The Influence of Single-Clause Sentences on IELTS Writing Task 2 Band Score

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte2202012

Keywords:

IELTS, writing task 2, types of sentences, single-clause sentences, multi-clause sentences

Abstract

This research aims to investigate the frequencies of single-clause sentences (SS) and multi-clause sentences (MS) used by IELTS test-takers in writing task 2 and the relationship between their use of single-clause sentences and band score in this section. The researcher used the descriptive comparative research design and the quantitative method design with convenient sampling with fifty (50) sample essays mainly sourced from the set of Cambridge English IELTS Academic books. After collecting the data, the researchers analyzed the data using statistical and descriptive analysis. The result shows that the percentages of single-clause and multi-clause sentences in the range between 0 and 6.0 bands are relatively equal. On the other hand, these percentages in the range of 6.5-9.0 have a significant difference. Additionally, the results of Pearson Correlation Analysis show that the frequency of single-clause sentences has an insignificant negative relationship with the IELTS writing task 2 band score. Therefore, IELTS writing task 2 compositions with more single-clause sentences are potentially graded with a lower band score.

Author Biographies

  • Tran Thanh Tan, HCMC Open Univeristy, Vietnam

    Tan, T.T is currently serving as an English teacher at the University of Technology Foreign Language Center. Besides, he is a master's student of TESOL of HCMC Open University in Vietnam. He has been teaching from children to adults English for two years. His interest is mainly in teaching learners English as a second language and preparation courses for standardized tests. Regarding his research interest, he puts an emphasis to work on second language acquisition, skills embedded in standardized tests (e.g. IELTS, TOEIC).

  • Truong Dinh Minh Dang, HCMC University of Social Sciences and Humanities, HCMC National University, Vietnam

    Dang, T.D.M is currently a master's student of TESOL at HCMC University of Social Science and Humanity in Vietnam. She has more than the two-year experience of teaching English to various students from children to adults. Her research interests focus mainly on studying the effects of teaching methodology used in writing and reading classes and linguistics comparative analysis between Vietnamese and other languages.

     

References

Baroudy, I. (2008). Process Writing: Successful and Unsuccessful Writers; Discovering Writing Behaviours. International Journal of English Studies, 8(2), 43-63.

Creswell, J. W. (2005). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Cullen, P. (2017). The key to IELTS success. Retrieved August 12 2021, from https://ieltsweekly.com/product/ielts-teacher-the-key-to-ielts-success/

Demirezen, M. (2013). The recognition of extended simple sentences as a teaching writing problem. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 70, 560-566.

Fleming, J. (2006). The Sentences. Retrieved on August 12, 2021, from http://eprints.polsri.ac.id/

IELTS (n.d.). IELTS: Home of the IELTS English language test. Retrieved August 12 2021, from https://www.ielts.org/

IELTS (n.d.). IELTS performance for test-takers 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2021, from https://www.ielts.org/for-researchers/test-statistics/test-taker-performance

IELTS (March 11, 2019). IELTS grows to 3.5 million a year. Retrieved August 12, 2021 from https://www.ielts.org/news/2019/ielts-grows-to-three-and-a-half-million-a-year

Moore, T., & Morton, J. (2005). Dimensions of difference: A comparison of university writing and IELTS writing. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 4(1), 43-66.

Ndoricimpa, C., & Barad, D. P. (2021). Does online instruction in discourse conventions of literary analysis affect L2 students’ critical stance in academic writing? A longitudinal study: A longitudinal study. AsiaCALL Online Journal, 12(4), 66 - 87. Retrieved from https://asiacall.info/acoj/index.php/journal/article/view/66

Oshima, A., & Hogue, A. (2007). Introduction to academic writing. New York: White Plans.

Quirk, R. (1985). A Comprehensive Grammar of the English language. Pearson Education India.

Rahma, A. A., & Rosa, R. N. (2021). An Analysis on Students’ Ability in Using Compound-Complex Sentences in Writing a Short Essay. Journal of English Language Teaching, 10(1), 53-60.

Saragih, W., & Hutajulu, C. (2020). Types of Sentences Used by Male and Female Writers in Journal Article Abstracts. LingLit Journal Scientific Journal for Linguistics and Literature, 1(1), 1-11.

Tran, T.Q.T., Nguyen, T.M.N., Luu, T.T., & Pham, T.B.N. (2021).An evaluation of English non-majored freshmen’s attitude towards EFL learning at Can Tho University of Technology. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 1(2), 72-98. EOI: http://eoi.citefactor.org/10.11250/ijte.01.02.005

Tran, T. T. (2016). An action research study on a process-genre approach to teaching IELTS writing task 2 to non-English major students at band 4.5-5.5 in a Vietnamese university setting (Master’s thesis, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam). Retrieved from https://repository.vnu.edu.vn/bitstream/VNU_123/14112/1/04051001299.pdf

University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate. (2004). IELTS handbook. Manchester, United Kingdom: Author.

Uysal, H. H. (2009). A critical review of the IELTS writing test. ELT Journal, 64(3), 314–320. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccp026

Veit, R. (1986). Discovering English Grammar. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company

Wilson, J. (2010). Recent IELTS materials. ELT Journal, 64(2), 219–232. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccq012

Winter. (1999). Academic Studies English. Retrieved on August 12, 2021, from http://eprints.polsri.ac.id/

Downloads

Published

12-12-2021

Issue

Section

Research Article

How to Cite

Tran, T. T., & Truong, D. M. D. (2021). The Influence of Single-Clause Sentences on IELTS Writing Task 2 Band Score. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 2(1), 23-39. https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte2202012

Similar Articles

71-80 of 126

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.