Digitalized learning activities to promote speaking skills

Abstract

More importance is being given to developing English speaking skills as technological developments are making the world a smaller place. English has been defined as a global language and it is inevitable that English has become the second language that is predominantly studied in Turkey. However, the unwillingness of students to communicate in English presents many challenges to educators. Thus, the use of technology to facilitate out of class speaking opportunities could provide support in this area. This is a quasi-experimental research study conducted over a period of four months, focusing on the development of young learners‟ willingness to communicate in English as a Foreign Language using digitalised learning activities created using PowerPoint. In addition, the use of digitalised learning activities completed at home hoped to improve inclass oral assessment scores with regards to grammatical structures. The study consisted of an experimental group of 19 third grade students and a control group of 21 third grade students studying at a private primary school in Ankara, Turkey. Specifically this project has three research questions; How does the use of digitalized learning activities impact the students‟ use of target structures in their speaking assessments? Does children‟s willingness to communicate appear to change over the duration of the intervention? What was the parental feedback about the digitalized learning activities? The results showed that the use of the digitalized learning activities were beneficial to the experimental group‟s oral assessment grades with regards to target grammatical structures. In addition the experimental groups‟ willingness to communicate improved by the end of the study.