Enhancing Students' Performance on Cause-Effect Essays Through ICT-Supported Collaborative Writing

Abstract

This study examines the impact of ICT-supported collaborative writing on English-major students’ performance in cause–effect essay writing at a public university in Vietnam. Adopting a quasiexperimental design, the research utilized pre- and post-tests, a questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews for data collection. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS 22.0, including descriptive statistics, paired-sample and independent t-tests, as well as Cohen’s d to measure effect size and identify differences in writing performance between the experimental and control groups before and after the intervention. For qualitative data, Creswell’s (2013) spiral model was employed, with MAXQDA™ Analytics Pro 2020 supporting data organization and analysis. The findings revealed that the use of ICT tools significantly enhances students’ cause–effect essay writing, primarily by promoting effective peer collaboration and enabling immediate feedback. While both groups showed improvement, the experimental group outperformed the control group with a large effect size. Students in the experimental group also reported higher levels of engagement and viewed ICT as a valuable aid in organizing ideas and accessing learning resources. These findings offer important pedagogical implications, suggesting that collectively integrating ICT tools into collaborative writing tasks can effectively support students’ academic writing development.

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