The document discusses teaching speaking skills in Tunisian high schools. It provides definitions of speaking and its functions. Speaking is undervalued in English classrooms, which focus only on transactional speaking through boring topics. Interviews found teachers focus on pronunciation and accuracy over fluency. There is a discrepancy between communicative theories in official programs and the audiolingual methods and textbooks used. The conclusion recommends giving students more opportunities to interact, using meaningful topics, and balancing accuracy and fluency.

1. Presented by: Hela Fekih
M2 Applied Linguistics

2. 1) Theoretical part:
1.1 Definition
1.2 Functions of speaking
1.3 Methods of teaching speaking
1.4 Speaking activities
2) Empirical part:
2.1 Document survey
2.1.1 Official programs
2.1.2 Textbooks
2.2 Interview with high school teachers
3) Evaluation

3. Theoretical part:

4. « Speaking is the productive oral
skill. It consists of producing
systematic verbal utterances to
convey meaning »
Baily (2003)

5. Spoken language Written language
Auditory Visual
Temporary Permanent
Prosody (rythm, stress, intonation) Punctuation

6. Brown and Yule(1983)
1) Talk as interaction:
Social function
Focus on the speakers
Skills involved:small talk/ joking/
opening and closing
conversations

7. The focus is on the message.
Skills involved:
• explaining a need
• describing something
• agreeing and disagreeing
• asking for information

8. Talk that trasmits information
before an audience.
Skills involved:
• using appropriate format
• maintaining audience engagement
• accuracy
• appropriate opening and closing.

9.  Audiolingual method

10. Communicative Language
Teaching (CLT)

11.  Communication games
 Problem solving
 Simulation/ role play
(McDonough, Shaw, 1993)

14. Aim: « English will foster learner self
expression as well as appropriate interaction
with peers and other interlocutors »
The learner is at the core of the learning
process
critical thinking
Effective use of English in its written and
spoken forms.
Topics and activities that interest the learner

15. Speaking skills in the 7th grade of
basic education
Speaking skills in the 1st year of
secondary education
Repeat chunks of word for
pronunciation accuracy
Recite songs/rhymes
individually or in chorus
Use language forms to
diffrent communicative
situations.
Tell stories
Expected oral output:simple
statements/ dialogs/ telephone
exchanges/ role play
Interacting: make / respond
to requests, express one’s
opinion
Describing: habits/ family
and self/ feelings
Reporting: actions/ events
Argumentation
Summarising: give the main
points of an oral presentation
Focus on: accurate
pronunciation/ fluency/
appropriate use of social
skills

17. Modules and topics Functions of speaking Types of instruction
Family
Hobbies
Friendship
Health
Education
Environmental issues
services
Greeting
Asking about age
and number
Expressing likes/
dislikes
Describing
Asking permission
Expressing choice
Making suggestions
Talk as
transaction
Ask and answer
Interview your
classmates
Enact the dialog
Listen and repeat
Listen and sing
Role play
Ask the teacher
questions
Justify orally

18. Modules and topics Functions of speaking Types of instruction
Family life and
relationships
Science and
technology
Social problems
Communicating with
others
Education
Professional life
Ecology
Media and arts
Giving/ asking for
personal information
Asking for opinion
Making suggestions
Describing people
and their feelings
Describing daily life
Advising
Talk as
transaction
Ask your
classmate(s) questions
about..(pair/group
work)
Give your opinion
about the matter
Agree on a title for
the text with your
classmates
Answer teacher’s
questions
Write an oral
presentation

19. Interview with two-first year
teachers of Hay-El Khadhra
high school

20.  A skill that is taught in everyday lessons
 It is integrated throughout the lesson: warm
up/ while stage/ post stage
 Focus on ponunciation
 Pair work: exchange opinions
 Use of a set of structures while talking: I think
that/ I agree/ In my opinion…

21.  Students are not willing to talk because
they are afraid of feedback
(teacher/peers)
 Lack of motivation.

23.  A discrepency between theory(official
programs) and practice (textbooks
and classroom teaching)
 Ethereal principles and expectations
vs reality
 Teaching speaking is characterised
by unequal power discourse
 Official programs(CLT) vs textbooks
and teaching practice(ALM)

24.  Status of speaking in English classrooms in Tunisia:
undervalued and underestimated
A disregard for speaking as a main skill
 Teaching is only focused on speaking as transaction:
a disregard for interaction and performance.
 No real life concrete situations
 A problem of motivation:
 boring topics
 unclear objectives of speaking activities
 feedback

25.  Give students practice with both accuracy
and fluency.
 Provide opportunities for students to talk
(pair/ group work) and limit teacher talk.
 Plan speaking tasks that involve
negotiation of meaning.
 Design classroom activities that involve
practice in interactional and transactional
speaking
(Baily, 2003)

26.  Bailey, K.M. (2003). Speaking. In D. Nunan (Ed.),
Practical English language teaching (47-66). New
York: McGraw-Hill Contemporary.
 McDonough,J., Shaw,C. (1993). Materials and
Methods in ELT: A Teacher’s Guide. Oxford: Blackwell
Publishers.
 Richard, C.J. (2008). Teaching Listening and
Speaking: From Theory to Practice. New York:
Cambridge University Press.
 1st year Secondary school English textbook: Perform
through English
 7th grade of Basic school English textbooks: Let’s
Learn English
 Official programs for Basic and Secondary education