the teacher time to explain his mistake”.
According to English language teachers, both BICS and CALP are essential for students at the undergraduate level. They further highlighted the importance of the essay’s structural rubric (please see Appendix Table A1), which helped students write a five-paragraph essay step-by-step. This structure enables them to achieve pointers significant in CALP, often neglected among language learners who belong to BICS.
Discussion
Becoming proficient in English is considered as a status symbol in Pakistan because it helps to move forward socially and professionally. It serves the role of upward social mobility and a gatekeeper in the entry to the elite class, executive positions and the international job market. This study also confirms the findings of (Anbreen, 2015) that it is a compulsory subject at an undergraduate level and students from all programmes are required to pass the English language examination, which includes essay writing. Moreover, it is the sole medium of instruction at all levels of university education. It is considered a compulsory language which has predominance in Pakistan in almost all spheres of life, for instance, education, technology and media. By using CALL and following essay writing guidelines, English exams can be passed with good scores.
Becoming proficient in the English language is necessary in contemporary times. To achieve this, CALL can play a significant role by catering the needs of Pakistani university students with technological tools and activities. Students must compete professionally by excelling in English and CALP. They can improve their language proficiency from limited to day-to-day living, including conversations with friends and informal interactions, to more advanced and proficient language. It has been observed that environment plays a significant role in the language learning process, and this is what Cummins encouraged for success in BICS. Likewise, Baker (2001) pointed out that those cognitive abilities also needed to be refreshed and explored by a teacher with classroom activities. With CALL-based activities, students can develop a mature understanding of the topic. Teachers observed that critical thinking skills develop through strategies, help students to formulate ideas rather than recall facts, such as building a thesis statement step-by-step.
The innovation of CALL, however, not new in Pakistan, could not be fully implemented well in English classrooms. The present study emphasizes that essays are the central part of English writing which can be organized to the advanced level if CALL-based activities are included in English classes. By improving English writing, CALL brings a significant change, improves students’ proficiency level to the CALP and further helps second language learners achieve academic achievement.
This study supports the findings of Rafiee and Abbasian-Naghneh (2019) and Stickler and Hampel (2019) about technology developments and increasing benefits. Research has already mentioned that most ESL students wish to attain the necessary communication skills in the English language, while a few aim to achieve academic proficiency (Chandy, 2012). The results of this study pointed out that progress in English language proficiency has been a demand in recent times. Teachers and students should understand English proficiency models to become the starting points in improving instruction (Chandy, 2012; Waseem et al., 2015); students must shift from BICS to CALP during their undergraduate study.
The quantitative part of the present study showed that language learning tools, such as thesis builders and grammar websites, contribute significantly to the improvement of English language proficiency from the BICS level to CALP among university students in Pakistan. Numerous grammatical exercises available on the mentioned websites, provide practice of sentence structuring, punctuation marks and use of transitions help students to improve their English writing skills. Similarly, thinking about different ideas to develop thesis statements by using thesis builders have trained them to produce uniformity in their essays.
The qualitative part, where English language teachers have expressed their opinion about CALL activities, showed that it has lessened their workload because they are not supposed to check the individual work of students. Everything is checked through computers and also provides explanation to students of their confusions and wrong answers. This study also supports the previous studies’ recommendations (Alhujaylan, 2019; Lodhi and Akash, 2019; Bashir and Anjum, 2019; Aziz and Hamzah, 2020) that CALL plays a vital role in teaching English, but little has been done in this regard due to the limited resources and practices. Moreover, as the present study was conducted in an English language class and lab where essays are considered to have more than 50% weightage in final evaluations of the course, it extends the findings in CALL and undergraduate students of Pakistan.
Conclusion and recommendations
The present study concludes that the increasing advancements in technology and CALL in Pakistan have contributed positively among second language learners and particularly university students. Using different web tools for vocabulary, grammar, sentence structure, spelling checks and thesis building put them to make the language learning process easy and quick. Also, CALL minimizes the burden on teachers and provides quick feedback by creating a channel between teachers and students (Alhujaylan, 2019).
The study’s findings show that academic language proficiency is achievable if students’ needs are considered during university education, structural guidelines are provided and the practice sessions on English language writing websites are conducted. Not only for cognitive development and English language proficiency but also for an overall successful learning experience, as it was realized by Galvez (2017) that CALL-based activities could play their part in overall academic achievement. These activities allow students to generate ideas, explain, question and develop language skills. For example, essay writing in English demands high-level cognitive abilities, so teachers and students need to be equipped with technology, as the use of computers, smartphones and tabs are common and beneficial for language students.
This study is critical because it shows the need to connect with global resources in Pakistani culture. Here, students come to big cities for higher education and find sufficient resources to meet higher standards of educational goals. However, these cultural differences create a barrier for students of Pakistan to achieve English language proficiency and, more specifically, essay writing skills. Moreover, the study shows that it is essential to provide technical facilities such as computer labs with internet facilities, as highlighted by Bentley et al. (2005) and Hameed et al. (2016). Moreover, it is significant because CALL-based activities can also help to write essays that are significant in IELTS and TOEFL, international English exams. Both of these English tests have great significance in Pakistan (Memon and Umrani, 2016), requiring foreign travelling purposes such as education, immigration or jobs, and essays carry a significant part of these tests' writing part. Therefore, the guidelines and structure of the essay used in this study are considered complete to attain high bands in IELTS and TOEFL writing exams.
Moreover, the study concludes that CALL-based activities can focus on the variety of areas such as reading, writing, listening and speaking with attention to basic to advanced grammar rules. Internet availability is another issue that must be highlighted to get benefits from web-based language learning tools such as thesis builders and grammar websites. It is also crucial to avail these activities for the improvement of English essay writing and overall English language proficiency. It is important to put emphasize on the importance and effectiveness of CALL based activities because these activities can lead to achieve English language proficiency which is the demand of the time. It is possible when universities’ administration and English language teachers are fully prepared and trained to meet its challenges and start incorporating a variety of interactive and engaging CALL activities. The study recommends to include CALL-based resources in language classes of all levels in Pakistan.
In Pakistan, there is a need to properly train language teacher to inculcate CALL in university classrooms (Talpur et al., 2021). It must be organized by institutes, higher authorities and administration. At the university level, students have to go through a two-way process by creating a balance to reach the level of CALP with the help of CALL. It is important to provide clear instructions and guidance to use CALL tools effectively because they will be able to learn the purpose and potential benefits without wasting their time. The free and uninterrupted internet access should be made available to save time of students and teachers. CALL based activities must save their time and should not be a cause of time wastage at any stage. Teachers should provide feedback and support to students in following the process so that they can suggest different resources for further practice.
Limitations and future study
The present study is limited to the students of one university in Pakistan which may not be representative of all university students in Pakistan, limiting the generalizability of the results. Role of CALL-based activities must be explored further in other universities to check usefulness or effectiveness. Secondly, it is limited to exploring CALL activities for essay writing only. Further studies can be conducted to explore more about English courses and their contents. Future studies can help to provide more deeper understanding about CALL-based tools for English language proficiency in Pakistan. It can also investigate the use of specific artificial intelligence (AI) based tools such as ChatGPT in English language learning. Moreover, its benefits and drawbacks can be explored for the education purposes as it is getting widely popular in Pakistan and university students are trying their hands on it. Moreover, specifically CALL-based tools must be explored further to enhance accessibility and convenience for students. A comparison of CALL-based activities with traditional face-to-face instruction in improving English language proficiency among Pakistani university students can also be investigated. Finally, this study is limited to basic percentage calculations for pre- and post-test results. Researchers should come forward with CALL research with more in-depth statistical analysis.
The author would like to thank the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences FAST-NUCES (Lahore Campus, Pakistan), in which English Language computer labs classes are a mandatory part of the English courses of the undergraduate programs.
Figure 1.Introduction to the process of English essay writing
Figure 2.Connection between BICS and CALP for second language acquisition
Figure 3.Word cloud of highlighted words in the first theme, generated from Nvivo software
Figure 4.Word tree of highlighted words in the second theme, generated from Nvivo software
Figure A1.Online CALL resources available under Study Skills tab at ole.bris.ac.uk
Figure A2.Stepwise guide to write essays available at ole.bris.ac.uk
Figure A3.Online CALL-based activities available on (elt.oup.com) related to grammar and vocabulary
Figure A4.Steps to make a thesis statement for an essay using a thesis builder available at Papersowl.com
Figure A5.Steps to make a thesis statement for an essay using a thesis builder available at ozline.com
Figure A6.Nine marking descriptors of essay rubric/marking criteria
Table 1.
It shows pre-test marks and students count in separate parts of an essay
| Criteria | Minimum | Average | Maximum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marks range in introduction | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. of students | 135 | 63 | 0 | 198 |
| Marks range in quality of ideas | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | |
| No. of students | 80 | 65 | 53 | 198 |
| Marks range in paragraphing | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | |
| No. of students | 85 | 90 | 23 | 198 |
| Marks range in conclusion | 0 | 1 or 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 139 | 37 | 22 | 198 |
| Marks range in sentence structure | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 55 | 98 | 45 | 198 |
| Marks range in cohesion | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | |
| No of students | 86 | 107 | 5 | 198 |
| Marks range in punctuation | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 98 | 77 | 23 | 198 |
| Marks range in spellings | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 38 | 75 | 85 | 198 |
| Marks in word count | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| No. of students | 30 | 39 | 129 | 198 |
Source:Created by author
Table 2.
It shows post-test marks and students count in separate parts of an essay
| Criteria | Minimum | Average | Maximum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marks range in introduction | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. of students | 8 | 39 | 151 | 198 |
| Marks range in quality of ideas | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | |
| No. of students | 18 | 79 | 101 | 198 |
| Marks range in paragraphing | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | |
| No. of students | 0 | 21 | 177 | 198 |
| Marks range in conclusion | 0 | 1 or 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 38 | 79 | 81 | 198 |
| Marks range in sentence structure | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 34 | 61 | 103 | 198 |
| Marks range in cohesion | 1 | 2 or 3 | 4 | |
| No. of students | 34 | 50 | 114 | 198 |
| Marks range in punctuation | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 34 | 75 | 89 | 198 |
| Marks range in spellings | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| No. of students | 18 | 33 | 147 | 198 |
| Marks range in word count | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| No. of students | 8 | 17 | 173 | 198 |
Source:Created by author
Table A1.
Detailed marking descriptors in each section of an essay
| Intro | Quality of ideas | Paragraphing | Cohesion | Conclusion | Sentence structure | Punctuation | Spelling | Word count | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–4 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 0–2 | ||
| Introduction | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category descriptor | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1. | Minimal evidence of a reader’s hook and no identifiable thesis statement | No reader’s hook and a thesis statement with one point | ||||||||
| 2. | Weak beginning and incomplete thesis statement | Absent reader’s hook but starts with a general statement repeating the essay topic |
||||||||
| 3 | Evidence of a reader’s hook and a thesis statement and a thesis statement | A reader’s hook is not relevant or is not connected to the lead to a thesis statement |
||||||||
| 4. | Evidence of a clear reader’s hook and identifiable thesis statement | A clear reader’s hook that is interesting and well-connected |
||||||||
| Quality of ideas | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category description | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1 | Many simple ideas are not related or elaborated | The supporting details given are not connected to the order of the thesis statement |
||||||||
| 2. | Ideas with some elaboration | Ideas are present but are ineffective and weak | ||||||||
| 3. | Ideas are elaborated and contribute effectively to the writer’s position | Ideas may include |
||||||||
| 4. | Ideas are selected crafted and contribute effectively to the writer’s position | |||||||||
| Paragraphing | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category descriptor | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1 | Contains one paragraph | Ideas are separated or incomplete | ||||||||
| 2 | All paragraphs are focussed on one idea |
Not all topic sentences are successful and have not been carefully elaborated in the paragraphs | ||||||||
| 3 | Paragraphs are ordered and cumulatively build argument/ perspective across the text | One or two topic sentences are correct and the paragraphs are connected | ||||||||
| 4 | Paragraphs are ordered and structured | All three topic sentences are correct and the paragraphs all focus on three different points in the order mentioned in the thesis statement | ||||||||
| Cohesion | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category descriptor | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1 | Few correct links between sentences | Simple word associations |
||||||||
| 2 | Some correct links between sentences | Simple work associations |
||||||||
| 3 | Controlled use of cohesive devices supports reader understanding | May use word associations e.g. synonyms |
||||||||
| 4 | A range of cohesive devices is used correctly and deliberately to enhance reading and support underlying relationships | Consistent use of cohesive devices, |
||||||||
| Conclusion | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category description | Additional information | ||||||||
| 0 | No conclusion | |||||||||
| 1 | Conclusion is incomplete | Only a couple of sentences | ||||||||
| 2 | The conclusion is complete but weak | The conclusion only restates the thesis statement | ||||||||
| 3 | A complete and effective conclusion | The conclusion contains restatement but also ends on a convincing note for the reader | ||||||||
| Sentence structure (including tenses) | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category descriptor | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1 | Some correct formation of sentences | In general, control is limited |
||||||||
| 2 | Most simple and compound sentences are correct | A short script with some complex sentences |
||||||||
| 3 | All sentences are correct |
Shows control over a range of structures |
||||||||
| Punctuation | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category description | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1 | Some correct use of sentence-level punctuations | Capital letters to begin sentences |
||||||||
| 2 | Sentence level punctuation mostly correct. Provides adequate markers | |||||||||
| 3 | All sentence punctuation is correct. Provides accurate markers to enable smooth and efficient reading | |||||||||
| Spellings | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category description | Additional information | ||||||||
| 1 | Correct spellings of basic/ simple words |
Simple words |
||||||||
| 2 | Correct spelling of |
|||||||||
| 3 | Correct spelling of all words |
|||||||||
| Word count | ||||||||||
| Marks | Category descriptor | Additional information | ||||||||
| 0 | Word limit exceeds by more than 100 words | |||||||||
| 1 | Word limit exceeds more than 60 words | The introduction is too long or the conclusion is too long | ||||||||
| 2 | Does not exceed the word limit | All paragraphs are balanced within the word limit | ||||||||
Source: Created by author
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