The Impact of Transparent Assessment Criteria on EFL Essay Writing Quality: An Experimental Study with Master’s Two ELT Students at Ammar Thelidji University of Laghouat

Abstract

A principle that has gained increasing attention as a potential factor influencing essay writing quality is the use of Transparent Assessment Criteria, especially in higher education. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of transparent teacher assessment criteria on essay writing quality among Master Two ELT students at Ammar Thelidji University of Laghouat during the 2025-2026 academic year. Accordingly, the study tested the following hypothesis: if EFL students received transparent teacher assessment criteria, then the quality of their essays would have improved. The study also measured changes in key areas, including relevance, organization, vocabulary, grammar, mechanics, and overall readability. To investigate this, a quantitative experimental research design was conducted. Out of the initial (29) students who participated in the Pre-test phase, (16) completed the entire experimental procedure, which included three phases: a Pre-test, a Treatment, and a Post-test. These participants were randomly assigned to either experimental or control groups producing a total of (32) essays. Statistical analysis reported that the experimental group achieved an overall improvement of (35%) in comparison to the control group, with significant improvements across all measured aspects. These findings supported the hypothesis, suggesting that access to transparent teacher assessment criteria enhanced EFL students’ writing quality. Based on these results, it is recommended that teachers implement such criteria into their practices to further enhance their students’ essay writing quality. However, due to the limited sample size, the results cannot be generalized to all EFL students. Future research should explore the applicability of these findings with a larger sample and broader contexts.