Malaysian ESL learners’ perceptions of WAAT implementation in cademic writing using the technology acceptance model

Academic writing skills are vital to learners, especially for tertiary students. The skills however are not easy to master due to multiple other requirements needed to produce quality academic works. This is when a specific tool like the Written Article Analysis Template (WAAT); a Google Sheet-based writing scaffold, is warranted to cater to students’ academic assessment required under the English for Critical Reading course. To gauge students’ perceptions of the tool, this research was conducted employing the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A set of questionnaires was adapted following the TAM where four variables; Perceived Usefulness (PU), Perceived Ease of Use (PEU), Attitude (ATU), and Behavioural Intention (BI), were the key concepts. Statistically relevant data showed a positive and high acceptance of the WAAT among students, with PU being recorded as the salient factor in students’ WAAT adoption. The study also found strong relationships between students’ Behavioural Intention, Perceived Ease of Use, and Attitude toward the template. The study concludes that usefulness and user-friendliness are two important features of technology-based writing tools like the WAAT.