Factors that influence high school students' English oral communication skills in Ecuadorian face-to-face learning environments

Abstract

Abstract: The purpose of this research is to analyze the linguistic and emotional factors that influence oral communication skills in EFL students. This research was carried out in a public school in Santo Domingo, Ecuador. The sample is made up of an English teacher and 41 first-year high school students, of which 22 were women and 19 were men. A mixed method was applied and the techniques used to obtain the data were surveys, interviews and observations. The results show that the factors that most influence students' speaking in English are emotional factors, and that these occur due to the lack of linguistic knowledge that students have. Additionally, the linguistic factors that most influence students are the use of difficult words when speaking English, difficulties in structuring sentences, and fluency. Regarding emotional factors, concern for using the correct grammar, fear of being laughed at and making mistakes were the aspects that most influenced students when speaking English.