VIETTESOL INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION 2025

Writing academic articles for publication has been perceived as a challenging task for postgraduates, particularly in the internationalized context of increasing digital integration in higher education. While previous studies have focused on technical and linguistic barriers, little is known about these challenges through a cognitive framework which accounts for the usage of digital equipment. This study, adopted the Bloom’s digital taxonomy as a conceptual lens, addressed this gap by exploring how Vietnamese EFL postgraduates’ perceive and navigate challenges entailed in writing for publication. Utilizing a transcendental phenomenological approach, data was collected from interviews with fifteen Master’s students who have published an academic article and document analysis on their manuscript drafts. Data was subsequently analyzed following Moustakas’ (1994) steps of phenomenological analysis. Findings revealed that participants experienced diverse challenges across all levels of the taxonomy, from remembering academic conventions and managing references digitally, to analyzing complex theoretical frameworks, evaluating peer-reviewed sources, and creating structured arguments within word limits. Many struggles with transitioning from lower-order to higher-order thinking skills, particularly “evaluating” and “creating”. Additionally, the integration of digital tools (e.g., citation managers, grammar, spelling, and plagiarism checkers, and Generative AI-based feedback systems) supported and complicated their writing process. Findings highlighted the needs for targeted pedagogical support scaffolding digital academic writing competencies aligned with the taxonomy. It also provided pedagogical implications for academic writing instruction and curriculum design in postgraduate education.