EFL Teachers' Perception of Using Stylistic Imitation in EFL Classes: Benefits and the Challenges

Writing always plays an essential part in learning languages, mostly due to close connections it bears to speaking and reading development. Nevertheless, next to speaking and reading, writing is comparatively less attended to. This paper is an attempt to look into the potential stylistic imitation holds in learning how to write as well as how this technic is perceived by the EFL teachers. Action research offers an invaluable chance to delve into the real-life issues teachers deal with on a daily basis. In-service teachers attending a writing course took part in this study to experience first-hand how it feels to use imitation in class to teach writing. They were first presented with a model paragraph and asked to imitate it, first closely sticking to the style of the writer, then freely making changes to the wording and structure as they see fit. Lastly, they were asked to reflect upon the experience. It was revealed that most teachers believed stylistic imitation can benefit learners and they intend to practice it in their classes. They seem to believe stylistic imitation can be of extraordinary help to novice learners in their classes in that it can alleviate the burden they feel trying to master writing. However, a few argued against it stating concerns for voices getting lost and styles getting killed.