SCOPING THE IMPACT OF THE FUNCTIONAL-NOTIONAL APPROACH AND THE READING METHOD ON EFL LEARNERS WRITING PROFICIENCY: A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL SCHOOL- BASED STUDY

This quasi-experimental study investigated the impact of the Functional-Notional Approach (FNA) and the Reading Method (RM) on the writing proficiency of EFL learners at CEG Djegan-Kpevi, Porto-Novo,Benin. An experimental group (n=30) received instruction integrating the FNA and the RM over an eight-week intervention period, while a control group (n=30) followed the conventional grammar-translation approach. Pre-test and post-test writing scores were collected and analysed using an independent-samples t-test and Cohens d effect-size measure. Supplementary data were gathered from questionnaires administered to eight (08) EFL teachers and one hundred and eighteen (118) learners, as well as from structured classroom observations. The post-test results revealed a statistically significant difference in writing performance between the two groups (t(58)=4.37, p-.001, d=1.13), indicating a large effect in favour of the experimental group. Qualitative findings confirmed that teachers and learners alike perceived both methods as positive contributors to writing skill development. The study concludes that the combined use of the FNA and the RM constitutes an effective pedagogical approach for improving EFL writing proficiency in the Beninese secondary-school context, and recommends their systematic integration into the national English curriculum.