THE DIFFICULTIES FACED BY THE STUDENTS IN ANSWERING THE WRITTEN EXPRESSION SECTION OF THE TOEFL TEST - Research

Oct 1, 2026

Uploaded by asda1da

TOEFL test is a requirement for English Study Program FKIP UNRI students to complete their S1 degree. Based on observation, many students repeatedly took the test before reaching the passing grade, suggesting difficulties in the Written Expression section. This quantitative study analyzes students’ difficulties by identifying item categories in the Written Expression section that are difficult and easy for third-year students. Twelve categories were examined using Deborah Phillips (2000) framework, and results show 10 difficult categories and 2 easier categories.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

TOEFL test overview and sections

Research focus and item categories

Reasons for conducting the study

THE DIFFICULTIES FACED BY THE STUDENTS IN ANSWERING THE WRITTEN EXPRESSION SECTION OF THE TOEFL TEST Mainar Fitri Sultan Syarif Kasim State Islamic University of Riau, Indonesia [mayfitry81@gmail.com](mayfitry81@gmail.com) ABSTRACT TOEFL test is one of the requirements for the students of English Study Program FKIP UNRI to finish their study at S1 Degree. Based on the researcher’s observation, most of the students did not pass the TOEFL Test. The students followed the test for several times till they reached the passing grade. It seemed that the students got difficulties in answering the TOEFL Test. So, in this research the researcher focused on analyzing the students’difficulties in answering the Written Expression section of the TOEFL test. The aims of this research were to identify the categories of items in the Written Expression section of the TOEFL test which were difficult for the third-year students of English Study Program FKIP-UNRI . and to identify which categories of items that were easy for the students. This research was a quantitative research. The researcher analyzed the categories of items tested in TOEFL test, especially in the Written Expression section. There were 12 categories of items tested in the Written Expression section of the TOEFL test based on Longman Preparation Course for the TOEFL Test by Deborah Phillips (2000: 144-221) . The categories consisted of subject-verb agreement, parallel structure, comparative and superlative, the use of the verbs, the forms of the verbs, passive verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives and adverbs, articles, prepositions and usages The result of the research showed that there were 10 categories of items that were difficult for the students. The categories were parallel structures, comparatives and superlatives, the use of the verbs, passive verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives and adverbs, articles, prepositions and usages. While the categories of items which were considered easy for the students were subject-verb agreement and the forms of the verbs. So, in general, the students got difficulties in answering the Written Expression section of the TOEFL test. Keyword: Analyzing the Difficulties, the Written Expression Section of the TOEFL Test. 1. Introduction TOEFL stands for test of English as a foreign language. It is probably the most often used examination in the admission process of foreign students to college and universities in the United States (Michael; 1995:4) . Sharpe (2000: 9) states that since 1963 the TOEFL has 206| IJIELT, Vol. 3 No.1 June 2017 been used by Latin American Scholarship program and others as a standard of measurement of English proficiency. Now, some professional licensing and certification agencies also use TOEFL score to fulfill the foreign language requirement for doctoral candidates whose first language is not English. There are three sections of the TOEFL test. They are Listening Comprehension section, Structure and Written Expression Section and Reading Comprehension Section. Listening Comprehension section measures the ability to understand conversation and talks in English. The Structure and Written section measures the ability to recognize language that is appropriate for standard written English. Reading Comprehension section measures the ability to read and understand short passages. In English Study Program of FKIP-UNRI, the students have to take the TOEFL test which is usually used in comprehensive test as a requirement to complete their SI degree. They are provided with courses that can help them increase their TOEFL scores. They have listening subjects for two semesters; Listening I and Listening II. Both can help them in answering the Listening Comprehension section of the TOEFL test. They also take Structure I, Structure II, Structure III and Grammar subject that help them in the Structure and Written Expression section .and they have reading I, Reading II, Reading III and Reading IV that help them in th

FAQs

What does the study focus on regarding the TOEFL test?

The study focuses on analyzing third-year students’ difficulties in answering the Written Expression section of the TOEFL test by examining how they respond to different item categories.

How many item categories are assessed in the Written Expression section?

Twelve categories of items are assessed in the Written Expression section, following Deborah Phillips’ framework.

Which item categories are found to be difficult versus easy for students?

The study reports 10 categories as difficult, while subject-verb agreement and the forms of the verbs are considered easy by the students.

Oct 1, 2026

Uploaded by asda1da