Fostering Creative Writing in EFL Learners: A Mixed-Methods Study of an Iterative E-Learning Model

Fostering Creative Writing in EFL Learners: A Mixed-Methods Study of an Iterative E-Learning Model | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Fostering Creative Writing in EFL Learners: A Mixed-Methods Study of an Iterative E-Learning Model Mohamed Mekheimer, Eman Mahdy This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7367386/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Developing creative writing skills is a persistent pedagogical challenge for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. This study addresses this challenge by evaluating an iterative e-learning model designed to foster these skills through a synergistic combination of process-oriented collaborative drafting and product-focused reflective e-portfolios. Employing a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, 60 first-year EFL undergraduates were assigned to an experimental group (n = 30) engaging with the 12-week model or a control group (n = 30) receiving traditional instruction. Quantitative data from pre- and post-tests assessed six creative writing dimensions, while qualitative data were gathered from semi-structured interviews and student e-portfolio reflections. Quantitative analyses revealed the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group on all post-test measures (p < .001), with very large effect sizes (η² = .71-.89). Qualitative findings provided deep insights that corroborated and explained these improvements, with students highlighting the value of the iterative process, the utility of collaborative feedback, and the motivational and metacognitive benefits of reflection. The integration of findings demonstrates that this holistic, iterative e-learning model provides a powerful and effective framework for fostering multiple facets of creative writing in EFL contexts. creative writing EFL iterative learning e-learning collaborative documents e-portfolios Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Instruments.docx SPSSDataAnal.sav Rawdata.xlsx ttestresults.pdf WordFrequencyQuery.xlsx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 04 Dec, 2025 Reviews received at journal 01 Dec, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 18 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 02 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 20 Sep, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 18 Sep, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 14 Aug, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 14 Aug, 2025 First submitted to journal 13 Aug, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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