Renata Aprilia Wika Sari Pengarang Rochyani Lestiyanawati.,M.Pd Dosen Pembimbing 1 Rochyani Lestiyanawati.,M.Pd Penguji 2 Arif Widyantoro, M.Pd., B.I Penguji 1

One of the essential English language skills that students must master is writing, as it serves as a tool to convey ideas in written form. However, many students exhibit a lack of interest in writing activities, often due to the various processes and rules that need to be applied. Employing effective writing strategies can significantly enhance these skills. Therefore, the RAFT strategy proves crucial in motivating students to generate ideas for writing descriptive texts. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether there is an improvement in students' writing skills in descriptive texts through the implementation of the RAFT strategy, as well as to identify the challenges faced by teachers during its application. The research methodology utilize an experimental approach, specifically employing a pre-experimental design with two pretest-posttest groups. Data are gathered through field notes, tests, and interviews. The findings indicate a notable enhancement in students' descriptive text writing skills when the RAFT strategy was employed. The study involve 46 students from grades 11 H and 11 G, who undergo pre-tests, treatment, and post-tests. Statistical analysis, using the Paired Sample T-test on SPSS 26, reveal a mean pre-test score of 50 and a post-test score of 79.56. The substantial increase in the post-test score suggests a significant positive impact of the RAFT strategy on students' descriptive text writing skills. Moreover, two challenges are identified that teachers encountered when implementing the RAFT strategy: feeling slightly overwhelmed in executing the strategy and experiencing difficulty in maintaining students' concentration. In conclusion, the Role, Audience, Format, and Topic (RAFT) strategy proves highly beneficial in enhancing students' proficiency in writing descriptive texts. This approach not only motivates students to write but also fosters creativity in their thinking processes. Keyword: writing, descriptive text, RAFT strategy