Effects of Process-Genre Based Approach on the Written English Performance of Computer Science Students in a Nigerian Polytechnic

Abstract

Writing is one of the four language skills which learners must acquire in order to be able to demonstrate competence in the use of English language. It is also considered as the most difficult because it requires the application of the knowledge of the other three skills. Research has shown that polytechnic students in Nigeria have difficulties in acquiring writing skills due mainly to the limited attention being paid to the teaching of writing and the use of out-dated and teacher-centred methodology. This study therefore aims at investigating the effect of the Process-Genre based approach (PGBA) on the written English performance of computer science students in the Federal Polytechnic, Ede. Nigeria. The quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test and control group design was adopted for the study. Four research questions and three null hypotheses were tested using the Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) at 0.05 level of significance. Results indicate that there is a significant effect of PGBA on the performance in written English of computer science students involved in the treatment.

Key words: Competence, Process-Genre, performance, Written English