writing thesis in english education challenges faced by students

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ANALYSIS OF EFL STUDENTS’ DIFFICULTIES IN WRITING AND COMPLETING ENGLISH THESIS

The objective of this research is to know the EFL students’ difficulties in writing and finishing their thesis. This research employs descriptive qualitative research. From the result analysis of a questionnaire, there are internal and external factors of EFL students’ difficulties in writing and finishing a thesis. In internal factors are 1) difficulty in choosing the title of the English title, 2) feeling bored, pessimistic, bored/saturated, and doubtful with their abilities, 3) feeling fears or worries during the proposal seminar exam or thesis examination later, 4) having a health problem or down, 5) students’ disability in understanding the systematics of writing a thesis, 6) tending to use online translation tools, 7) having difficulty in using English grammar, choosing the right vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation correctly. The students’ difficulty in writing and completing a thesis shows that the most difficult parts are in chapter 4 (result/findings and discussion). While external factors are 1) having communication problems with supervisors, for example, lecturers are difficult to contact, reply to messages for a long time, or do not reply to messages. 2) having problems with supervising lecturers’ writing, for example, writings cannot be read clearly or be understood. 3) having difficulty in finding references on the internet, 4) there are no complete reference sources and no free access to digital libraries on campus, 5) technical problems on devices such as laptops/computers, 6) having cost or financial problems and personal problems during the process of working on and completing the thesis. 7) students’ surrounding environment is not/less conducive. But, have a part-time job, have a busy life with hobbies or personal pleasures, and have a busy life in organizations both on and off-campus. do not influence them in working on and completing the thesis.

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The Process and Problems of EFL Learners in English Writing

A case study in international class.

• Muamaroh Muamaroh Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta
• Vira Cahya Mukti Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta
• Dwi Haryanti Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta

The objectives of the study were to investigate the process of English writing from students of undergraduate international class, to describe problems faced by students in writing English, and to find out the factors which inhibit and improve their writing skills. There were six female respondents in international class. The study used documentation from the students’ work, open-ended questionnaire and interview as the instruments for data gathering. All the data were analyzed by using descriptive qualitative approach. The results of this study showed that all students used four stages in the process of English writing: planning, drafting, editing and final revision. The students’ English writing problems covered content, organization, vocabulary, language use and mechanic. The factors which inhibit them in writing English included not being confident in writing English, not mastering grammar and vocabulary, and lack of practice in writing. The aspects which encourage them to write English were due to the demands as international class students, watching English movie, reading English books or journals, listening English songs and having ambition to acquire scholarship overseas. 

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