ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH TRENDS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDENTS’ THESES AT UIN SUSKA RIAU DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

This research aimed at finding out research trends in English Education student undergraduate theses during COVID-19 pandemic at State Islamic University of Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau, reviewed from the perspective of research approach, research type, and focus on English language skills. Quantitative approach was used in this research with content Analysis design. Data were analyzed from 447 theses published in 2020, 2021, and 2022 with total sampling. Data were collected through document analysis and analyzed with descriptive statistics. The results showed that quantitative approach was the most dominant, it was 85% of the total research, while qualitative and mixed methods were 15% and 1% respectively. Interestingly, the number of qualitative research had continued to increase over the past three years. Among 11 types of quantitative research, descriptive research (41%) was the most frequently used, focusing on writing skills. In contrast, 67 qualitative research was found, most of which were case studies (52%), while the rest (42%) was qualitative descriptive, and both focused on speaking skills. Other types, such as classroom action research, qualitative survey, and library research, were very rare.