Views of Instructors Towards Students Learning English Public Speaking at a Malaysian University
Abstract
Public speaking was one of the most feared situations faced by many people, including public speaking in the English language. Speaking English in front of the public was really a daunting task for many people, including students of universities. This study addressed issues related to English public speaking at the university from the views of instructors who taught the English public speaking course. Some topics discussed were the common weaknesses of university students in delivering English public speaking, the causes of the weaknesses and some recommendations for students to improve their English public speaking. This was a qualitative research design where eleven instructors teaching English public speaking were interviewed and the gathered data were analyzed using thematic analysis and presented using Atlas. ti version 7. One of the theories employed in the study was the Uncertainty Reduction Theory that made their anxiety level increase. The study revealed that some common weaknesses of students were lack of confidence, limited vocabulary and grammar. Some contributing causes of the weaknesses were lack of reading, lack of ideas, and lack of self-esteem. Some recommendations were then forwarded to solve the problems such as giving the motivation to the students to speak, read and think in the English language and make a lot of practices.
Keywords: English public speaking, university, students, Instructors, UniSZA, Malaysia
References
[1] Ahmed Maher, M.A.N. (2016). Problems and Difficulties of Speaking that Encounter English Language Students at Al-Quds Open University. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention, 5 (12), 96-101.
[2] Akhadiyatus, S. (2017). Errors on Speech Production Made by The First and Thirds Semester Students of English Education Department of UII in Speaking Class for Academic Year 2016/2017. (Unpublished Master’s Thesis). Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia.
[3] Asanti, C., & Syamdianita. (2018). Local and Target Culture Materials: Insight into Teachers’ Perspectives. Proceedings of the 1st Annual International Conference on Language and Literature (AICLL), UISU, Medan, Indonesia. doi: 10.30743/aicll.v1i1.33
[4] Bandar, M.S., & Abdul, S.P. (2017). Teaching English Speaking Skills to the Arab Students in the Saudi School in Kuala Lumpur: Problems and Solutions. International Journal of Education & Literacy Studies, 6 (1), 1-11.
[5] Brown, H.D. (2007). Teaching by Principles. New York: Longman.
[6] Chitravelu, N., Sithamparam, S., Choon, TS. (2005). ELT Methodology: Principles and Practice. Selangor: Fajar Bakti Sdn. Bhd.
[7] Choo, W.Y, et.al. (2006). Oral Presentation Skills. Local Publication: Selangor, Malaysia.
[8] Clarvie, M.C., & Fauziah, H. (2013). I doesn’t know English: Beliefs and Practices in teh Teaching of Speaking in ESL Classroom. Pertanika J. Soc Science & Humanities, 21 (2), 449-460.
[9] Coopman, S.J., & Lull, J. (2012). Public Speaking: The Evolving Art. Stamford: Wadsworth.
[10] Dulay, et.al. (1982). Language Two. New York: Oxford University Press.
[11] Eldred, J., Ward, J. & Dutton, Y. (2004). Catching Confidence. Leicester: National Institute of Adult Continuing Education.
[12] Gholam, A.K. Et.al. (2013). the influence of EFL students’ self-esteem on their speaking skills. The International Journal of Language Learning and Applied Linguistics World, 2 (2), 76-83.
[13] Gina, I.S. (2009). Using Public Speaking Tasks in English Language Teaching. English Teaching Forum, 47 (2), 18-23.
[14] Hidayah, Ahmad Taufik (2007). Error Analysis on The Use of The Simple Present Tense and The Simple Past Tense in Writing Essays Among Tesl College Students: A Case Study. (Unpublished Master’s thesis). Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia.
[15] Hyesook, P., & Adam, R.L. (2006). L2 Learner’s Anxiety, Self-Confidence and Oral Performance. Retrieved on 23 June 2018 from http: www.semanticscholar.or/paper
[16] Jaafar, M.B, Noorizah, M.N., & Rosniah, M. (2016). Speaking Anxiety among English as a Foreign Language Learner in Jordan: Quantitative Research. International Journal of Education and Research, 4, 63-82.
[17] McCroskey, J.C. (1982). An Introduction to Rhetorical Communication. Englewood Cliffs, N.J: Prentice-Hall.
[18] McDonald, A. (2001). The prevalence and effects of test anxiety in school children. Educational Psychology, 21 (2), 89-101.
[19] Mine, A. (2014). The reduction of speaking anxiety in EFL learners through drama techniques. Social and Behavioral Sciences, 176, 961-969.
[20] Muamaroh. (2017). Students’ Perception on Teaching Techniques Applied by English Teacher in the speaking Class. Proceedings of the 5th URECOL. 2017, at UAD. Yogyakarta.
[21] Nesreen, S.A. (2014). Errors Analysis: A Case Study of Saudi Learner’s English Grammatical Speaking Errors. Arab World English Journal, 5 (4), 84-98.
[22] Nguyen, H.T., & tran, N.M. (2015). Factors Affecting Students’ Speaking Performance at Le Thani Hien High School. Asian Journal of Educational Research, 3 (2), 8-22.
[23] Osborn, M and Osborn, S. (2003). Public Speaking. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.
[24] Phillips, E. (1992). The effects of language anxiety on students’ oral test performance and attitudes. Modern Language Journal, 76, 14-26.
[25] Rahmah., & Puspita, S. (2012). Improving Students’ Speaking Achievement through Public Speaking Tasks. Transform Journal of English Language Teaching and Learning of BS Untimed, 1 (1), 1-8.
[26] Richards, J.C. (1971). A non-contrastive approach to Error Analysis. English Language Teaching Journal, 25, 204-209.
[27] Roya, Z., & Saideh, A. (2016). Characteristics of an Effective English Language Teacher (EELT) as Perceived by Learners of English. International Journal of Foreign Language Teaching & Research, 4 (14), 69-83.
[28] Rula, T.T., & Islam, M.A. (2013). The Spoken Errors and Mistakes Committed by Senior English Students at Princess Alia University College. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 3 (3), 497-502.
[29] Stella, K., & Dimitris, E. (2013). Students’ Perceptions of Effective EFL Teachers in University Settings in Cyprus. English Language Teaching, 6 (11), 1-16.
[30] Watkinsand, J., & Wilkins, M. (2011). Using YouTube in the EFL Classroom. Language Education in Asia, 2 (1), 113-119.
[31] Win, L.A. (2017). Psychological Problems and Challenge in EFL Speaking Classroom. Language & Language Teaching Journals, 10 (1), 29-47.