A study on indicators of writing instruction in Iranian English as a foreign language curriculum at guidance and high school educational levels

In this study, the indicators of EFL writing instruction have been studied at guidance and high school educational levels. The research questions were as follows: What are the indicators of writing EFL instruction at guidance school and high school EFL curriculum? What are the indicators of writing EFL instruction in Iran's guidance school and high school English textbooks? What are the weak and strong points of the instructional objectives of EFL writing in Iran's guidance school and high school English textbooks according to the indicators of writing instruction in EFL curriculum? To answer these questions, the language arts curriculum of Finland (2004), Lebanon (1995), and Canada (2001), and also Iran's has been analyzed qualitatively (through grounded theory method) at guidance school and high school levels. Because there has been no document as EFL curriculum in Iran's ministry of education, guidance school and high school textbooks were scrutinized carefully to extract the EFL writing theoretical framework and educational objectives. Findings showed that Iran's EFL textbooks for these educational levels have not been developed based on a particular theoretical framework. Here, EFL writing has been considered as something taken for granted and no particular definition has been considered for this language art and its sub-skills. The textbook developers not only did not deal with the conceptual framework of EFL writing, but also they did not develop the educational objectives explicitly. These leaded in developing general and ambiguous exercises in textbooks. In addition, no practical strategy has been presented for EFL teachers to enable them to achieve implied educational objectives in classes. In general, it could be concluded that EFL writing instruction in Iran follows no particular theoretical framework and objective. The implications of the findings would be discussed.

Writing Indicators, EFL Curriculum, Guidance School, High School