Factors affecting EFL student´s oral communication skills

Abstract

Abstract: The present study aims to identify the pedagogical and individual factors that affect the development of oral communication skills in EFL classrooms. This study was carried out in a secondary institution in the city of Machala. The research instruments used to compile data were surveys and interviews applied to a sample of five foreign language teachers and forty students. The research methodology is based on a mixed-method approach, where both qualitative and quantitative methods are applied. The quantitative analysis contributes to determine the professional development, attitudes and frequency of the instances dedicated to reinforcing oral communication skills. The qualitative method facilitates the verification of the information disclosed in the questionnaires. The obtained results confirm awareness in the pupils towards the advantages of communicating effectively in the target language. Notwithstanding, the presence of individual and pedagogical factors that exert a detrimental effect on the acquisition and development of learners´ communicative skills is also observed. At the end, this study proposes strategies and measures that counterbalance the aforementioned negative components in education.