A Longitudinal Study of the Enhancement of the Use of Collocations and Formulaic Expressions in Iraqi EFL University Students' Academic Writing

To investigate the longitudinal development of collocational and formulaic language competence among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students' academic writing, the researcher conducted a study on the British Academic Written English (BAWE) corpus, and analyzed academic texts developed by EFL learners across various educational levels to recognize patterns in the use of collocations and formulaic sequences. To this end, these linguistic features' frequency, variety, and accuracy were examined over time. Findings showed a significant increase in the use of collocations and formulaic sequences as students’ progress academically, with significant growth in both the diversity and appropriateness of usage. The study highlights the importance of explicit instruction and increased exposure to authentic language input in developing phraseological competence. The study provided pedagogical implications for curriculum designers and instructional strategies addressing EFL students' academic writing proficiency.​