ISSUES AND CHALLENGES IN THE USE OF COHERENCE AMONG JORDANIAN EFL STUDENTS IN WRITING ACADEMIC ESSAYS

Background and Purpose: Writing a coherent written composition is a challenging task for many English foreign learners, especially among English as Foreign Language (EFL) Jordanian students, as many of those learners cannot achieve writing well coherent essays at the university level due to various reasons such as lack of lexical competence and lack of motivation.  Due to the fact that very limited studies have focussed on investigating this phenomenon in-depth, especially in the Jordanian context, the present study aims to explore issues and challenges faced by Jordanian students in using coherence in academic essays under the perspectives of writing course instructors.   Methodology: This study used a qualitative approach to gather data. The sample comprises eight male instructors from two Jordanian universities. They were selected using a purposive sampling method. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants to gain their insights into the issues and significant challenges faced by the students and the potential strategies to overcome the challenges. 20 academic essays produced by 4th year undergraduate students from the two universities were observed for the purpose.   Findings: The instructors found that the EFL Jordanian students were unable to achieve coherent writing in the essays mainly due to their limited vocabulary knowledge. They attributed this lack to learners’ inadequate attempts to enhance their writing and limited reading experience. Generally, they agreed that insufficient awareness of the importance of incorporating effective educational practices to enhance their students’ writing as the major contributing factor to their students’ failure to observe coherence in writing. The findings encompassed some potential strategies to cope with the current obstacles, such as training the EFL instructors and employing modern techniques and practices in teaching.   Contributions: Teaching and learning of coherent writing is very necessary at all higher learning institutions. The findings of the study have implications on all the stakeholders as a means of enriching the instructional practices widely.   Keywords: EFL Jordanian students, EFL writing, writing challenges, writing strategies, coherent writing, coherence.   Cite as: Alsariera, A. H., & Yunus, K. (2023). Issues and challenges in the use of coherence among Jordanian EFL students in writing academic essays. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 8(2), 139-154. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol8iss2pp139-154