Abstract This study investigates English writing skills of learners two years and one year before their baccalaureate exam in upper secondary schools (academic track, Gymnasium) in Germany and Switzerland. It focuses on level and development of EFL writing as well as differences between groups (country, gender, language background). A sample of n = 2847 students worked in a repeated measurement study on two different writing tasks from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL iBT). Results showed that in both countries over 70% of tested students achieved level B2 according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), thus mastering target standards one year before graduation. There were small effects for the development of writing skills over the school year, which were similar in size to studies on receptive skills. Swiss students outperformed German students while gender and language background did not have significant effects. These findings are discussed with regard to implications for English writing curricula and teacher education in an international context.

中文翻译：

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高中生英语写作能力：瑞士和德国的实证研究结果

摘要 本研究调查了德国和瑞士高中（学术课程、体育馆）在学士学位考试前两年和一年学习者的英语写作能力。它侧重于 EFL 写作的水平和发展以及群体之间的差异（国家、性别、语言背景）。一个由 n = 2847 名学生组成的样本参与了一项针对英语作为外语测试 (TOEFL iBT) 中两项不同写作任务的重复测量研究。结果显示，在这两个国家，超过 70% 的受试学生达到了欧洲共同语言参考框架 (CEFR) 的 B2 级，从而在毕业前一年掌握了目标标准。对整个学年写作技能发展的影响很小，其规模与接受技能的研究相似。瑞士学生的表现优于德国学生，而性别和语言背景没有显着影响。讨论了这些发现对国际背景下英语写作课程和教师教育的影响。