Speaking Skill
I Introduction:
Speaking is a productive skill like
writing. Sharpening listening – attention benefits speaking skill. Speech is
the necessary starting point and it paves the way for the development of
reading and writing skills. Robert Lodo’s first principle in language teaching
is ‘Speech before writing’. English is an unphonetic language. For example, the
letter ‘C’ has got /k/ sound in the word ‘Car’ and /S/ sound in the word ‘City’
Champion is of the view that if a student is trained to speak correctly, he
will write correct English automatically. In our day-to-day life speech has its
own influence and attraction. It takes a person long way in life.
II Nature of speaking:
Learning
to speak the second language involves developing subtle and detailed knowledge
about why, how and when to communicate. Spoken interaction involves producing
and negotiating language in cultural and social contexts.
Pronunciation plays as important
role in getting the meaning across and captures all aspects of how we employ
speech sounds for communication. While speaking, what is important is not the
rules but the language itself. Spoken interaction involves such things as
knowing when and how to introduce a topic rechanged the subject, how to keep
the conversation going, when and how to terminate the conversation so on.
Brown (2007:237) States that social
contact in interactive language functions is a key importance and in which it
is not what you say that counts but how you say it, what you comely with body
language, gestures, eye contact, physical distance and other nonverbal
messages.
III Types of speaking skill:
1. Interactive
2. Partially
interactive
3. Non
– Interactive.
1. Interactive:
It
is a face – to – face conversation. Conversation is an interactive process
involving speakers and listeners. We use audible and visible symbols in order
to communicate meaning in the minds of listeners. Conversation links people. As
conversation is a tool of social interaction, it is essential to be able to
converse well in both informal as well as formal situations. This type has
achance to ask for classification, repetition, or slower speech forms our
conversation partner, For example, interview, group discussion, dialogue, and
telephonic conversation etc.
2. Partially interactive:
Giving a speech to a live audience
where the convention is that the audience does not speak. The Speaker checks
comprehension from the audiences faces. For Example, teacher speaks to the
students, a politician address the gathering or people etc.
3. Non – Interactive:
This type of speech is when,
recording a speech for a radio Proadcoast, performing in a play, reciting poem
or singing etc.
IV
Tasks for developing speaking skills:
Skill of Conversation and extended
talk are to be performed by the learners. Improvement of language. Proficiency
is the main task. Not only is this task but also there so many. They are,
1. How
to attend telephone calls and answer them politely, is a task
2. How
to introduce him and others.
3. Asking
for or giving information.
4. Communicate
himself in shops, counters, and restaurants.
5. Greeting
friends, Superiors, Strangers etc.
6. Asking
questions forclassifications, advice or help.
7. Describing
things, persons or places.
8. Participating
in discussion and debates.
9. Narrating
anecdotes, stories, and reporting events
[D.J.Strandgard, 2012.8.6]
These tasks can be used according to
the situation and the mumber of learness involved in them.
There are three ways such as
i)
Individual
ii)
Pair and
iii)
Group work
I) Individual:
The
Personal interest taken by the single individual to develop the skill of
conversing with others. He has to learn self-introduction or narrating a report
about an event, etc. In this way, the individual can develop his / her speaking
skill. The listener can also develop the speech skill.
ii) Pair:
Two
pupils practice dialogue between them they can have role play like teacher and
parent, the HM and old student or Doctor and patient. Initially they can use
the printed materials and practice. Later on they can try to speak of their
own. Thus their ability to speaking get improved.
Group work:
Students
are divided into groups. Each group will be given a task. They engage in
debates and conversations. This will help the group for improving their
speaking skill.
V) Barriers for effective speaking:
“Pupils
in India are taught for about six periods a week. But it has been estimated
that they hardly knew about 1500 words by the time they join the university. It
works out that they learn one word for a period. They not even know how to use
the commonest structure of English”.
[-V.K.Gokak
2012.8.24]
Michael
West (2012) States that a language is not a subject, which can be taught, it is
a subject which must be learnt.
The
Process of communication is not always smooth. It is like a hurdles race. These
are referred as barriers to effective speech communication. There are two kinds of barriers that are,
1. Individual
barriers
2. General
barriers.
I. Individual barriers:
i)
Psychological Factors.
ii)
Physiological Factors.
iv)
Sociological Factors.
2. Psychological Factors:
Shyness
Hesitation
Nervousness
Fear
Frustration
Many
Students are shy to come forward to speak they are afraid of committing
mistakes while speaking English. This is because of lack of appreciation.
Students have fear that their peer group and the teacher will mock at them.
Since sufficient opportunities are not provided by the teacher and parents,
they are having nervousness, while communicating in English. They try again and
again. When they are not able to pick up the correct pronunciation of the word
they get frustration in practicing the communication skill.
ii) Physiological Factors:
Some
students may have poor eyesight; it may be short sight or long sight. This can
be easily tackled by the teacher by rearrangement of seating position similarly
poor hearing power can be settled by the teacher by advising him to buy a
hearing aid. Throat and nostril defects can also be tackled by medical
treatments.
iii) Social Factors:
The family background plays an
important role. Students from Educated family catch the fluency and succeed in
communication skill. Whereas students from the uneducated family suffer a lot.
Naturally those who speak English fluently are respected more than those who
struggle to communicate with others.
2. General barriers:
v Lack
of opportunities.
v Lack
of Vocabulary.
v Lack
of Qualified teachers
v Lack
of Clear cut objectives
v Overcrowded
classrooms
v Defective
methods of teaching
v Defective
Examination systems
v Variation
in English Syllabus
v Parent’s
interference
v Lack
of extensive reading
v Lack
of proper supervision
v Unsuitable
next books.
1. Lack of Opportunities:
The teachers should take
initiatives. Some teachers are in the habit of giving opportunities for reading
only to intelligent students. They neglect the dull and slow learners. This can
be rectified if the teacher is impartial in allowing opportunities.
2. Lack of Vocabulary
Now-a-days memorizing the words with
meaning is lessened. The teacher should induce the students to use dictionary.
Even if the teacher directs to learn every day 5 Words, the Students will
increase their vocabulary by 1500 words in a year. The teacher can use
pictures, charts and dummy models to impress them for enriching their
vocabulary.
3. Lack of qualified teachers:
In many of the private and self-financed
institutions, the management does not take case in appointing qualified and
trained teachers. At present Government of Tamilnadu is taking every Step to
see that the management should appoint only qualified teachers. Since the
standard of books improved a lot, the D.T.ed teachers are allowed upto 5thstd,
the B.Ed teachers are allowed from 6thStd to 8th and the
PG trained teachers are allowed to handle from 9th to 12th
Std. This defect will be eradicated Besides that, the Government select only
the qualified and highly intelligent teachers by conducting competitive exams
like TRB, TETI and TET-II.
4. Lack of clear cut objectives:
The seal purpose of teaching of
English is missing. The teachers, Parents and students are ignorant about this
Hence Pupils do not understand to speak, read and write good English. Teachers
too don’t know their goal.
Over Crowded Class rooms:
Only in the Government schools and
Aided Schools the class rooms are over Crowded. It is because limited posts are
sanctioned. The Poor and middle Class pupils prefare to study in Government and
Aided Schools. The HMs can’t bifurcate the sections without proper sanctions of
posts. The teachers can’t do justice for the students. Individual attention
can’t be given because of over crowd. This can be tackled if the HM and PTA
presidents are cooperative. Sufficient number of teachers can be appointed by
the parent – Teachers Association and solved.
6. Defective Methods of teaching:
Any language should be taught by
following LSRW method. i.e. Listening, Speaking, Reading and writing. A new
born baby listens to the speech or voices of its mother and other relatives.
Then only the child begins to speak. This is the natural’s way of teaching a
language. But in many of the schools they give importance for Reading and
writing. This is a defective method of teaching. Hence the students are unable
to communicate among themselves.
7. Defective Examination System:
The quality of the examination is
usually judged on the basis of the following criteria:
a. Objectivity
b. Validity
c. Reliability
d. Feasibility
and
e. Administrability
If
should be a judicioces combination of
a. Objective
type questions – 25% weightage
b. Short
answer type questions – 25% weightage
c. Essay
type question – 50% weightage
If
the teacher does not follow this, the examination system will be defective.
8. Variation in English Syllabus:
Stage
Board System, Metric System, and CBSE system were in Tamil Nadu. Each system
has separate syllabus in English. But now the variations have been abolished
since the introduction of ‘New Equitable Syllabus’.
9. Lack of extensive reading:
Students used to watch Television in
their leisure time. So they do not use their leisure time in a useful way of
reading books. If is the duty of the teacher to make the children read
supplementary readers.
10. Parents interference:
The parent’s expectations are very
high. Soon after the admission of their children in the LKG they expect their
children to speak English. So they often visit the class teacher and interfere
in their duty.
11. Lack of proper supervision:
The Head of the institution should
have proper supervision. So that everything will take place properly.
12. Unsuitable text books:
Text books should have the following
qualities
a. Glossary
b. Illustration
c. Language
style
d. Guide
books to the teachers
e. Activities
and skills
f. Subject
matter
The
above given qualities had taken place in the text books, the defects can be
rectified.
VI Problem of speaking:
v Unclear
message
v Lack
of consistency in communication process.
v Incomplete
sentences
v Not
understanding the receiver.
v Not
seeking clarifications while communicating
v An
individual’s subjective viewpoint towards issues leaders to assumptions.
v An
emotional block which can lead to an attitude of indifference, suspicion or
hostility towards the subject.
v An
emotional block or bias that is based on a party’s viewpoint or on what you
have heard.
v Words
can have different meanings to different people thus blocking communication.
How to overcome the
problem in speaking:
We live in ‘verbal’ environment. Words
constitute the most frequently used tool for communicating. Words usually
facilitate communication; however, their coreless improper use in a given
situation can create a communication barrier.
The words we use should be selected
carefully. Dr.Rudolph Flesch (2011:270), a specialist in words and
communication, suggests a way to break through the word barrier.
-
Use familiar words in the place of
unfamiliar
-
Use concrete words in the place of the
abstract
-
Use short words in place of long
-
Use short word in place if several
VII. The sub-skills of speaking:
Learning
to speak in the second language involves developing subtle and detailed
knowledge about how, why, what and when to communicate and complex skills for
producing and negotiating language in cultural and social contexts. The focus
of speaking skill is not only accuracy of pronunciation but adequacy of fluency
and communicative effectiveness that becomes the focus of speaking skill.
The
following are the sub – skills of speaking,
v Produce
the characteristic English speech sounds and sound patterns, both in isolation
and combination
v Use
appropriate stress and intonation
v Use
appropriate words and structures to express the intended meaning
v Recall
words and structures quickly.
v Organize
his thought and ideas in a logical sequence.
v Adjust
his speech according to his audience, situation and subject matter.
In
an actual situation most of these components function simultaneously, demanding
smooth coordination on the part of the speaker.
VIII Elements of good speech:
The
following are the requisite elements of a good speech:
i.
Naturalness
ii.
Clarity
iii.
Fluency
iv.
Audibility
v.
Comprehensibility
vi.
Effectiveness
i) Naturalness
A
good speaker should be able to speak the second language as he speaks his
mother tongue. He should be able to produce English speech sounds and sound
patterns freely and naturally. The speech should come to him automatically. The
pupils should also be trained to speak the language naturally
ii) Clarity:
When
the skill of speaking is taught, the pupils should be trained to speak with
proper pronunciation, stress and intonation. Then only, the speech would be
clear and understood. The pupils should be able to differentiate among the
vowel, consonant and diphthong sounds. A study of English sounds and its
systems will be of great help here.
iii) Fluency:
In
teaching this skill, pupils should be trained to get an easy flow of speech in
conversation. They should be able to speak appropriate words and structures to
express the intended meaning. Participation in conversation practices will help
here
iv) Audibility:
Speech
is mainly meant for communication. Therefore, if what is spoken is not audible,
the speech becomes useless. The teacher’s voice should be audible to the whole
class. Otherwise, the teacher will be a total failure in the class. If only the
teacher is audible, his questions will be understood and answered by all the
pupils. The pupils should be trained to speak audibly. To develop this, all the
students should be made to speak in the class.
v) Comprehensibility:
Speech
becomes meaningful, only, when it is comprehensible. Hence, the pupils should
be motivated to speak and the listener should comprehend what is spoken. If may
not be possible with the children of the early stage. But in the middle and
high – level, pupils should be trained to organize their thoughts and ideas in
a logical sequence and express with full comprehension. Participation in
dialogues, seminars, group discussions etc. will improve this skill.
vi) Effectiveness:
Any
speech will become effective only if it suits the audience. The speech should be suited to the
situation, audience and the subject matter. Training in group short speeches
and participation in group discussions will improve this skill.
IX) Improving Oral fluency:
Fluency
is the most important characteristic of effective speech. Fluency is the
natural flow of words without any unnecessary pauses and repetition. The
natural flow of words or smoothness of expression can come from the ability to
compose and speak meaningful utterances by using appropriate vocabulary and
grammar skills. Fluent and expressive speech normally depends on the range of
vocabulary appropriately used as poor vocabulary appropriately used as poor
vocabulary will cause lack of fluency.
9. Influence fluency and self
expression:
The
five factors that influence fluency and self expression are:
v Arti
culation
v Pronuncition
v Voice
quality
v Accent
v Intonation
Fluency
also depends on the appropriate use of macro – skills of grammar and
pronunciation such as subject – verb agreement, tense formation, clause
linkage, use of transitional words, basic intonation patterns, and rhythm and
so on. English has 44 speech sounds that include twelve pure vowels, eight
diphthongs and twenty four consonants. Some of these sounds might not be
present in other languages and we may feel difficult to articulate them. To be
an effective speaker one must practice articulation of difficult English vowel
and consonant sounds. Fluency is the natural flow of words without any
unnecessary pauses and repetition. In order to improve self expression and
achieve the coveted clarity and fluency, articulation, pronunciation, voice
quality accent and intonation need to be improved.
1. Articulation:
It
is a set of speech habits established over a long period. It is basically our
ability to modify voice or breath with tongue, teeth, lips and other organs of
speech in order to produce speech sounds.
2. Pronunciation:
Good
pronunciation is the way of speaking that ordinary people final easy to
understand. Daniel Jones defines (2012:26) ‘bad pronunciation as, ‘a way of
talking which is difficult for most people to understand’. It is essential to
be familiar with phonemic transcription.
3. Voice quality:
An
impressive voice may be the gift of god. But voice quality can be improved by
proper voice training and regular practice weakness of voice quality can be
rectified with the help of friends, class mates, teachers and by cultivating
sensitivity to sounds and voices.
4. Accent and intonation:
English
is a stressed language. Hindi syllable receives equal importance whereas
English focuses on specific stressed words. Intonation is the variation of the
pitch of the voice.
5. Body language:
If
is an integral part of oral communication. It includes facial expression, eye
contact, distances, gestures and mannerisms.
6. Eye contact:
Eyes
are probably the most accurate predictor of our feelings and attitudes.
Sustained eye contact suggests trust, admiration, and confidence Brief eye
contact reveals the nervousness and stress.
7. Facial expression:
If
is another form body language. If refers to the use of eyes, eye brows,
forehead and mouth for expression. Raising eye brows suggests surprise,
question and curiosity. Lowering eye brows suggests acceptance and submission.
Furrowed forehead shows anger, frustration and displeasure. Open mouth
indicates shock. Swallowing reveals nervousness..
X. Practice in speaking skill:
Jesperson,
the famous linguist says, “Away with rules, practice what is right again and
again Hence, giving more practice is important to develop speaking skill.
While
giving a practice in speaking English particular attention should be paid to
the following drawbacks generally noticed in our students.
i.
Teacher should write down the correct
transcription for any mispronunciation that he/she hears.
ii.
Teacher should pay particular attention
to the following.
(a) Misplaced
stress on syllables and words or absence of stress at all
(b) Confusion
between sounds with meaningful contrasts.
(c) Failure
to discriminate between long and short – diphthongs.
(d) Interference
of the phonological system of the mother tongue of the teacher.
(e) Failure
to aspirate initial /P/H/ and /K/
(f) A
tendency to aspirate /h/ when not required
(g) Production
of the harsh sounds /r/ in words likes ‘wonderful’, ‘far’ etc.
(h) Misapplication
of lexis and idioms.
For
the development of the skill of speaking English, the teacher’s own pronunciation
should be good with proper stress and intonation. The students learn to speak
English in the same way as they hear it spoken. The teacher of English who
wants his/her student to speak English correctly should ensure that his own
spoken English, the English teacher should listen to linguaphone, recorded
cassettes, radio and Television, and refer to English pronouncing dictionary.
Adequate practice in English speech should be given to develop the skill of
speaking among the students. Pronunciation exercises can also be given.
Pronunciation exercises should be integrated with the oral practice of pattern
or structure. It can also be combined with composition work such as dialogues
and reading aloud.
Speaking
practice should be given in meaningful situations through repetition drills to
form speech habits. If can be done through speech exercise, substitutions
drills, role playing and language games can also be used to provide speaking
practice. The details of conduction oral work are given below.
(1) Reproduction Exercises:
(i)
The teacher produces a sound and asks the students to reproduce it. If is done
in chorus or individually.
(ii)
The teacher speaks words one by one. The students listen to him and reproduce
those words one by one. If can also be done in chorus or individually.
(2) Questions answers:
(i)
The teacher puts question to the class one by one. The students give the
answers one by one. If gives them practice of listening and speaking.
(ii)
Questions and answers may be between one student and other students.
(3) Role play:
The
students may be asked to play role of somebody and indulge in dialogue. The
dialogue may be between a police inspector and a thief or lower and client.
(4) By performing actions:
The
teacher performs actions and the students are asked to perform those actions
after observing them
(5) By showing a picture:
The teacher shows a picture to the
students in a class and the students are asked to speak on it one by one or
they may be shown a film for a few minutes and then they are asked to speak a
few sentences about it.
(6) By giving an outline of a
story:
The
students are asked to think and speak a few sentences about it or it can be
done through some oral composition.
XI Strategies for having speech
ability:
To
improve basic skills in speech, some basic tips and effective conversation
techniques are suggested:
1. Be
an active listener
2. Be
an subtle speaker
3. Speak
with clarity
4. Be
simple
5. Pauses
at appropriate intervals
6. Be
polite
7. Be
friendly
8. Be
positive
9. Be
flexible
10. Be
tactful
11. No
arguments
12. Be
interested
XII Techniques in teaching speaking
skills:
Techniques
are a method of doing something expertly. The teachers work is to train the
students in such a way to make them speak intelligibly and effectively. Stress
is an important feature of the English language. Stress is the degree of force
with which we pronounce a sound. The stress system of English makes it
different from Tamil and Hindi and other Indian languages.
i)
The teacher can train the students to
produce English sounds and sound patterns freely and naturally. She can provide
speech opportunities such as asking and answering questions, participating in
conversations and discussions, expressing reactions to certain existing issues
and so on.
ii) Teacher
can train them to differentiate among vowel, consonant and diphthong sounds
iii) The
teacher can potentially offer students spoken text samples from signal
sentences to scripted dialogues to completely natural speech.
iv) The
teacher can suggest conversational situations, enabling learners to practice
expressions such as conversational openings, closings and evaluative follow –
ups. The students should be trained to get an easy flow of speech in
conversation.
v) The
teacher can train them to speak audibly in question answer technique. They can
enact mini plays to develop voice quality, intonation, eye movement, mime, and
gestures
vi) The
teacher can train them to organize thoughts and ideas in a logical sense for
topics given
vii) Dialogues
on simple contextualized situations may be tried between pairs of students. The
teacher should control and guide the students without curbing their freedom of
expression.
viii) The
teacher must see that the children develop accurate pronunciation of English
sounds. They should be trained to make utterances with correct articulation
ix) The
students should be trained to speak intelligibly, fluently and appropriately.
x)
The teacher should instill confidence in
students to say what he wants. This calls for considerable preparation and
creative thought on the part of the teacher.
xi) Students
should be trained to participate in dialogues, seminars, group discussions,
debates, or on the spot speeches, and to give short speeches.
xii) They
should be trained to complete short stories that are finished part and to speak
on seeing a picture or chart.
xiii) After
giving sufficient guided practice, the teacher can strategically withdraw
support as students gain the ability to complete the tasks independently.
When
the students are trained like this conversation, discussion and task cantered
the fluency practice be get strengthened. Group work has been found especially
conducive in the development of oral skills for the following reasons. Group
work provides a framework whereby a learner can have maximum participation. If
gives an opportunity to learners to speak in small groups at times with their
friends and this reduces the hesitation and embarrassment which a shy learner
may feel. Learners feel motivated which helps in establishing a sense of
personal rapport. The teacher goes round and notes the mistakes for follow-up
work. Remedial work helps the slow learners. Group work provides an opportunity
for pre teaching. Students are more likely to learn from each other than from
the teacher. Mistakes get corrected in a healthy atmosphere. The important
features of interaction skills such as turn-talking, adjusting ones speech to
what the other person knows and wants to hear also gets practiced.
XIII Advantages of speaking skill:
1.
Improvement
in comprehension ability
Speech improves the comprehension
ability of the students
2.
Helpful
in developing the skill of speaking
Oral
works are able to develop the skill of speaking among the students
3.
Provide
help in listening:
Through
oral work students become good in listening. They try to listen
comprehensively.
4.
Helpful
informing the habit of using correct sentences:
Oral
work helps the students to form the habit of using correct sentence patterns.
5.
Students
become good orators:
Oral
work helps the students in becoming good orators, debaters and in becoming
active participants in discussions.
6.
Removes
hesitation and shyness:
Oral
practice removes hesitation and shyness of the speaker, thus induces confidence
in him.
7.
Gives
pleasure and excitement
The
students at the early stages of learning the language find a lost of pleasure
and excitement in oral approach.
8.
If
lays the foundation of good speech
9.
Helpful
in developing personality
A
good speaker usually possesses a good personality
10. Students become active participants
in the process of the process of teaching learning
XIV Points to be kept in mind for
making oral work a success:
1. The
class should be divided into small groups say 8-10 students in each group where
every student finds time for oral work.
2. One
or two periods per section be allowed for oral work exclusively.
3. The
teacher should come well prepared mentally. In that case the oral work becomes
interesting and it is better done.
4. Individual
attention must be given to the student.
5.
Sympathetic
attitude of the teacher:
Sometimes a student gets stuck up is the middle
while speaking. The teacher should have a sympathetic attitude towards the
students.
6. Activities
through situations will help the students learn a language well.
7. Preparatory
or incidental reading should be encouraged
8. Drill
work should be encouraged.
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