Students’ Participation in Oral Discussions

Abstract

The present study deals with some obstacles affecting EFL learners’ participation in oral discussions at departments of English. It is hypothesized that do not participate in oral discussions due to psychological problems such as (anxiety, fear, shyness, etc), and linguistic problems; for example, lack of vocabulary, mispronunciation , grammatical mistakes, motivation. To verify the aim and its hypotheses, the researcher investigate the case of fourth year students at departments of English, and teachers in certain private colleges. The study is divided into two parts; theoretical part, in which a general overview about speaking skills is made and then the various obstacles that hinder the learners’ participation is discussed . On the other hand, the study suggests some techniques and activities that teachers of foreign language may apply as solutions to the stated difficulties. Therefore, the practical part deals with the methodology adopted to conduct the research in which the researcher analyzes the questionnaires that are administered to both students and teachers of English in certain private colleges. The data obtained from the two questionnaires indicate that there are some factors affecting the students’ participation in oral discussions. Furthermore, the data suggest some techniques and activities that EFL students need to work with to get over of these obstacles.