Saudi Students’ Experiences of Their Writing Transfer in Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

As writing transfer becomes increasingly crucial for students navigating diverse academic demands, understanding its mechanisms is essential, particularly for the field of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education. This study investigates the experiences of Saudi undergraduate students with writing transfer from EFL courses to discipline-specific courses, examining how they apply, adapt, and encounter difficulties with writing skills across various academic contexts. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with five participants and analyzed using thematic analysis. The analyses identified two overarching categories of writing transfer: simple transfer, comprising (1) no transfer, (2) discrete application, and (3) assemblage and adaptive transfer, which included (1) reconceptualization and (2) modification. These findings shed light on the unique challenges and successes that college EFL learners experience when transferring writing skills across different academic contexts. Specifically, simple transfer often hindered students’ ability to meet the demands of new writing contexts, while adaptive transfer required them to make more substantial adjustments in their approach to more challenging writing tasks and to develop a clearer understanding of what writing skills and knowledge could be effectively transferred. This study underscores the need for targeted instructional strategies in EFL programs to promote effective writing transfer across genres and emphasizes the importance of broadening adaptive learning frameworks in EFL settings.