USING WRITE&IMPROVE – AN AUTOMATED WRITING EVALUATION TOOL IN ENHANCING ENGLISH WRITING SKILLS OF DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS: A RESEARCH PROJECT IN THE RAINBOW CLASS ORGANIZATION

Abstract

The article reports the impacts of Write&Improve, an automated writing evaluation (AWE) tool in enhancing English writing skills of disadvantaged students. This study was conducted in a highland classroom which is under the control of The Rainbow Class Organization in Sa Pa town, Lao Cai province. 30 secondary school students who participated in the study were divided into 2 equal groups, in which only the experimental group implemented Write&Improve to practice and develop English writing skills. The results of the pretest and post-test of both groups were collected and analyzed by the software SPSS. The findings demonstrated that Write&Improve significantly influenced the writing ability of the participants, assessed according to the four criteria developed from those of Cambridge. Based on those results, the paper also proposes pedagogical implications. To observe more significant outcomes, future research may concentrate on larger scale, alternative tools, and longer time periods, and discover other Write&Improve’s utilities as well.