Introduction

The greatest concern of all English Foreign Language teachers is to develop and maintain their pupils’ best possible engagement and encourage them to participate actively in classroom activities in order to learn the target language. Most language teachers agree with the fact that classroom management is considered as a basic part in language teaching and/ or learning processes. This latter is considered as an essential part since it accomplishes all what goes on in the classroom; for instance, preparing the classroom, organizing students, and distinguishing different learning styles and interests. EFL teachers are faced with the most difficult task when it comes to stimulate students’ attention at the same time and that makes it too demanding and challenging. Being a teacher needs great patience, strength, courage, confidence, intelligence, humor and most importantly preparation and management. Digging deeper into teaching English language, the writing skill is one of the four basic skills that requires specific aspects to be achieved. It is one of the skills that has been given much more attention than before as it is considered as difficult for both teachers and pupils. For such, the present study, firstly, concerns classroom management and sheds light on teaching of writing on mixed ability classes. Teaching writing should incorporate various learning parameters to have a great influence on pupils’ achievement and success in their learning process.

1. Literature Review

1.1. Classroom management

Classroom management is considered as an essential part of language teaching vs learning process for it needs an adequate environment that maintains classroom discipline. Savage and Savage (2010 : 06) state, “Management refers to your role as a teacher in creating a classroom environment where success is possible. It refers to how order is established and maintained in the classroom”. This implies that a teacher plays a very active role within his class, he is considered as a guide and as a leader. Mazrano et al (2013 : 01) add:

“Teachers pals various roles in a typical classroom, but surely one of the most important is that of classroom manager. Effective teaching and learning cannot take place in a poorly managed classroom. If students are disorderly and disrespectful, and no apparent rules and procedures guide behavior, chaos becomes the norm”.

Teachers are faced with a difficult task when it comes to create an adequate environment as declared in Caroline (2005) “creating a balance between a caring environment and one where there is control is not easy task for any teacher”. Accordingly, Willis (1996) confirms that it is very important for teachers to help learners determine the classroom rules which should not be imposed on them but should be involved when setting the limits to feel responsible for their wants and not out of fear. This will help learners not to struggle since rules are already spoken and agreed about them.

1.2. Preparing the classroom

The work of Sinclair and Fraser (2002) indicates that establishing a positive classroom climate is of immense importance in the teaching learning process. However, to create such smoother atmosphere while teaching, the teacher should be aware of some variables that contribute to classroom conducive climate, Sinclair and Fraser (2002) indicates:

1. cooperation, the extent to which pupils are working together and helping each other during class activities;

2. teacher support, the extent to which the teacher guides, motivates, encourages pupils;

3. task orientation, which is about how much classroom time the teacher actually devotes on the designed task or complete assignment;

4. involvement, the extent to which pupils participate in class activities and are engaged in classroom discussions;

5. equity, the extent to which mutual respect is established and the teacher treats all of his pupils equally.

In short, pupils need to have a well-arranged classroom with a quite clear assignment to learn. Therefore, it seems to be equally important for EFL teachers to establish contexts where pupils feel confident in their abilities, see their different learning styles taken into account and intrinsically invested in the task, creating, thus, sufficient opportunities for cognitive development through promoting autonomy, emphasizing mastery over performance goals, and providing informative feedback as creating a caring classroom climate. Furthermore, developing a positive climate can lead to the development of the classroom as a learning community which will ultimately lead to better pupil performance and behaviour.

1.3. Organizing pupils and activities

One of the main concerns of the teacher is to foster his learners’ involvement in all classroom activities and make them interested and curious about what comes next. Having a plan, that suits both teachers and pupils, helps to develop learners’ cooperation and enjoyment when doing the task. Additionally, there will be a supportive classroom environment for both of them. Moreover, to work in a smoother and supportive environment, the teacher should vary his way of teaching by using different types of activities to stimulate learners’ attention as well as grouping them to increase their participation and engagement. One of the classroom management tactics is that of organizing pupils when exposing them to language and vocabulary, giving them clear instructions about how performing activities, putting them into pairs or groups, involving them more closely and making them responsible for their own learning. (Harmer, 2007)

When organizing pupils, the teacher needs to get them involved, engaged, ready and interested. The teacher should look for activities that are enjoyable, interesting and helpful to make them understand better as declared bellow:

Once the students are ready for the activity, we will want to give any necessary instructions, saying what students should do first, what they should do next, etc. Here it is important to get the level of the language right and try to present instructions in a logical order and in as unconfusing a way as possible. Harmer (2007 : 111).

Adding to this, Harmer (2007) insisted on changing the classroom seats depending on the type of activities used to make a group debate, allow discussions and collaborative work. The learner needs to perceive the classroom as a calm, adequate and safe place where learning is going to take place. Since there is no fixed seating pattern, the teacher should change from time to time his students’ seating arrangement because it influences teachers’ and students’ attitudes toward learning and there will be a good interaction between them. This latter strongly contributes in making students involved and interested which may help in minimizing behavior problems. However, it can be somehow difficult for teachers to change the seats constantly when it comes to overcrowded classes, West (2010 : 15) stated that: “In reality, changing seating arrangements every lesson is not practical, especially if there is not a break between groups”. When teachers are faced with overcrowded classes it will be difficult for them to provide their learners with the different seating arrangement.

1.4. Meeting the Individual Needs of Pupils

Students differ from each other in sort of things; they may have different capacities, needs and learning styles that should be determined by their teachers so as to look for strategies that fit their interests. Tomilson (1999) says, “Every classroom is filled with students whose learning styles, needs, strengths, and abilities differ. Effective teachers do not see the class as one group assigned to a particular room, but rather as individuals” (cited in Strong et al. : 174). Learners’ needs have the meaning of what learners need exactly throughout his/her educational path. It is so important to recognize the needs and classify them since they are considered as a start of a learning experience and a key for developing a successful language-learning program. Thus, it is better to start identifying the needs at the first stage.

In each stage learners face specific needs to continue their educational process as far as they grow up their needs change. For instance, intermediate learners need to use correct grammar sentences, rich vocabulary, be able to communicate with native speakers, improve tolerance and understanding over other cultures by having a competent, skilled, mutual sharing knowledge and experienced teacher. Moreover, the teacher should adapt to the changing needs of individual learners, classes and to the demands of the syllabus.

Furthermore, materials and effective strategies are necessary to be used in teaching so as to improve learner’s learning and achievement. Using records and songs in order to hear the right pronunciation of words or using games and puzzles to teach as well developing students’ thinking process as far as strategies are concerned. Pupils need to be motivated in their language learning; for instance, not considering English language as a set of words and grammar rules, but a means of communication that we rely on to be in touch with the external world.

Learners’ needs are considered as a major requirement of a successful course book. Therefore, it has received considerable attention and has been regarded as one of the clues that clarify both teachers’ and learners’ objectives. For that reason, the EFL teacher should be aware of the importance of knowing at least the majority of his learners’ needs so as to plan an effective lesson that fits what they are willing to accomplish.

1.5. Awareness of learners’ learning styles

The purpose of teaching is to facilitate learning and to encourage learners to learn more effectively. Each learner has his own way of perceiving, processing and structuring knowledge which affects their response to different materials and activities. Therefore, it is a true challenge for the teacher to find appropriate teaching materials and activities that cope with all of learners’ ways of learning. According to Starbuck (2006 : 35) “Knowing how to learn can unlock all sorts of possibilities in pupils.”. Additionally, he stated that “knowing what their preferred learning styles are, and how to revise effectively, then they can be empowered to take more interest in and responsibility for their work and there can be real improvement in pupils' learning performance” (p. 35).

Moreover, Shaughnessy (1998 : 01) stated “an individual’s learning style is the way he or she concentrates on, processes, internalizes, and remembers new and difficult academic information or skills”. learners vary in their ways of processing and understanding particular information, each one has his own way of learning and should be aware of it so as to be responsible for improving his learning. Kinsella, (1995 : 171), said that learning styles refers to “an individual’s natural habitual, and preferred ways of absorbing, processing, and retaining new information and skills.”

There are various models concerning learning styles, hence, teachers should be aware of them to maintain a better teaching process. Jaleel & Thomas (2019), state that as learners have different ways of getting and processing knowledge, there should be different ways of transmitting that knowledge. Some have a preference for hearing the language and they do enjoy receiving information through discussion (auditory learners). Some of them prefer seeing the information written down since they do rely on their mental images that can help them remembering particular information (visual learners), some others like learning it in discrete bits; they like doing things methodologically to try to reach a deeper understanding by analyzing and synthesizing (analytic learners). While others prefer experiencing it in a large chunks (global, holistic, experiential learners) and many prefer to do something physical while experiencing the language (kinesthetic learners).

Understanding pupils’ learning styles will contribute in selecting learning experiences that maximize engagement and motivation. Achieving the ultimate goal of pupils learning requires a teacher who is aware of the different styles of his students in order to make a combination of those styles and the methods being used to make the classroom environment as stimulating and interactive as possible.

2. Teaching writing and assessing pupils’ writing

2.1. Teaching writing

Writing is not an easy task, it is agreed that it is a complex skill to teach, its difficulty for pupils lies in generating and organizing ideas. Yet, teachers rely on how readable what pupils’ writings are and what writing approach or strategy is suitable for their text’ improvement. Nunan (1991, : 88) states, “The major function of writing is to produce texts for teachers to evaluate”.

The purpose of teaching is to enable pupils learn effectively. However, pupils differ in their way of processing knowledge. Hence, it is necessary for teachers to analyze their pupils’ needs and ways of learning for better teaching process. Sarasin (1999 : 51) asserts that, “teaching cannot be successful without knowledge of learning styles and a commitment to matching them with teaching styles and strategies”. This kind of awareness is a key component in effective teaching since teachers can implement different activities, use wider range of classroom methodologies besides being flexible in their planning to what suit their students’ styles. It is a difficult task to fulfil; however, by trying to incorporate various, teachers may be able to reach the majority of their pupils since they generally do better in class when the activities match their preferred styles of learning.

It seems to be equally important for EFL teachers to establish contexts where pupils feel confident in their abilities and see their different learning styles taken into account. Moreover, teachers have to use understanding of individual differences and diverse learning styles to ensure inclusive learning environments that enable each learner to meet high standards. For instance, teachers should use visually pleasing materials, planning class debates and discussions.

Writing includes all aspects of language that are correct grammar rules, word order, spelling and logical arrangement of ideas (cohesion). Thus, in order to be good at writing there should be steps to follow to move on gradually from controlled and guided activities towards less guided to free activities. Following that order helps pupils stand up, build their confidence, and get rid of all what guides them, and to be creative and more pupils centered.

2.2. Assessing pupils’ writing

The teaching and learning processes go hand in hand with the procedures of evaluation and assessment. No progress can be reported in the EFL classroom without efficient mechanisms of assessment. Longman dictionary defined the term assessment as “a systematic approach to collecting information and making inferences about the ability of a student or the quality or success of a teaching course” (Richards et al. : 35). Assessment is the gathering of information about students learning, it can take so many forms depending on the objective to be achieved. It can be used for diagnostic assessment which is handled at the beginning of every school year, it is to diagnose the students’ levels of knowledge and detect their weaknesses and strengths so as to remedy and enhance their levels and improve their language learning. On the other hand, it can be used for formative purposes as it includes all methods that EFL teachers use to gather information about their students learning in order to improve or adjust instruction. The other one is summative assessment which is concerned with the EFL pupils’ formal tests besides a final examination at the end of every term, it is used to assess the general level and progression of the students during one term or the whole school year.

There are four language skills and writing is one of those skills that should be assessed in the class, and this assessment can occur at many different stages and forms throughout the course. Thus, writing assessment can be for evaluating pupils’ final papers, as it can be an ongoing assessment that goes on all the year, it depends on the teacher purposes:

“Assessment can differ in its purposes. It can aim at making a summative judgement on the learners’ writing for the purpose of awarding a grade, or passing or failing. It can aim at a formative shaping of the learners’ progress in writing by diagnosing problems, by providing encouragement to keep writing and to write more, and by providing constructive feedback on the content and form of the writing”. (Nation, 2009 : 137)

The most important factor that influences pupils’ writing is the kind of feedback they receive. Positive feedback gives pupils the desire to improve their performance that is why teachers’ feedback should be prompt and informative.

3. Research design and Methodology

The rationale behind this research design is that it would allow describing, analyzing, and interpreting the facts in an institution of general education.

1. Setting and Sampling : The present study is carried out in secondary schools, which are situated in Oran. It addressed six (06) teachers, composed of both males and females. Adding to teachers, this study includes seventy (70) students, selected randomly, from different secondary schools.

2. Data collecting Instruments : In this research, the approach relied on is a mix of both quantitative and qualitative approach ‘mix approach’ both served in collecting data. The first data-collecting instrument is a questionnaire to students along with an interview with teachers of English language.

3. Data analysis and Interpretation of Results The following analysis are the treatment of all data collected by means of tables and percentages for each question.

• The first two questions of the questionnaire aimed at gathering the participants’ information of gender, and their attitude toward English language. The total number of students in the survey was 70 of which (54) were females and (16) were males.

Table 1. Students’ gender

Gender	stream 3rdforeign languages	percentage
Male	16	23%
Female	54	77%
Total	70	100%

• The second question aimed at distinguishing students’ attitudes toward English language through given degrees. The results are presented in the following figure. As it is shown, half of the study population hold positive attitudes towards English language.

Figure 1. Students’ attitudes to learn English

• The third question aimed at knowing the prominent learning skill that students consider as a difficult skill in English language learning by degrees of arrangement. While going through the data of the questionnaire, the researcher marked that 64% students asserted that listening is the easiest skill. While, when it comes to the most difficult skill the majority 71% agreed that it was the writing skill. The results were as demonstrated in figure below.

Figure 2. Language Skills Classification

• The fourth question was about knowing students’ levels in writing. With regard to the rates mentioned in the table we can see that (13%) of the respondents estimated that they were very good at writing, (40%) believe d they are good at writing, (30%) claimed that they are less good at writing. While (17%) appeared to be not good at writing.

Table 2. Students’ Qualification of their Writing

Very good → not good				No answer
1	2	3	4	0%
13%	40%	30%	17%

• The fifth question having surveyed the participants on the main factors that inhibit their English writing in class. The researcher asks this question in order to make them expressing their writing difficulties. From what have been gathered students do encounter so many difficulties when it comes to writing. The figure below represents these difficulties.

Figure 3. Students’ Writing Difficulties.

The sixth and seventh questions were about students’ enjoyment when writing as well if they do like their teacher’s way of teaching writing. One way to be engaged and motivated toward any subject is to enjoy. That question aims to know if students do like writing and the way it is taught. When answering this question, 43% of the respondents stated that they do enjoy writing. 36% of them claimed that they like writing “fairly well”, 18% said that they do not like writing very well, and few of them with the rate of 3% said that they do not like writing at all. In general, pupils had different comments on their attitude towards writing.

Figure 4: Pupils’ Willingness to Writ

• The next question seeks to identify the extent to which learners like their teacher’s way of teaching writing assigned tasks. 40% of the participants like their teachers’ way of teaching, whereas, 60% of them are not satisfied.

Table 3: Pupils’ satisfaction with their Teachers Ways of Teaching

	Yes	No
Pupils’ number	28	42
Percentage	40%	60%c

The researcher asked another question to know if teachers vary their teaching or not. From their answers 64% claimed that their teachers do not use different writing activities.

Table 4: Teachers Varying Activities

	Yes	No
Pupils	25	45
Percentages	36%	64%

4. Administration of the interview

In addition to the survey questionnaires, it is of research validity requirement to choose a different way to collect data and, thus, acquire more reliable results. For such an aim, interview is used. the main objectives of the interview are to detect if teachers seek to figure out their pupils’ learning styles and interest and if they employ them when designing their courses and activities. The interview consisted of twenty-one questions (21) devoted to teachers. Question one, two and three are devoted to get background information about the teachers. The fourth, fifth and sixth are about teachers’ classrooms management and collaboration with other teachers. The seventh and eighth are dedicated to know if teachers had any training. Moreover, question from nine to eighteen are asked to distinguish teachers’ perceptions about handling a need analysis as well as being aware of pupils’ learning styles so as to plan thoughtful writing activities that suite their pupils. The rest of questions are teachers’ assessment of their pupils’ writings.

5.Interpretation of Results

5.1. The questionnaire

The present work tries to examine and analyze learners’ drawbacks. Besides it spots the light on how teachers deal with such a situation, and the used activities to get pupils engaged in the writing process. Analyzing pupils’ answers shows that they have a lot of difficulties in their EFL writing ability. These lacks affect negatively their writing process from improvement and decrease their language proficiency.

To sum up, the first two questions of pupils’ questionnaire were an evaluation to their attitudes toward English language and how important that language is according to them. In all, the surveyed sample seemed to focus on how students perceived writing, what difficulties they are faced with, and how teachers help them to be effective writers. Coming back to the pupils’ answers, they appeared to give importance to their English learning and showed quite positive attitudes towards the language. At this stage, it is remarkable that pupils have the desire and are motivated to learn the language.

The rest of the questions of the survey questionnaire were conceived to investigate the pupils’ perceptions on their writing skills and to distinguish the various obstacles that make them reluctant to write in class besides the different activities their teachers used to make them practice the language through the written form. In their answers, the majority of pupils choose listening as the first skill to be easy and writing as the most difficult one. Moreover, pupils were asked about the proficiency level in writing, more than half of them claimed that they are quite good at writing but they do face some obstacles that inhibit their process. Unfortunately, not all of the teachers are aware of their pupils’ writing obstacles. Few of them seek to provide them help to improve their skill, and that gives them an insight that their teachers care about their learning.

Moreover, pupils seemed to enjoy writing; however, they are not very satisfied as far as the teaching techniques are concerned, since they do not vary activities. Differentiation of activities make learners enjoy and feel engaged all over the process.

5.2. Interview

According to what have been noticed, teachers’ answers show that they do consider the importance of classroom management. Moreover, they have claimed that following certain techniques is very helpful for them and for their pupils since the learning/teaching process takes place in an adequate environment that supports the process. All of the respondents assert that managing the class start by imposing respect and providing a suitable atmosphere that helps pupils feel engaged.

To recapitulate, the rest of the questions of the interview was mainly conceived to see how EFL teachers approach their pupils’ writings. In their answers, the majority of the participants were well trained to teach writing, they claimed that when teaching they are on an ongoing training. Furthermore, teachers seemed to be aware of their pupils’ difficulties in writing, they declared that their low level in the language lead them to face obstacles. Moreover, when asking them about whether they devote any part in the diagnostic assessment to writing, just few of them do take this kind of test. Additionally, the same question has been asked on whether pupils learning styles are distinguished in this assessment and if they are considering them when designing writing activities. Unfortunately, no one of the teachers try to meet the activities he/she designs for writing with their pupils’ learning styles.

In their answers, teachers review number of tasks used frequently to foster pupils’ writings. The tasks used were mainly to mind pupils’ spelling mistakes, enhance their grammar rules as well as producing coherent piece of writing. Through these tasks pupils will produce a piece of writing which should be assessed by the teacher. Teachers assess their pupils’ writings depending on the phase they are in since assessing a sentence is not the same as assessing a paragraph. They do prefer showing them their mistakes to be visualized and memorized.

5.3. Discussion of Data gathered

This work is more concerned with teachers’ ways of managing their classes and their ways in teaching writing. Thus, teachers try to manage their classes as they considered classroom management as an essential stage since it paves the way for successful teaching. What all the informants shared is that they do seek to provide a quiet adequate atmosphere where pupils can concentrate and feel engaged as much as possible.

Moreover, through the analysis of what has been gathered, it is noticeable that EFL secondary school teachers still hold traditional way of teaching that is closely tied to follow slavishly what is given in the book. The interview disclosed that the participants were unwillingly applying the same techniques, methods and strategies just the way they were taught.

According to the findings, pupils’ answers give some flashes which show that they are aware of their lacks. Most participant, 84% of them, revealed that they have problems in writing mostly in spelling, grammar and text cohesion. We cannot ignore these barriers because they are primarily the basis of a well-written text.

6. Recommendation

Learners of a foreign language will not be successful unless they are motivated and display positive attitudes towards the target language. The present case study has been conducted to investigate the existing correlation between classroom management and academic progress. The analysis of the two research tools yielded very interesting results. This section includes a set of recommendations that are likely to enhance both secondary school pupils’ learning as well as their EFL teachers’ quality of teaching.

1. Teachers’ training : EFL teachers are highly recommended to expand their roles and responsibilities over time to meet the requirements of each EFL teaching/learning situation. They need to update their professional knowledge and skills to meet their learners’ needs and learning styles. Therefore, teacher training should focus on how to develop the skill based on different students’ ways of processing knowledge. Besides, teachers can receive regular feedback from the pupils that actually allow them to experience what works well in a real setting rather than a theoretical one.

2. Traditional way of teaching : EFL teachers still hold a traditional view of teaching; they do consider themselves as the only source of knowledge for their pupils who take a receptive role in their education. For (Scrivener, 2005 : 17) teachers do consider their students as empty vessels to be filled, he states “the knowledge being poured from one receptacle into empty one”. Unlike traditional methodology, modern methodology is much more pupils -centered; in the sense that, pupils are the most active element in this process and their teacher’s role is in helping learning to occur. Thus, EFL teachers are required to accommodate their own teaching methodology to make their pupils find a way in their teaching.

3. Adapting Materials : Although the textbook is considered suitable, reasonable, authentic in content and up to date in information, added materials for teaching and learning is surely necessary. Teachers should provide alternative materials to keep the pupils curiosity and interests. They should vary their way of teaching using data show, audio and video materials and differentiate the instructions according to the styles of pupils for better learning outcomes.

4. Tailoring different activities to different learning styles : Teachers should maintain a balance between the school textbook content, what pupils need, and what fits their ways of learning. The teacher has to use the different learning styles for better classroom environment that enable pupils to meet high standards. EFL teachers should stimulate pupils’ learning by providing them with a variety of activities such as involving them into pair and group works. Such grouping strategies are thought to be very useful and help teachers reduce boredom and tiredness among pupils, streaming strategies can give pupils opportunities to share ideas with others. The less proficient one can get support from the more proficient ones.
   Making use of games and visual aids can help learners reduce anxiety. The teacher can employ games in any stage of the lesson; for instance, visual aids create enjoyable and motivating learning atmosphere, stimulate and sustain pupils’ interests during the lesson. Moreover, discussions, storytelling, interview, picture description, quizzes, ranking activities are such tasks that get rid of boredom and change from ‘ritual tasks’ that decrease pupils’ motivation and interest to learn.

Conclusion

It is indispensable that classroom management plays an important role in teaching English in general and its basic skills in particular. Thus, the present work aimed at investigating the third-year secondary schools teachers’ perceptions on teaching writing skill, their ways of managing their classes, their awareness of the diverse learning style and its correlation to teaching writing skills and gaining success. It sought, also, to inquire into the influence of such variable on students’ achievement, investigating teachers’ awareness of their students’ difficulties in writing, and whether they try to provide help to develop their students’ skills. The study was equally targeted towards providing some suitable suggestions to raise teachers’ awareness, thus, improve their academic success.