The use of mind mapping technique to enhance descriptive writing skills of grade four Bhutanese students

Abstract

A mixed-methods embedded research design was adopted to study the effectiveness of mind mapping technique in enhancing grade four Bhutanese students’ descriptive writing skills. A target group comprising 18 grade four Bhutanese students was formed to participate in this study for a month during the first semester of 2018 academic year. The researcher conducted achievement tests (pretest and posttest) to gather quantitative data and instruments like students’ learning behaviors observation and focus group discussion were employed to garner qualitative data. Descriptive statistical analysis of the quantitative data showed a significant improvement in students’ posttest achievement scores with the mean score of 15.86, which was 4.306 higher than the mean score of the pretest, which was computed at 11.56. This indicated the effectiveness of mind mapping technique in enhancing students’ writing skills. The content analysis on qualitative data spelt out the positive impacts of mind mapping technique on elevating not only students’ learning satisfaction, but also motivation and confidence in writing