A Comparative Study of Thematicity in the Argumentative Writing of University EFL Students and the Introduction Section of Research Articles

The present study aimed to find out thematic organization and progression in the argumentative writing of Iranian learners of English, representing two levels of language proficiency, and the introduction section of published RAs of Applied Linguistics. For this aim, 60 articles were downloaded from three journals and also 92 male and female students majoring English Language Teaching and English Literature, from Ahvaz Islamic Azad University and Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz were selected. They were divided into two groups of MA and BA. Then, students were asked to write three argumentative compositions based on the selected topics. Among them, only 67 were chosen for the next phase of the study. After that, these compositions together with the RAs were analyzed based on Halliday’s (1985) model of thematic structure and the revised model of Danes’ (1974, as cited in McCabe, 1999) thematic progression patterns. The results of Chi-square suggested that there was a significant difference in the thematic structure of the essays written by MA students and the introduction section of RAs. It was concluded that thematicity can be effectively applied in classrooms to help students in writing. Findings of this study can be effectively applied in teaching writing skills.