COLLEGE STUDENTS' COMPETENCY IN WRITING MECHANICS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS

The major goal of this study is to determine the level of students’ competency in writing mechanics, particularly in punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and grammar, and to develop instructional material that helps improve students’ competence. This study utilized a descriptive-conceptual analysis research design with 214 respondents from different courses such as STE, SIT, SABM, and STHM. Specifically, there were 38 students from the School of Teacher Education (STE), 42 from the School of Information Technology (SIT), 45 from the School of Accountancy, Business, and Management (SABM), and 89 from the School of Tourism and Hospitality Management (STHM). The results showed that while many students demonstrated satisfactory to outstanding performance in writing mechanics, there were notable gaps, particularly in grammar and punctuation, that require reinforcement. Some students experienced difficulty applying proper use of conjunctions, maintaining subject-verb agreement, and using correct punctuation marks such as quotation marks and parentheses. This study was anchored on Skill Acquisition Theory by DeKeyser (2007) and the ADDIE Model developed by Florida State University in the 1970s, which emphasize structured and repetitive practice supported by well-designed instructional materials for skill mastery. The results revealed that students’ performance in writing mechanics varied according to their courses, indicating that instructional materials influence writing competence. The findings led to the development of story-based worksheet instructional materials that provide contextualized and engaging exercises targeting students’ writing difficulties, fostering confidence and accuracy in written communication.