Qualities of a good essay: an assessment of the writings of Nigerian undergraduates
Abstract
This research sought to discover the capabilities of Nigerian undergraduates in handling the salient characteristics of essay in English. Such qualities as clarity, economy, simplicity, unity and coherence were the variables in the assessment. The study was conducted within the framework of the theory of descriptive linguistics and its sub-discipline of stylistics. Four topics representing argumentative, descriptive, expository and narrative essays were given to students for each of them to voluntarily choose one and write on in a strictly supervised writing test. All the essays were marked on the above stated variables. Critical case sampling strand of the purposive sampling was used to select four outstanding essays each representing one of the four departments of the Akwa Ibom State University of Nigeria. Paragraph and sentence formed some of the units of analysis. It was found out that the four subjects whose essays were analyzed proved their mettle in producing readable and creative prose in the four genres with some room for improvement. It is suggested that the Use of English programme in Nigerian universities should be extended from one to two years in addition to regular practice in writing by students and feedback from lecturers.
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