Challenges of Writing Research Articles in English for University-Level EFL Teachers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21580/vjv13i118591Keywords:
academic writing, challenges, non-native English speakers, linguistic, rhetorical, disciplinary, culturalAbstract
Writing research articles in English is a challenging task for non-native speakers of English, as it requires linguistic competence, rhetorical awareness, disciplinary knowledge, and familiarity with the research writing conventions. The qualitative study explores English non-native speakers' challenges while writing research articles (RAs) in English. The participants were 12 university-level English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers selected using snowball sampling. The data was collected using semi-structured interviews and analyzed using a thematic approach. The findings revealed four challenges: linguistic, rhetorical, disciplinary, and cultural. Linguistic challenges affect the clarity and credibility of the writing. In contrast, rhetorical challenges involve following the conventions, arguments, and citations of RAs in English. Disciplinary challenges require adapting to the norms and practices of different fields of study, and cultural challenges reflect the preferences for directness, formality, and objectivity in writing. The study shows the complexity and interrelatedness of these challenges and suggests a flexible and nuanced approach to overcome them.
Downloads
References
Al Fadda, H. (2012). Difficulties in Academic Writing: From the Perspective of King Saud University Postgraduate Students. English Language Teaching, 5(3). https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v5n3p123
Azizah, U. A., & Budiman, A. (2022). Challenges in Writing Academic Papers for International Publication Among Indonesian Graduates Students. JEELS (Journal of English Education and Linguistics Studies), 4(2), 175–197. https://doi.org/10.30762/jeels.v4i2.405
Belcher, D. D. (2007). Seeking acceptance in an English-only research world. Journal of Second Language Writing, 16(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2006.12.001
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Brown, E. P. (2005). Maintaining cultural identity in academic writing. Nebraska University Press.
Canagarajah, A. S. (2002). A Geopolitics of Academic Writing. University of Pittsburgh Press.
Clark, T., & Paulsen, T. (2016). Analyzing Student Teacher Critical Thinking through Blogs in an Electronic Community of Practice. Journal of Agricultural Education, 57(2), 75–92. https://doi.org/10.5032/jae.2016.02075
Connor, U. (2004). Intercultural rhetoric research: beyond texts. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 3(4), 291–304. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2004.07.003
Creswell, J. W. J. W. (2023). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (5th ed.). SAGE Publications. https://revistapsicologia.org/public/formato/cuali2.pdf
Curry, M. J., & Lillis, T. (2004). Multilingual Scholars and the Imperative to Publish in English: Negotiating Interests, Demands, and Rewards. TESOL Quarterly, 38(4), 663. https://doi.org/10.2307/3588284
Da, B. G. and R. A. (2016). How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper (8th ed.). Greenwood Press: London. https://www.shuyiwrites.com/uploads/1/3/0/4/130438914/how_to_write_and_publish_a_scientific_paper.pdf
Dastjerdi, Z. S., Tan, H., & Abdullah, A. N. (2017). Rhetorical structure of integrated results and discussion chapter in master’s dissertations across disciplines. Discourse and Interaction, 10(2), 61-83. https://doi.org/10.5817/DI2017-2-61
Flowerdew, J. (2000). Discourse Community, Legitimate Peripheral Participation, and the Nonnative-English-Speaking Scholar. TESOL Quarterly, 34(1), 127. https://doi.org/10.2307/3588099
Flowerdew, J. (2012). English for Research Publication Purposes. In The Handbook of English for Specific Purposes (pp. 301–321). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118339855.ch16
Gosden, H. (2003). ‘Why not give us the full story?’: functions of referees’ comments in peer reviews of scientific research papers. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 2(2), 87–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1475-1585(02)00037-1
Horn, R. (2017). Researching and writing dissertations: A complete guide for business and management students (3rd ed.). London : Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
Hyland, K. (2004). Disciplinary discourses: Social interactions in academic writing (Michigan C). The University of Michigan Press. https://books.google.co.id/books?hl=id&lr=&id=-UtroqFc6Q0C&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=Hyland,+K.+(2004).+Disciplinary+discourses:+Social+interactions+in+academic+writing.+University+of+Michigan+Press.&ots=3udKSyBfzi&sig=TWsj9TAZWaLQm8Zznti8YE7UDoI&redir_esc=y#v=one
Hyland, K. (2016). Academic publishing: Issues and challenges in the construction of knowledge (1st ed.). Oxford University Press. https://elt.oup.com/catalogue/items/global/linguistics/oxford_applied_linguistics/9780194423885?cc=id&selLanguage=id
Hyland, K., & Milton, J. (1997). Qualification and certainty in L1 and L2 students’ writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 6(2), 183–205. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1060-3743(97)90033-3
Judge, T. A., Cable, D. M., Colbert, A. E., & Rynes, S. L. (2007). What Causes a Management Article to be Cited—Article, Author, or Journal? Academy of Management Journal, 50(3), 491–506. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2007.25525577
Lillis, T. M. J. C. (2010). Academic writing in a global context: The politics and practices of publishing in English. Routledge. Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Academic-Writing-in-a-Global-Context-The-Politics-and-Practices-of-Publishing-in-English/Lillis-Curry/p/book/9780415468831
Moldovan, C. (2011). Writing a scientific paper in English-challenges and common errors. Revista Romană de Medicină de Laborator, 19(4/4), 391-394. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233721367
Miller, A. L., & Davis, R. J. (2012). Cultural adaptation in academic writing. Elsevier.
Naftal K.T.H. & Jairos K. (2016). An Exploration of Hedging and Boosting Devices Used in Academic Discourse Focusing on English Theses at the University of Namibia Studies in English Language Teaching. 6,(1), 1-11. http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/selt.v6n1p1
Orb, A., Eisenhauer, L., & Wynaden, D. (2001). Ethics in Qualitative Research. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 33(1), 93–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.2001.00093.x
Petrić, B. (2007). Rhetorical functions of citations in high- and low-rated master’s theses. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 6(3), 238–253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2007.09.002
Ponterotto, J. G., & Grieger, I. (2007). Effectively Communicating Qualitative Research. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(3), 404–430. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000006287443
Phothongsunan, S. (2016). Thai university academics’ challenges of writing for publication in English. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 6, (4), 681-685, http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0604.04
Smith, J. A., & Osborn, M. (2004). Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. In Doing Social Psychology Research (pp. 229–254). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470776278.ch10
Swales, J., & Feak, C. (2012). Academic Writing for Graduate Students, 3rd Edition. University of Michigan Press/ELT. https://doi.org/10.3998/mpub.2173936
Swales, J. M. (2004). Research genres: Explorations and applications (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Tenzer, H., & Pudelko, M. (2017). The influence of language differences on power dynamics in multinational teams. Journal of World Business, 52(1), 45–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwb.2016.11.002
Tiwari, H. P. (2019). Writing Thesis in English Education: Challenges Faced by Students. Journal of NELTA Gandaki, 1, 45–52. https://doi.org/10.3126/jong.v1i0.24458
Whang, Y. (2020). Reviewing a journal article with clarity and politeness: key language tips for non-native English-speaking reviewers. Science Editing, 7(2), 204–208. https://doi.org/10.6087/kcse.220
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant Vision: Journal for Language and Foreign Language Learning the right of publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and publication in this journal.
- Authors can enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) after the publication process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
