The Utilities of Equipping Worldwide EFL Learners with Paraphrasing Strategy in Academic Writing Learning Processes

AbstractA decent patron for globalized EFL learners to overcome a wide variety of academic writing obstructions is through the sustainable internalization of the paraphrasing strategy. As worldwide EFL learners frequently bear a huge brunt of their academic writing failures due to excessive plagiarism, it is believed that a paraphrasing strategy can better alleviate this academic writing issue to successfully generate more high-quality academic writing products. This current small-scale qualitative library study aimed to exhaustively investigate the utilities of equipping globalized EFL learners with a paraphrasing strategy in academic writing learning processes. To fulfill this major research objective, the researcher utilized a thematic analysis approach in reviewing the particularly-obtained research results derived from 20 previous paraphrasing strategy in academic writing studies. A thematic analysis methodology was employed to yield more comprehensible, reliable, and compatible research results. In line with the thematic analysis having been conducted, there were two main specific themes attained namely: (1) Paraphrasing strategy allows EFL learners to become more proficient academic writers and (2) paraphrasing strategy outstandingly elevates EFL learners’ academic writing quality. These thematically-categorized research results strongly prompted second language educationalists all around the globe to activate the paraphrasing strategy at the commencement of academic writing learning enterprises to transform EFL learners into more competent mindful writers. Keywords: Paraphrasing strategy, academic writing, EFL learners, thematic analysis, Library Study