Exploring university students’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges of incorporating multimodal elements in L2 writing

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a study exploring the perceptions of Lebanese university students regarding the benefits and challenges of using multimodal elements in L2 academic writing in a context where English is a medium of instruction (EMI). An inductive approach to the analysis of qualitative data from student surveys and focus group interviews was used. The findings revealed that the majority of the participants perceived their experience of the use of multimodal elements in term paper writing as beneficial. Among the benefits reported by the students are an improved structure and organization of their written product, heightened awareness of audience and genre, greater engagement in the written task, enhanced critical thinking, and an ability to transfer the acquired skill to other courses. The perceived challenges of the employment of multimodal components in L2 writing included challenges of learning a new skill, technical and mechanical difficulties in the task execution, and more time needed for its completion. Doubts about the value of such types of assignments, compared to traditional ones, were also viewed as an impeding factor. Recommendations for future research in this context are provided.