Understanding Writing Difficulty and Writing Process Among Pre-University Students

Numerous research findings reveal that a substantial proportion of pre-university students face challenges in developing proficient writing skills as they encounter difficulties in mastering this capability throughout the writing process. Therefore, this research examined how learners perceived their writing challenges and processes in academic writing in three distinct stages: before writing, during writing and during revising. Specifically, the study focused on the writing process and the challenges students encountered in crafting essays for the Extended Writing section of the Malaysian University English Test. This was to explore the strategies used during the writing process at each stage to highlight effective approaches that educators can use to foster a supportive writing environment. This quantitative study utilised purposive sampling and a survey analysed using SPSS Version 29 for descriptive analysis. The survey, adapted from Petric and Czalr (2003) and Flower and Hayes (1981) and created by Yunos et al. (2023), involved 169 pre-university students from the Centre of Foundation Studies, Universiti Teknologi MARA. The study revealed that pre-university students faced challenges in academic writing particularly in the prewriting stage, where difficulties in outlining essays and constructing thesis statements were prominent. This emphasized the importance of addressing challenges specifically in the prewriting phase. The results of the study can help pinpoint the specific issues that students face when writing essays. This knowledge can help create personalised interventions and support plans to address specific writing obstacles and enhance overall writing proficiency.