ESP via TBLT in an online environment: Focus on Iranian university students’ writing skill and self-efficacy

This study aimed to compare and contrast online TELL-and-TBLT-based and traditional TBLT-based ESP instructional outcomes for analogies and differences. A total of 87 (N=87) ESP learners were matched for language proficiency and assigned to a control group (receiving TBLT-based ESP instruction) and an experimental group (receiving TELL-and-TBLT-based ESP instruction). Their writing achievement and self-efficacy were compared through a set of mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance (SPANOVA). Results showed that the participants’ ESP writing skills were positively influenced by the treatment they received in both groups, but learners in the experimental group showed significantly greater achievement. The results also indicated that, in spite of their slightly better mean difference, the participants in the experimental group did not achieve any significantly different level of writing self-efficacy compared to their control-group counterparts. Implications for the teaching of writing in ESP courses are discussed.