ASSESSING TEACHERS‟ PRACTICES AND CHALLENGES OF TEACHING STUDENTS‟ ORAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Abstract

In the process of Second Language Acquisition, teachers need to apply appropriate classroom practices to facilitate students’ oral communication skills. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess teachers’ application of classroom practices and the challenges they face on enhancing students’ Speaking skills. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, a descriptive design method was used and the data were gathered through questionnaire and classroom observation. The study specifically attempts to investigate the extent of the teachers and students practices of oral communication skills and the challenges they encounter in the actual classroom. Oral communication course contributes to the acquisition of basic conventions of speech discourse in English when prospective teachers of English are involved in an extensive speaking practice which is based upon practices of accuracy and fluency based- approaches to speaking. In this study, the descriptive grand mean results obtained from teachers and students did not show incremental progress. In order to evaluate any possible improvements in their oral communication skills competence, the practices and challenges were practically assessed in the English language classroom. It was conclusion that Oral skills should be stressed in teaching English as a foreign language at the secondary school. Teachers of English are thus required to help develop their students’ ability to use oral communication skills in the language classroom through student-centered methods effectively and develop the awareness of the students about the importance of OCS in order to inculcate positive attitude in the minds of students.