Cluster Analysis of Secondary School Students’ English Writing Proficiency in Bengali-Medium Schools in West Bengal

This paper showcases a cluster analysis on the English writing proficiency level of the second-level students enrolled in the Bengali-medium schools of West Bengal, India. This paper applies a two-step clustering procedure on the SPSS software version 26. It not only helps identify the homogenous communities within the group of second-level students on the performance level of the English writing proficiency test they undertook but further probes into the linkages existing between these identified communities or level of proficiency and certain pivotal demographic characteristics: the level of schooling the children are presently in, their gender concept, geographical location (whether they belong to a rural or urban setting), and the identity of a first-generation learner. The paper required the participation of 1,204 second-level children from four districts: Birbhum, Purba Bardhaman, Paschim Bardhaman, and Murshidabad. It adopted a random stratified sampling procedure. Keywords: Two steps Cluster, English Writing Proficiency, Bengali-Medium, first-generation learner .