Sustaining Writing

Characteristic Features of Entry Level Candidates’ Writing in English at an Anglophone Caribbean University

Authors

  • Vivette Milson-Whyte
  • Tracy-Ann Beckford

Keywords:

English Language proficiency, sustainable development, UWI

Abstract

Desiring to assist secondary level teachers of English in preparing students to succeed in university-level writing, Dyche (1996) characterised the challenges observed in the writing of entrants to The University of the West Indies (The UWI) at Mona in the 20th century. To build on Dyche’s work, the researchers in this qualitative case study examined the writing produced by candidates of the Mona English Language Proficiency Test over a recent four-year period. In scrutinising 100 candidates’ scripts deemed as Level 1 (pass) or Level 2 (fail), the researchers found – as Dyche (1996) did – that students’ writing displayed challenges regarding spelling, subject/verb agreement, punctuation, phrasing, and sentence structure. However, the current study also found challenges – regarding use of the indefinite article and the thesis statement. Given the crucial role of effective writing in promoting sustainable development, administrators and instructors at all educational levels must help learners to overcome such challenges.

Author Biographies

  • Vivette Milson-Whyte

    VIVETTE MILSON-WHYTE is Head of the Department of Language, Linguistics and Philosophy at The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. She publishes on language ideology and the teaching/assessment/administration of postsecondary writing. She is also author of Academic Writing Instruction for Creole-
    Influenced Students (UWI Press 2015) and co-editor of Creole Composition:
    Academic Writing and Rhetoric in the Anglophone Caribbean (Parlor Press 2019) – both multi-award-winning books.

  • Tracy-Ann Beckford

    TRACY-ANN BECKFORD, EdD, is a lecturer at The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. She coordinates the English Language Proficiency Test Unit and teaches courses in academic and professional literacies. With interest in digital writing, she is the author of “The Implications of Text-Messaging for Language Learning” in English Language Teaching in a Post-Method Paradigm, edited by P. J. Feraria (IGI Global 2019).

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Published

2024-12-30

Issue

No. 28 (2024): Higher Education and Sustainability

Section

Articles