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

Abstract

Abstract: This study Factors that influence high school students' English oral communication skills in Ecuadorian face-to-face learning environments had as objective to determine the linguistic and emotional factors that influence the development of oral skills in high school students. This research was carried out in a private school in Quito city and mixed-method research with quantitative and qualitative approaches was used. The sample included 40 first-year high school students and five English teachers. The instruments were a questionnaire for students, a questionnaire for teachers, class observation sheets, and a semi-structured interview. The results revealed that both factors influence the development of their oral skills, but pronunciation as a linguistic aspect and lack of confidence as an emotional aspect were the most relevant factors. Likewise, when comparing the linguistic and emotional factors, it was found that the linguistic factors are the ones that have the greatest impact on the development of students' communication skills.