Teaching EFL Academic Writing in Higher Education

The present study investigates the main academic writing problems encountered by a group of Mexican university students while producing research reports in English. In particular, it presents the design and implementation of a pedagogical action plan based on a Systemic-Functional approach to writing in order to help students improve coherence and cohesion in their texts. The effect of this intervention on students' academic writing was determined through the analysis and interpretation of data obtained from three data gathering methods, namely, student text analysis, semi-structured interviews with students, and structured class observations. From the analysis of the data, a number of categories emerged. The findings of this analysis revealed that the logical organization of students' texts at the level of paragraphs and sections was improved, and an effective and increased use of conjunctions was also found. The pedagogical implications of these findings suggest that the teaching of structural and cohesive components of academic texts in English is beneficial to the development of some student academic writing skills.