Comparison of writing anxiety and writing dispositions of sixth, seventh and eighth grade students

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine sixth, seventh and eighth grade students' writing anxiety and dispositions and to examine to what extent they predict each other. The basis of this study is to determine whether writing disposition is the significant predictor of writing anxiety or not and whether students' grade levels and genders are significant predictor of writing anxiety and dispositions or not. The research was designed according to survey model. The study group, selected through simple sampling method, is made up of 860 students studying at 6 th , 7 th and 8 th grades in elementary schools of Sarkisla District, Sivas. While "Writing Anxiety Scale", adapted into Turkish by özbay and Zorbay (2011), was administered to determine the study group's writing anxiety level, "Writing Disposition Scale", adapted into Turkish by Iseri and ünal (2010), was used to determine the writing disposition level. At the end of the study, it was found that writing disposition is a significant predictor of writing anxiety and students' grade levels and genders are significant predictors of writing anxiety and dispositions. An education environment to create a strong writing disposition for students is recommended. Also, similar studies on different dimensions of the issue can be conducted.