Is extra planning necessary? The impact of pre-task planning language on primary-school EFL learners’ written output

This study examined how pre-task planning (PTP), conducted in the first language (L1) or the second language (L2), affects the written performance of primary-school learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). Sixty-six Spanish children (aged 11–12) completed two dictogloss writing tasks under three conditions: L1 planning, L2 planning, or no planning (NP). Their texts were analysed for accuracy, fluency, lexical and syntactic complexity, and holistic quality. Across both sessions, the NP group consistently outperformed or matched the planning groups, relying on the inherent scaffolds of the dictogloss task to produce longer and more complex sentences with fewer errors. L2 planning yielded a narrow benefit in clause coordination, whereas L1 planning maintained stable performance but with reduced surface accuracy. These results challenge the assumption that structured PTP necessarily benefits young EFL writers. Instead, they suggest that adding a brief, unguided pre-task planning stage does not provide additional benefits beyond the planning support already embedded in the dictogloss task (e.g. repeated listenings, note-taking, and peer collaboration). Pedagogically, the findings call for a re-evaluation of the emphasis on formal pre-writing activities in primary EFL classrooms and support more flexible approaches that prioritise learners’ natural writing processes over externally imposed planning phases.