The Effect of AI Toolbaz.Com and Gender on Twelfth Grade Students' Writing Ability and Writing Anxiety in Narrative Text at SMAN 3 Padang

This study aimed to analyze the effect of ToolBaz.com, an AI-based tool, and gender on writing ability and writing anxiety of grade XII students at SMAN 3 Padang. The study used a quasi-experimental method with a population of grade XII students in the 2024/2025 school year, where the sample were selected by cluster random sampling consisting of two classes: XII F3 (experimental group) and XII F2 (control group), each consisting of 36 students. Writing ability data were obtained from a narrative test that assessed five aspects: content and relevance, organization and coherence, language use, vocabulary, and writing mechanics, while writing anxiety data were collected through the SLWAI (Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory) questionnaire. Data analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS version 25. The results showed that the use of ToolBaz.com was significantly associated with higher student writing scores compared to the control class, with a sig. (2-tailed) = 0.032 < 0.05, as well as lower writing anxiety level with sig. (2-tailed) = 0.000 < 0.05. In addition, there was no significant interaction between the use of ToolBaz.com and gender on students' writing ability (F = 0.911; sig. = 0.238 > 0.05) or writing anxiety level (F = 0.619; sig. = 0.435 > 0.05). These results suggest that ToolBaz.com is effective in supporting students' writing skills and creating lower anxiety levels without being influenced by gender.