A Program based on Metadiscourse Markers to Develop EFL Academic Writing of Faculty of Specific Education Postgraduate Students

Abstract

The current study aimed at investigating the effect of using metadiscourse markers to develop postgraduate students' academic writing skills at the Faculty of Specific Education, Zagazig University. Sixty students enrolled in first year special diploma, EFL Curricula and Instruction, were chosen as the study participants. Based on a quasi-experimental design, the study involved two groups: An experimental group (n=30) and a control one (n=30). A pre-post academic writing skills test was designed to assess the students' level in the specified skills before and after the treatment. The results revealed that the experimental group surpassed the control one in the overall academic writing skills. Accordingly, using metadiscourse markers proved to have a large effect on students' academic writing skills, in terms of content, organization, vocabulary, language use and mechanics.