Exploring the Impact of Mentor Texts Usage on EFL Learners’ Academic Writing: Case of 3rd Year EFL Students at ENS Bouzareah

Abstract

Given the importance of writing for EFL students’ success; mentor texts can help them internalize and apply academic writing conventions. The objective of this study is to explore the perceptions of EFL pre-service teachers at ENS Bouzareah of the impact of mentor texts usage on their writing process. Using an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, data were collected in two phases. In phase one, thematic analysis revealed five areas of perceived improvement : structure and organization, application of mentor texts in class, writing confidence, audience awareness, and management of writing difficulties.In phase two, descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and linear regression indicated a significant positive correlation between audience awareness and structural organization, with audience awareness, predicting well-organized writing, suggesting the role of mentor texts in enhancing EFL learners’ academic writing.