EXPLORING WORD-CONCRETENESS FEATURES AS PREDICTORS OF WRITING QUALITY AND THEIR PEDAGOGICAL IMPLICATIONS

Abstract

This corpus-based study investigates the role that word-concreteness features play in predicting the writing quality of Pakistani undergraduate students, focusing on lexical features such as hypernyms, word frequency, and concreteness indices. One hundred argumentative essays are analyzed in a corpus to investigate the relationship between these lexical variables and the key components of writing: Coherence and Cohesion (CC), Lexical Resource (LR), Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GR), and Task Response (TR). Results suggest that the highest predictor of writing quality is the count of hypernyms (WRDHYPn); the greater the hypernym usage, the better the scores in GR, LR, and TR. On the other hand, high-frequency words (WRDFRQc) tend to lower writing scores, especially in the areas of Lexical Resource and Task Response. The weaker correlation groups, such as concreteness and imagery features, are mentioned, which continue to influence the overall level of sophistication. This study emphasizes the importance of promoting the use of low-frequency academic words and striking a strategic balance between concrete and abstract language. From a pedagogical perspective, concept ladders, academic word swaps, and related activities can significantly enhance students' lexical ability, thereby improving coherence and the quality of their writing. These constructs thus provide some clues for improving ESL instruction and preparing students for high-stakes testing in multilingual contexts.