2.1 English Oral Communication performance
2.1.3 Teaching English oral communication
It is undeniable that teaching English involving oral communication is extremely important for any teacher. Teaching provides students with strategies to perceive knowledge and creates chances for them to practice further as well. It is necessary for teachers to pay attention to teacher-related factors, namely the role of teachers, classroom management, activity instructions, teacher’ grading and scores, and students' difficulties in training the English language, especially English oral communication.
2.1.3.1 Teacher-related factors
The role of teachers
English teachers do not only deliver knowledge of language but also facilitate learners’ English learning (Cloudia, 2020). In oral English teaching, teachers play different roles during this training process, such as directors, demonstrators, and commentators. No matter what the roles of teachers are, insights into the teaching role are to develop students’ initiatives to a large extent and improve their abilities of oral expression in English (Liu, 2013). Also, it is necessary to encourage three-way language interactions between student to student, student to teacher, and teacher to student; teachers always create abundant communication opportunities (Larsen- Freeman & Anderson, 2011).
Classroom management
Classroom management represents an important element that has an impact on students’ willingness to communicate in a second language. (Alqurashi &
Assulaimani, 2021). As such, it is viewed as a difficult task for instructors, but the way to build a good relationship between them and students is even more complicated (Canning, 2004). According to Jinam (2018), it is necessary for teachers to engage students and create appropriate learning environments. It can be said that the balance between classroom management and the teacher-student relationship should be taken into consideration.
Activities instructions
In addition to good class management, teachers should provide students with clear directions before each activity to help them know what they need to accomplish, how they should do it, and how long the activity will last. According to Wang et al.
(2014b), all three aspects of deep learning—higher-order learning, reflective learning, and integrative learning—significantly contribute to the effect of clear and structured teaching on one cognitive outcome and the need for cognition. As a result, oral activity instructions were also considered a factor in teacher-related factors that influence students' learning.
Teacher's grading and scores
Grading is frequently regarded as one of the most difficult responsibilities for teachers due to its complexity (Zoeckler, 2007; Ulvik et al., 2009; Alm & Colnerud, 2015).
Additionally, biased evaluation may lessen students' attachment to their teachers and harm the student-teacher relationship (Green et al., 2007). Even though the majority of teachers made an effort to award grades in an objective manner, many students claimed that they still felt unfair (Brookhart, 2008).
2.1.3.2 Students’ difficulties in learning English oral communication
Previous studies were concerned with listing the difficulties that students typically encounter when giving oral performances. (Chuang, 2009; Abu El Enein, 2011; Alwi
& Sidhu, 2013). Research has revealed the difficulties behind students’ anxiety, such
as a lack of vocabulary, fear, losing face, etc., which result in learning challenges.
According to Ehrman (1996), learning challenges are caused by a mismatch between teaching and learning methods. In addition, he mentioned two more components of learning issues, namely language barriers and psychological constraints. The results of students’ lack of proficiency, lack of confidence, and lack of motivation were also revealed.
Lack of proficiency
Language competence, according to Canale (1983), encompasses a learner's capacity for communication as well as their knowledge base and user skills. Additionally, the Council of Europe (2001) clarifies its definition by saying that proficiency relates to what someone can do or know in the practical application of the topic.
Lack of confidence
According to Cheng et al. (1999), some anxious students in classes may be affected primarily by low self-confidence in speaking the target language. There are lots of factors that contribute to a lack of confidence in class, such as fear of losing "face", low proficiency in the target language, habits, and personality (Flowerdew et al., 2000; MacIntyre et al., 2001; Jackson, 2002, 2003; Chen, 2003; Tong, 2010). Keeping a different view from previous authors, Hyland (2004) explained that students prefer private activities to public activities generally due to limited availability of resources and more personal interests rather than to avoid "interpersonal risk" and "criticism of others". According to him, fears of losing face were not the reasons for their lack of confidence, but their habits and their choices for benefits. It is obvious that the role of confidence in student contributions to learning activities cannot be denied. Therefore, it is very convincing to consider lack of confidence as a factor causing difficulties for students to achieve the highest academic achievement.
Lack of motivation
According to Ganschow et al. (1998), problems with learning can lead to a bad attitude and a lack of motivation for learning. Vietnamese students with low English competence may be due to their lack of motivation or lack of drive (Trang, Baldauf Jr., 2007; Le, 2011). However, students were inspired by peers who had good attitudes about learning. It is important to identify the elements that demotivate students from learning.
In brief, the study involves pedagogical methods; the elements mentioned above are employed to support teaching oral communication.
2.1.3.3 Oral communicative activities
According to many teaching theorists, communicative activities also help create interaction in the language classroom, motivate learners, and establish good relationships between teachers and students as well as among the students (Oradee, 2012).
The well-known teaching strategy for improving oral communicative competence consists of brainstorming, think-pair-share, interviews, problem-solving tasks, group discussion, jigsaws, games, competitions, and so forth (Richards, 2006; Larsen- Freeman & Anderson, 2011; Brown, 2014). In Oradee’s (2012) research, she also suggested some activities that overlap with the studies, such as an information gap, a jigsaw puzzle, games, problem-solving, free discussion, and role-playing, which can assist in better teaching and studying oral skills.
According to Tong-Fredericks (1984), he studies different kinds of oral communication activities and comes to the conclusion that the relative degree to which a student draws on his or her communicative and linguistic resources depends on the communication needs of the particular kind of activity engaged in.
Marianne (2002) argues that teachers need to be particularly adept at organizing class activities that are authentic, motivating, and varied when teaching speaking skills. The use of authentic, engaging materials should be the basis for in-class activities. The teacher can also assign out-of-class learning activities. Richard (1990), as cited in Ur (1996), says that oral communication activities include two main parts. The first is interactive language usage, which places more of an emphasis on interpersonal communication and social needs than on information. This includes daily communications such as greeting, apologizing, and leaving, which also involve listener orientation (Brown and Yule, 1983). The second component of communication activities is called transactional uses of language, where the primary focus is on the message rather than personal interaction. These activities help learners become aware of accuracy and information coherency.
Al-Nouh et al. (2015) suggested that to gain the benefits of oral performance, instructors can cater to students’ learning styles and manners of giving feedback.
Learning styles
According to Hummel (2014), a person's learning style is their preferred method of acquiring, processing, and retaining new knowledge. He confirmed that different people may approach learning in different ways. It might be of great importance for students, instructors, and researchers to access information about learning styles because a student's preferred learning style can hinder or help with academic access (Castro &Peck, 2008). In light of this problem, Wong and Nunan (2011) confirmed that learning styles were related to learning achievement. It is clear that learning styles have a significant role in affecting learners’ oral communication performance.
Manners of giving feedback
Students played a crucial role in receiving and giving feedback to meet the needs of their peers and their own development, according to reflections on the comments of
others. As such, feedback in class was crucial. In the context of general education, feedback will promote students because it attracts their attention, inspires their learning, motivates them, and helps them remember lessons longer (Ur, 2012).
Feedback is considered to be more sufficient for correct answers than for incorrect answers, according to Hattie and Timperley's (2007) research. When choosing what kind of feedback to offer, how to give it, and to whom to give it, teachers must balance linguistic and interpersonal goals because this may be a sensitive time (Hyland, 2019, p. 189).
In this study, oral communication activities might be flexible as long as they are intertwined with interactions between interpersonal communication functions, meanings, topics, task orientation, and authenticity.