FUNCTIONS OF SPEAKING IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE & SPEAKING ANXIETY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46827/ejel.v6i1.3360Keywords:
speaking skills, interaction, transaction, performance, anxietyAbstract
Plato once said “a wise man speaks because he has something to say, a fool speaks because he has to say something!” Often the ability to speak (or not) is used to gauge a person’s language proficiency. Speaking is one of the four language skills which includes listening, reading and writing. However, of all the four skills, the first skill that is portrayed is a person’s speaking skills. A person’s speaking skills (or lack of it) is often used by future employers to evaluate the oral communication abilities of their employees. This is because speaking has many different functions and failure to understand the varying functions may lead to anxiety among the speakers. This pilot study is done to investigate the usage of the English language in undergraduates’ interaction and transaction in their everyday lives, their speaking performances and their speaking anxiety. Data is analysed using SPSS and presented in the form of mean scores. Findings for interaction and transaction showed that English is used during formal transaction. In addition to that, the discussion on academic matters is a necessity to speak English. Next, findings for performance revealed that no matter how good or poor their achievement in this second language, speakers have to make it happen – this is one of the challenges that the speakers have to face. Lastly, the speaking anxiety may impact their (speakers) interaction with other people. Results of this study bear interesting implications towards the acquisition and learning of speaking in English among learners.
Article visualizations:
References
Abrar, M., Mukminin, A., Habibi, A., Asyrafi, F., Makmur, & Marzulina, L. (2018). "If our English isn't a language, what is it?" Indonesian EFL student teachers' challenges speaking English. The Qualitative Report, 23(1), 129-145. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2122314265?accountid=42518
Adebileje, A., & Akinola, A. (2020). Teaching and learning English as a second language in Nigeria: Examining evolving approaches and methods. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 10(9), 1015-1024. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.17507/tpls.1009.02
Alias, N.Z. (2017). My Say: Making graduates more employable. The Edge. Retrieved from https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/my-say-making-graduates-more-employable
Alqurashi, F. (2019). Pragmatic competence for L2 learners: The case of maybe, perhaps, and possibly as hedging terms. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 9(6), 637-644. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.17507/tpls.0906.05
Alzouwain, H., & Lincoln, F. (2018). Positioning of ESL Saudi women and challenges they face while learning English in the united states. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice, 18(1), 11-22. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2055196164?accountid=42518
Aslan, R., & Şahin, M. (2020). 'I Feel Like I Go Blank': Identifying the Factors Affecting Classroom Participation in an Oral Communication Course. Teflin Journal, 31(1), 19-43. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.15639/teflinjournal.v31i1/19-43
Baker, W., & Jarunthawatchai, W. (2017). English language policy in Thailand. European Journal of Language Policy, 9(1), 27-44. Doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.3828/ejlp.2017.3
Balderston, G. (2018). Efficacy in English: A correlational study of Chinese EMI professors (Order No. 10840350). Available from Education Collection. (2135265624). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2135265624?accountid=42518
Bisai, S., & Singh, S. (2020). Towards A Holistic and Inclusive Pedagogy For Students From Diverse Linguistic Backgrounds. TEFLIN Journal, 31(1), 139-161. Retrieved from doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.15639/teílinjournal.v31i1/139-161
Brown, W. E. (2018). Communicate globally, teach locally: An action research project analyzing self-efficacy competence of African American native English speakers (NESs) teaching in a foreign placement (Order No. 10790619). Available from Education Collection. (2092260892). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2092260892?accountid=42518
Conty, M. (2018). "Speak with me": Analysis of interaction in the classroom of a successful, non-native, volunteer ESL instructor (Order No. 10828244). Available from Education Collection. (2072419405). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2072419405?accountid=42518
Dincer, A. (2018). Motivational factors in multilingual students' learning additional languages: The case of English and Turkish. Eurasian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 4(2), 275-275–299. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2264295278?accountid=42518
Dugartsyrenova, V. A., & Sardegna, V. G. (2017). Developing oral proficiency with Voice Thread: Learners' strategic uses and views. ReCALL : The Journal of EUROCALL, 29(1), 59-79. Retrieved from doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.1017/S0958344016000161
El-Sakka, S. (2016). Self-regulated strategy instruction for developing speaking proficiency and reducing speaking anxiety of Egyptian university students. English Language Teaching, 9(12), 22-33. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/1871575303?accountid=42518
Garbati, J. F., & Mady, C. J. (2015). Oral skill development in second languages: A review in search of best practices. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 5(9), 1763-1770. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.17507/tpls.0509.01
Ghani, M., & Azhar, S. W. (2017). Effect of motivation, willingness to communicate (WTC), self-perceived communicative competence (SPCC) and L2 anxiety on the frequency of use of English as L2. Journal of Educational Research, 20(1), 157-171. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/1924243120?accountid=42518
Jang, H., & Wood, J. (2019). Native vs. non-native English speaking teachers: An analysis of business schools in the tertiary education sector. Journal of Asia TEFL, 16(3), 944-957. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.18823/asiatefl.2019.16.3.11.944
Khazi, H. (2020). NUTP desak selesai masalah kekurangan guru BI. Berita Harian, Retrieved from https://www.bharian.com.my/berita/nasional/2019/05/562737/nutp-desak-selesai-masalah-kekurangan-guru-bi
Liu, M. (2018). Interactive effects of English-speaking anxiety and strategy use on oral English test performance of high- and low-proficient Chinese university EFL learners. Cogent Education, 5(1) doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.1080/2331186X.2018.1562410
Loewen, S., & Sato, M. (2018). Interaction and instructed second language acquisition. Language Teaching, 51(3), 285-329. Retrieved from doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.1017/S0261444818000125
Lopez, J. L. (2018). General education teacher's perceptions of supporting English language learners in regular education (Order No. 10978824). Available from Education Collection. (2138366747). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2138366747?accountid=42518
Macaro, E., Curle, S., Pun, J., An, J., & Dearden, J. (2018). A systematic review of English medium instruction in higher education. Language Teaching, 51(1), 36-76. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.1017/S0261444817000350
Mei-Ying, C., & Valcke, M. (2020). A study of the difficulties and instructional support related to spoken interaction in an EMI course for higher education students. Journal of Educational Research and Practice, 10(1) Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2408509658?accountid=42518
Mindog, Emily (2016). Apps and EFL: A case study on the use of smartphone apps to learn English by four Japanese university students. Jalt call journal, 12(1), 3-22. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1107946.pdf
Nam, M. (2018). Study-abroad experiences of two south Korean undergraduate students in an English-speaking and a non-English-speaking country. The Asia - Pacific Education Researcher, 27(3), 177-185. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.1007/s40299-018-0376-3
Nghia, T. L. H. (2015). Vietnamese Students ’ Perception of English Teacher Qualities : Implications for Teacher Professional Development. International Journal of Academic Research in Education and Review, 3(January (1)), 7–19. Retrieved from http://doi.org/10.14662/IJARER2014.058
Prospective teachers’ perceptions of oral presentations: An exploration of challenges involved. (2019). Pakistan Journal of Education, 36(2) Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2383048089?accountid=42518
Sánchez-García, D. (2018). Codeswitching practices in the discourse of two lecturers in English-medium instruction at university. Elia, (18), 105-135. doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.12795/elia.2018.i18.05
Sangrawee Donkaewbua, A. (2016). Developing an Anxiety in Vocabulary Learning through Listening Scale. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 3(6), 60–71. Retrieved from www.ijllnet.com
Seda, E. & Zahitjan K. (2016). The Factors Affecting Learners’ Motivation in English Language Education. Journal of Foreign Language Education and Technology. Retrieved from https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/The-Factors-Affecting-Learners%E2%80%99-Motivation-in-Ekiz-Kulmetov/4af302c4f60dba5dcc93503f367d5b0cfb51312a?p2df
Shirkhani, S., & Mir Mohammad Meigouni, Effat Alsadat. (2020). Oral communication strategies used by Iranian EFL learners and their relationship with the learners’ self-efficacy beliefs and anxiety level. Research in English Language Pedagogy (RELP), 8(1), 1-20. Retrieved from doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.30486/relp.2019.669075
Smith, M. J. (2018). Students' perceptions on conversational English skills after two years of oral English (Order No. 10747904). Available from Education Collection. (2030539547). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2030539547?accountid=42518
The Star Online (2017). English proficiency still a big problem for many M’sian grads. Retrieved from https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2017/01/21/english-proficiency-still-a-big-problem-for-many-msian-grads/
The Sun Daily (2016). 15,000 English teachers 'not ready' to teach the subject. Retrieved from https://www.thesundaily.my/archive/1737710-ISARCH356678.
Tsai, C. (2018). The effects of communication strategy training on EFL speaking anxiety and s peaking strategy among the community college adult learners in Taiwan. International Forum of Teaching and Studies, 14(2), 3-19. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/docview/2127160367?accountid=42518
Wilang, J. D., & Vo, T. D. (2018). The complexity of speaking anxiety in a graduate EFL classroom. Journal of Asia TEFL, 15(3), 682-699. Retrieved from doi: http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/10.18823/asiatefl.2018.15.3.8.682
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
