Speaking Skills

• As stated at the beginning of this section, listening and responding to teacher’s instructions in English is an authentic situation through which learners can develop their listening skills. English used for classroom management is fully contextualized and appropriate to the setting. Examples of English for classroom interaction for teachers and learners are provided in Appendix 4.

target grammar items and structures required by the task, the teacher also needs to provide adequate support to help learners in the interactive aspects of the task (e.g. in how to discuss the topic, argue for a choice, seek information, or get help from others). During the task, the teacher observes learners’ performance and provides timely support and feedback.

The following example shows how speaking skills can be developed through task-based activities.

Task: An Interview with Our Teacher

After teaching the unit “My Favourite Things” in the module on “Me, My Family and Friends”, the teacher asks learners to form groups, and each group interviews a teacher they like in English. They draft and practise questions in the interview, e.g. asking about the teacher’s likes and dislikes, hobbies and personal views of the class or being a teacher.

Before conducting the interview, learners also work in groups to discuss appropriate language to be used for starting, carrying on and ending the interview. After conducting the interview, the groups select, organize information collected and present their findings orally or do a dramatic performance.

With appropriate teacher support, learners are provided with opportunities to practise and develop their speaking skills and interactive strategies at different stages of the task.

• When asking questions in the interview, learners have to convey meaning clearly and coherently, using correct pronunciation, stress, intonation, grammar and vocabulary. Learners are advised to use appropriate gestures and facial expressions when they are asking for information and seeking clarification during the interview. They are also reminded to maintain eye contact with the interviewee and speak in a tone and at a volume appropriate to the situation.

• Before conducting the interview, learners practise how to open, maintain and end a conversation. They establish a relationship with the interviewee by using appropriate formulaic expressions for greeting (e.g. Good morning, Miss Wong.). During the interview,

they repeat questions if they are not understood (e.g. Do you like our class? Do you like teaching us?). They may also practise asking for repetition or rephrasing (e.g. Pardon?), checking understanding (e.g.

Did you say “purple”, Miss Wong?) or spelling (e.g. How do you spell “purple”?). After the interview, they use formulaic expressions to express thanks (e.g. Thank you very much.) and take leave (e.g.

Good-bye.).

• When the groups present their oral reports or perform their dramas, learners can be asked to do peer observation or assessment, making judgements as to whether their classmates have conveyed their ideas clearly and coherently (i.e. judgements on selection and organization of information and ideas, and on use of correct pronunciation, stress, rhythm and intonation). They can also be asked to focus on the behaviour of a good speaker (e.g. facing the audience, speaking at an appropriate pace and volume). The purpose is to turn the class into a learning community with an understanding that errors are a normal part of learning and that members can continually improve their capability, given the appropriate trust and mutual support.

Other Considerations for the Development of Speaking Skills

• In selecting, adapting or designing speaking activities, teachers need to ask whether an activity embodies such characteristics as the following:

− Does it require learners to speak a lot in English?

− Is it interesting and does it draw on learners’ personal experiences?

− Is it realistic and does it simulate a real-life situation?

− Does it require learners to exchange information or express feelings?

− Does it allow learners to work collaboratively or creatively with peers?

• To prepare learners for speaking tasks, teachers may predict what language will be appropriate and determine how to provide it to help learners carry out the task effectively. There may be times when

• Show-and-tell is a suitable speaking and listening activity for learners in primary schools. It is a whole-class sharing activity in which one learner after another gets up, takes the centre stage, and talks about something of his or her own choice – often some objects brought from home. Other learners are expected to listen quietly and not to interrupt. In the process, they relate the information provided by the speakers to their existing knowledge to build personal meaning.

They are also encouraged to ask questions about the objects which the speaker is discussing. In order to help learners develop greater confidence in speaking before an audience, learners may rehearse in groups before the performance.

• Teachers need to understand that with young learners, fluency should be emphasized before accuracy. The development of fluency depends on the nurturing of confidence in a supportive environment.

Teachers should encourage learners to participate actively in oral activities and help them develop confidence in speaking up. In communicative tasks, the focus should be on what learners say (i.e.

the message) rather than the accuracy of the English they use.

• For formative assessment, teachers can walk round the classroom and listen to groups of learners engaged in speaking tasks. While guidance and assistance may be necessary, frequent interruptions and corrections should be avoided as they can be demotivating.

Examples of good performance as well as common mistakes should be noted down for post-task discussion so that follow-up remedial work can be done. With some coaching and specific guidance, learners can even be asked to do peer assessment and self assessment with or without the help of recordings of their own performance.

• When designing speaking activities, teachers should identify and make use of resources that will motivate their learners best. Songs, rhymes, poems, stories and dramas can be motivating and can provide pleasurable language experiences. They may help learners acquire sensitivity towards English sounds, stress and rhythm, which in turn helps in the acquisition of correct pronunciation and oral fluency. The content and special features of these language arts resources provide ideas and information for learners to talk about.

• Multi-media learning resources such as episodes or clips from educational television programmes, educational CD-ROMs, audio

CDs, VCDs and Internet resources can be effective in arousing learners’ interest. Audio books provide very good models to assist learners to develop correct pronunciation and oral fluency. With teacher guidance, learners can choose and use multi-media resources for self-directed and independent learning.

• Learners need to speak with correct pronunciation so that other speakers of English can understand them. The use of phonics can help in this and should be introduced at the junior level. Phonetic symbols, however, should only be selectively introduced to learners at a much later stage since learners may confuse the symbols with the letters of the alphabet. For information about the learning and teaching of phonics, please refer to Section 4.7.

• Daily classroom interaction provides the most authentic situation in which learners can learn to speak English. The use of classroom instructions and explanations in English by the teacher, and the use of clarifying questions or requests for permission to do something by the learners are authentic pieces of communication. Classroom English can be simple and context-dependent, and so it is easy to understand. With the aid of a good teacher model and with appropriate guidance, encouragement and persistence, learners gradually develop the skills and the confidence to use English inside and outside the classroom for communication. Please refer to Section 3.2.6 for a discussion on the use of classroom English to facilitate learning. Examples of English for classroom interaction for teachers and learners are provided in Appendix 4.