Savez

editorial

Teaching strategies

through the strengthening

of group work

Freddy Manuel Chávez Zamora

Shirley Elena Reeves Arboleda

Henry John Carrascal Chiquito

Michel Ildefonso Mogollón Claudett

Savez

editorial

Teaching strategies

through the strengthening

of group work

Savez

editorial

Teaching strategies

through the strengthening

of group work

Freddy Manuel Chávez Zamora

Shirley Elena Reeves Arboleda

Henry John Carrascal Chiquito

Michel Ildefonso Mogollón Claudett

Freddy Manuel Chávez Zamora

Shirley Elena Reeves Arboleda

Henry John Carrascal Chiquito

Michel Ildefonso Mogollón Claudett

Teaching strategies

through the strengthening

of group work

ISBN:

Savez editorial

Título:

Teaching strategies

through the strengthening

of group work

Primera Edición: Julio 2022

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editorial

978-9942-603-68-5

INTRODUCTION

Ecuadorian students are taught English for six years in public high

schools. However, they don’t end up with the level B1 that is aimed by

the national curriculum. The Ecuadorian government has made a

significant change by implementing new laws in order to positively

benefit the education of all Ecuadorians. During the high school years

there’s a transition not only psychological but also academic in

students of eighth basic, this is why this project analyze their situation

in order to determine the phenomenon that may delay the

development of oral production.

The topic of this project is “Improving the speaking skill through the

application of learning strategies and the strengthening of group work”

as a support for the English teaching - learning process in public

education. Its main objective is to establish why the learning strategies

have incidence in the development of the speaking skill through group

work activities in the English language through a bibliographical study

as well as a statistical analysis and a field research. This project also

aims to design a booklet with group work activities to improve the

speaking skill. We hope that our proposal will be useful in English

teaching and learning as a reflection of our work and commitment to

our country.

In English foreign language, the speaking skill is one of the most

difficult competences to improve. The learning process is fundamental

because speaking is a way of showing our knowledge. This book is

focused on the problem where students do not speak in English

because of the lack of practice. Some observations were carried out to

verify the ways of working. It showed that the study of grammar is not

enough. They have learning problems, mainly in oral production and

the results are a poor oral production and a bad pronunciation in some

cases. Also, the lack of pedagogical resources for teaching and

learning, and the simple contents addressed in the books, promote the

low motivation of students in the classes. In accordance with the

lesson plans the pupils study the same topics every school year,

without any kind of technological or ludic innovation.

The low parent´s concerns in their children’s learning process make

having a good command of English a difficult goal to achieve. Another

reason could be the lack of opportunities for practicing at home; the

students are only in contact with English at school.

Nowadays teachers need to motivate the students in every class. In

this case, students from eighth grade are not involved in the English

classes because of the lack of stimulation; they do not show desire,

energy or interest in the activities proposed by teachers.

The lack of investment for the acquisition of updated educational

resources makes English language teaching inadequate to develop

students’ skills, specifically speaking. At the same time the scarce of

didactic materials does not allow the students to be engaged, the

learning of many topics over and over again, as a consequence they

are frequently bored. Furthermore, authorities and teachers have

pointed out that, speaking skills development imply self-management

activities, which they unfortunately cannot achieve.

It has been proved by previous researches that there are difficulties in

speaking skills in most of the public high schools because of the

number of students per classroom. Additionally, they do not practice

every day that is why they do not accomplish the necessary proficiency

level in this skill. Therefore, to encourage the pupils towards speaking

to motivate the personal, intellectual and social growth, this is a

requirement these days.

Teachers often complain about the low level of the students in English

language knowledge. Despite the objectives of teaching of the English

language, students should participate actively in motivational

processes that enable them to improve their knowledge of the English

language. In addition, the lack of learning strategies in our context is

still causing failures during the development of educational activities in

public schools. Deficiency in the speaking skill is the result in all levels

of students where most of the students are afraid of speaking in

English.

Speaking is a very prominent skill that is connected to the

development of critical thinking and to the communicative

competences of foreign language learners. Thus, developing speaking

skills has a relevance for high school learners because it will concrete

the way to further academic development.

Most of the students consider that English is not useful, they also think

that it is boring. All the teachers should improve their pedagogic

training in order that their students can acquire a significant

knowledge. The lack of confidence in speaking is due to the fear of

making mistakes in front of their teachers and classmates.

Additionally, in the classes they do not enjoy of engaging activities to

motivate their participation, here there is a need to apply innovative

learning strategies and group work activities which help them to

exchange their knowledge, expand the vocabulary and lose the fear of

speaking in English.

This proposal will be conducted to perform learning strategies and

motivation for strengthening the group work in the students in order to

improve the speaking skill. This book is important because it

concentrates on the speaking as productive skills, being one of the

most relevant skills of the English language. Comprehensive ability

involving rhetoric, grammar, vocabulary, thinking, and other parts of

the language are included in it. It enhances language acquisition as

learners using words, sentences, and other elements to communicate

their ideas effectively. The main beneficiaries will be the students

because they will have better learning conditions and furthermore,

they will improve their speaking skill with creative learning strategies.

To do it, there are different criteria’s that highlight the importance of

speaking, such as, communicative competence reinforcing, oral

practice, several activities in the class to provide students the

opportunity for having dynamic participation and a pleasant class.

Pupils learn better by doing things by themselves. They do not

memorize, they really prefer to learn through learning strategies. By

applying learning strategies through group work activities, the pupils

will increase their interest for the English foreign language.

Our main desire as teachers is that the students improve their

knowledge and thus to respond adequately to new requirements to

our global world, obviously English is emerging in today's knowledge

because it is a language will help them to become global humans and

good professionals. Pupils learn more when they do things by

themselves.

They feel that they do not memorize, they prefer to learn through

vocabulary techniques in order to develop their skills and learn English

effectively. By applying new techniques with the use of innovate

didactic material, the pupils will increase their interest for the English

learning. This resource is very useful in the Teaching – Learning

process even when it is used with an interactive technique as the

Ludic, where the students will always be encouraged to participate in

their classes.

Ecuadorian experience

In Ecuador the teaching of the English language has taken relevance

in recent years. The Ministry of Education of Ecuador has developed

several curriculum reforms in the teaching of English in order to

improve the learning of this important language. However, there is still

a deficiency in the oral production of students who in many cases do

not feel safe or confident when expressing their ideas or opinions in a

foreign language.

Students need teachers to become more involved in the teaching

process and offer them opportunities to express their ideas without

fear. As stated by Scott Thornbury (2007), the development of

speaking depends on creating a culture of speaking in the classroom.

If students are accustomed to speaking in English and opportunities

are created for them to develop this skill, the changes will be evident;

in other words, if speaking is a regular feature of lessons, students

will be more confident speakers. (Kurum, 2016)

Certainly, with this project, the importance of the development of oral

practice will be relevant. The application of group activities designed to

motivate students to speak in English will have effective results that

will allow them to express themselves with confidence and naturalness

in real situations.

Learning strategies provide independence to students, increase self-

confidence and allow a better retention of contents. According to

Herrera (2010), “the application of learning strategies enhances

students’

comprehension, motivation, and self-esteem” (p.133). These

strategies allow us to identify achievements in learning and what

aspects should be reinforced (Herrera, Socorro, 2015)

This research will have a positive impact on the teaching-learning

process through the application of strategies that motivate students to

produce a second language. There are no records of previous work in

this institution aimed at improving the oral production of students in the

English language; therefore, the project will be a valuable work tool for

students and teachers. In this way, students will feel motivated to

express themselves in English and to use this language in different

situations inside and outside the school.

Speaking skill

The practice of speaking provides students the opportunity to practice

in real situations in the safety of the classroom. This type of activities

motivates students to use common expressions and the vocabulary

learned, and allows them to know their progress in the domain of a

foreign language as well as the points that should be reinforced. The

continued practice of speaking provides students the confidence that

they need to produce L2 and reduces their affective filter. (Jeremy,

2012, pág. 123)

Second language acquisition

Second language acquisition (SLA) is a process in which students

acquire a second language unconsciously, when they are exposed to

situations or environments suitable for the development and

production of a foreign language. This term is usually compared to

second language learning, which refers to a formal and conscious

learning process.

According to Krashen (2002) “the usage of a language is the only path

to fluency” (pp.47-75); he showed that only by acquiring a language

students will be able to gain fluency, it is not necessary the learning of

formal rules or tedious grammatical structures. (Herrera, Socorro,

2015)

In his studies, this author established that it is normal for students to

make grammatical mistakes when speaking, but with continuous

practice these will disappear on their own. He also indicates that it is

not advisable to correct students while they are speaking, because

this could demotivate them in their performance; if the error continues,

the teacher should look for techniques aimed at correcting that error.

Krashen also points out that learning a second language can be

intimidating, in many cases students feel that they are not as efficient

in using a second language as they are in their native language, which

is what Krashen calls Affective Filter Hypothesis; it refers to the fear

that some students experience when they have to speak in a foreign

language like anxiety, fear of making grammatical errors or

mispronouncing words. When this happens the affective filter of

students is raised like a defense mechanism. If the teacher creates a

comfortable environment and applies learning strategies that

motivate the students, the fear will be lost and the students will take

risks when speaking in English.

Stages of a second language acquisition

The process of acquiring a second language is not similar to learn the

native language. This process could be more difficult and complex. In

the second language acquisition, the learner goes through the

following stages:

Silent period: In this stage, the students learn vocabulary and

become familiar with the sounds, rhythm and patterns of the English

language. They practice using short expressions like greetings and

simple questions. This stage of language acquisition may last for

several months. (Herrera & Murry, 2016)

Early production: The students start manipulating ideas mentally to

form short combinations of words; they identify routine expressions

and use them independently.

Speech Emergence: In the third stage students handle a more

extensive vocabulary, and begin to communicate using coherent and

well-structured short sentences.

Intermediate Fluency: At this time learners are able to use more

complex sentences while speaking, they can connect related clauses

by using conjunctions and their conversation is more fluent.

Advanced Fluency: Here, second language learners produce

language with an extensive vocabulary and a great variety of

grammatical structures. They express their points of view and continue

improving their oral production. They are conscious of their proficiency

in the second language.

In conclusion, it is important that teachers identify the stages of

second language acquisition to plan strategies that allow their

students to advance in this process and achieve a better domain of

the English language.

Reasons for teaching speaking

According to Jeremy Harmer there are three important reasons for

teaching speaking: firstly, speaking gives students the opportunity to

practice their oral production in the safety of the classroom. Secondly,

speaking activities allow the students to know their level of English,

their progress, shortcomings and establishes the need of possible

reinforcements. Finally, the practice of speaking allows students to

activate their language proficiency and makes them more

autonomous, the more they practice, the more fluent they will be.

Well-planned speaking activities are motivating for students and allow

them to gain confidence in the use of a second language. Scott

Thornbury suggests that teachers should create a speaking culture in

the classroom; they should become "talking classrooms". According to

Thornbury (2005) students will gain more confidence in a second

language and their communication skills will increase if the practice of

speaking is a regular feature of English lessons. (Jeremy, Harmer,

2012)

Speaking sequences

Speaking activities usually start with the reading of a text, or after

listening to an audio track, or from observing a group of images.

Below there are three examples of speaking activities that teachers

can adapt according to the level of English of their students.

The first activity begins asking students to form groups of work. After

that, they are told to be judges of a photography contest. They have to

observe the four finalist images of the competition and choose the

winning photograph, they must explain the reasons for their choice;

while students are discussing their choice the teacher must circulate

through the groups listening to the students' discussions and detecting

possible errors that will later be included in reinforcement exercises. At

the end of the activity, each student must argue the reasons why they

chose a certain photograph as the winner. It is important to remember

that students' speaking practice should never be interrupted to correct

possible errors because this may limit their confidence (Jeremy,

Harmer, 2012, pág. 124)

The second activity is to ask the students to get involved in a role-play.

Students must act in a real life situation. Students are asked to

simulate a meeting at a restaurant, a job interview, or asking for

an address. The teacher must establish the rules of the activity and

motivate the students to act as real as possible using all the

vocabulary and expressions they know in English. (Jeremy, Harmer,

2012, pág. 125)

The third activity is about creating an original story by using a portrait

of a group of people in a specific situation. Students working in groups

must create a story based on the image. A student starts the story,

and then one by one the story is complemented until the end of it.

Finally, each group must present their story orally in front of the class.

(Jeremy, Harmer, 2012, pág. 127)

First language (L1) used in the classroom.

English learners come to the classroom with their mother tongue (L1);

teachers must discern if it is appropriate to use their first language (L1)

in the classroom when the main objective is learning a foreign

language (L2), in this case English.

According to Jeremy Harmer (2012, p.39) “an English-language

classroom should have English in it, and as far as possible, there

should be an English environment where English is heard and used as

much of the time as possible”. (Jeremy, Harmer, 2012, pág. 39)

This does not mean that the L1 should not be used at any time during

the English class. It can be used in specific situations, for example

using the L1 for students to establish differences and similarities

between the L1 and the L2. In the same way, the teacher can use the

L1 to explain a specific topic that is difficult for the students to

understand.

Harmer also states that “students often use L1 because they want to

communicate in the best way they can and almost without thinking;

they revert to their own language” (Harmer, 2012, p. 179). (Jeremy,

Harmer, 2012, pág. 179)

The author gives some suggestions to motivate students to speak in

English:

• Talk to them about the issues: Teachers should dialogue with

students about the importance of speaking English in the classroom

and reach agreements about in which cases they can use the L1

during the development of the class.

• Encourage students to use English appropriately: Teachers

should clarify to students that there is not a total prohibition on using

the L1, but there are activities in which the L1 will not be used, such as

presentations, role plays, descriptions, discussions.

• Only respond to English use: Teachers must speak in English

most of the time during the class. Even though students ask to

translate into their mother tongue, teachers should avoid doing so.

• Create an English environment: Teachers must create a

classroom environment where students are exposed to the English

language all the time.

• Keep reminding them: During the practice of speaking,

students should be reminded to speak in English, and the teachers

should motivate them all the time; in spite of the mistakes they may

make, the corrections will be made later and generally, not during the

participation of the students.

Learning strategies

While learning styles are considered as the ways in which students

process information, learning strategies “are mental, conscious and

behavioral processes that allow students to be independent during

the learning process”. (Herrera Socorro, 2015, pág. 50)

It is important to identify the most appropriate learning strategies for

students, which will allow them to achieve success in language

development, for this, we must take into account the following

recommendations:

• When choosing a learning strategy the teacher must know the

students' prior knowledge about the topic that is going to be covered.

• When applying a new learning strategy the teacher must make sure

that the students assimilate the process and understand how to apply

the strategy before focusing on the results.

• Allow students to apply the same strategy several times in different

situations so that they can master it and identify the benefits of this

strategy.

• Teachers must remember the importance of interaction and group

work with classmates when applying a learning strategy. According to

DeVillar and Faltis (1991) “grouping strategies encourage all students

to talk and work together” (p.10)( (Herrera, Kavimandan, & Melissa

Holmes, Crossing The Vocabulary Bridge, 2011)

Language learning strategies

The study of these strategies took relevance to the 70's, it was

determined that its application is crucial in the learning of foreign

languages. Students use different language learning strategies

depending on their learning style. Language learning strategies

allow students to

achieve a better understanding of the use and structure of the

language, facilitating the acquisition of a foreign language (L2).

As Rigeney (2015) mentions, language learning strategies are a group

of conscious steps or behaviors used by language learners to improve

and facilitate the language acquisition. However, Oxford indicates that

the application of language learning strategies also include social,

cognitive and emotional aspects that increase the efficiency and

confidence of students in the production of a second language

(Oxford, 2015). (Harad, 2013)

As O 'Malley and Chamot (1990) indicate, learning strategies can be

classified into three categories: cognitive, metacognitive, and socio-

affective:

1. Cognitive learning strategies: They refer to the mental or

physical manipulation of information. These strategies include

classification, linking, new information to prior knowledge, and

summarizing as cited in Chamot 2009. (Herrera & Murry Kevin,

Mastering Esl/efl Methods, 2014)

2. Metacognitive learning strategies: Incorporate three domains:

awareness of one’s own cognitive abilities, the ability to discern the

difficulty of a task, and knowing how and when to use specific

strategies (Harad, 2013) This awareness of the learning process

involves (1) deciding how to approach a task; (2) self-monitoring of

understanding and producing language; and (3) self-assessment of

how well one is attaining cognitive, academic, and linguistic

objectives. Specific metacognitive strategies include skimming for

information, monitoring comprehension and production, and reflecting

on what one has learned (Harad, 2013)

3. Social affective/learning strategies: Involve the use of socially

mediated learning and efforts to lower one’s own affective filter

(Herrera and Murry, 2014 p. 318). In socially mediated learning

students interact with others, the work in groups allows learners to

develop their speaking skills naturally, they can learn from their

classmates and they feel motivated to use a second language (L2).

The use of social affective strategies in the classroom like questioning

for clarification or cooperative learning, encourage students to feel

confident while speaking in English, these strategies reduce their

affective filter (Herrera, Kavimandan, & Melissa Holmes, Crossing The

Vocabulary Bridge, 2011, pág. 318)

Good language learner

For many people learning a second language (L2) is very important.

Knowing a second language implies better student and work

opportunities. For this reason, learning how to master a second

language is more important than what to learn. Many researchers

have determined what strategies good L2 learners use. As Rubin

(1975) emphasizes good L2 apply different strategies that allow them

to advance and develop better the acquisition of a second language.

In her study, Rubin (1975) identified the following language learning

strategies used by good L2 learners:

• Make an effort to communicate and learn through communication.

• Look for strategies to overcome the fear of communicating in a

foreign language.

• Practice a second language at all times.

• Try to think in a second language.

• Pay attention to what they say and what others say.

• Use the vocabulary they know and try to learn new words.

By contrast, as Herrera and Murry (2014) mention, less successful

language learners usually apply the following strategies (Herrera &

Murry Kevin, Mastering Esl/efl Methods, 2014, pág. 320)

• Are more likely to use phonetic decoding.

• Tend to focus on cognitive strategies when they use strategies.

• Are more likely to use strategies that are ineffective for a task; are

less flexible in strategy use.

• Tend to use only one strategy to resolve a situation.

• Use fewer strategies than more successful language learners do.

• Tend to focus more on form or structure and get stuck on a word.

As we can see the success or failure of students in learning a second

language depends a lot on the guidance they have when selecting the

appropriate learning strategies according to the situations to which

they are exposed. Teachers must create an adequate environment

and innovate every day in the application of learning strategies that

allow students to be independent when developing different proposed

activities and most importantly to lose the fear of expressing their

ideas and opinions in a foreign language.

Group work

In his book “How to teach English”, Jeremy Harmer (2012) gives the

definition of group work: “Is when students work together in groups”.

According to Harmer, group work promotes cooperative activity and

motivates students to get involved and participate actively in the

proposed task; he states that larger groups are less effective than

smaller groups. When students work in groups of two it is called

“pairwork” (Harmer, 2012, pág. 275)

According to Harmer, J. (2012) “both pair work and group work give

the students chances for greater independence”, and this author

mentions the following advantages) (Harmer, 2012, pág. 43)

• When students work in groups without the teacher's strict control,

they feel free to make their own learning decisions.

• Group work gives the teacher the opportunity to identify which

group needs more help and dedicate a little more time to it, while

the other groups work independently.

• Group work gives students more opportunities to practice a foreign

language (L2).

Group work strategies

Likewise Harmer, J (2012) mentions that “in large classes, pair work

and group work play an important part since they maximize students

participation”. Harmer also states these strategies for group work:

(Harmer, 2012, pág. 178)

If the desks cannot be moved, we place the rows facing each other.

If we use the computer lab we place the students around the

computer screen.

We establish rules for group work.

The instructions of the activity to be performed should be clear.

A time limit must be established for the development of the activity.

Possible problems

Working in group is a strategy that not all students enjoy. As Jeremy

Harmer mentions (2012) “students may not like the people they are

grouped or paired with” (Harmer, 2012, pág. 44); some students prefer

to work alone, or when forming groups they do it with their best

friends, or with the best students of the class. In these situations,

Harmer proposes the following alternatives:

The teacher should educate students about the advantages of

working in groups as a way to meet new people and share new

experiences.

If a student does not want to be part of a certain group, he or she

should not be forced, in this case, the teacher should look for other

ways to get the student integrated.

To keep the control of the development of the activity, the teacher

can enlist the help of leaders in each group. The leaders can guide

their classmates during the development of the activity instead of the

teacher.

Group work activities

These are some activities that teachers can develop as pair work or

group work:

Role Play: According to Merriam-Webster dictionary (2018) the role

play is “an activity in which people do or say things while pretending to

be in a particular situation”. This activity is ideal to motivate students in

the practice of speaking. (Ministerio de Educación, 2016)

Discussions: This activity allows students to express their opinions

and their points of view regarding a specific topic, by analyzing the

pros and cons of a topic, the teacher is challenging the students to go

further and develop their oral production. Taking into account the

level of English of the students, various activities can be planned.

Face to Face: Through this activity, students will be able to have

contact with native speakers, so they will not only practice the

language they are learning but also will learn about a different culture.

Presentations: This activity is very flexible; the students are

divided into groups and present a specific topic. They can talk about

their favorite artist, or about a social, sporting or political issue. To

ensure that all students participate at the end, questions about

exposure will be made to those students who had the least

participation.

Feedback: The corrections to the mistakes made by the students at

the time of their participations will be made in the end, without

specifying the name of the student who made that mistake. The

correction of errors will be addressed in a general way. This activity

will allow the teacher to detect which topics should be reinforced.

(Harmer, 2012, pág. 44);

As stated by Herrera (2011), learning involves building on existing

experiences and knowledge. “Teachers guide learners to come to a

fuller understanding of the subject matter by providing them with

experiences that allow them to work with concepts and ideas and by

directing them to think in new ways”. (Herrera, K, Kavimandan, &

Melissa A. Holmes, 2011, pág. 21)

Herrera and Murry (2016) indicate that “the constructivism is a

developmental perspective on learning that views the human brain as

having certain fundamental structures of understanding that enable

it to

draw meaning from experience”(p.198). According to this theory,

human beings are born with the ability to develop specific skills, such

as the comprehension and the production of language.

VOCABULARY TECHNIQUES

Vocabulary is a very important area to be considered in learning any

language and even more important for the learners of English. First we

need to be aware of the structure of our mother tongue and then we

can understand new words in any other language.

Below we have some techniques in order to learn vocabulary:

1. Write, Look, Cover, Repeat. (WLCR)

It is important to have a notebook in which we can write the new words

we might encounter with, then we need to try to memorize them by

repeating them until we internalize them.

Supercharging our WLCR

We can add new words all the time until we have a list of words which

we need to work with by writing different sentences.

Another way of learning vocabulary is by recording the new words and

using them in our daily life improving our pronunciation each time.

Also it is a good idea to highlight some new words we might encounter

and write next to them either they are nouns, adjectives, adverbs, etc.

2. Get them all.

In this technique, we need to have a dictionary with us all the time, or

even better we can use our smartphones to find meaning of words we

don´t know. In case we forget the meaning of the words we make a list

and next to the words we write the source so that there is a very tight

connection between the source and the new words.

3. Flashcarding

This is a very good technique for visual learners, since we can make

some flashcards with the drawings on one side and the word on the

other side so that students get familiar with the image and the word at

the same time; in this technique is a good idea to use colors when

writing the words since they become more appealing for students. This

technique is more effective than WLCR.

4. Words in Context

Another good technique is to get the meaning of words through

context and in this way the learning of the new words is more

significant for the students since they can relate the words to their real

life experiences.

To be immersed in the place where the language is spoken it is really

useful since we listen to real language all the time and we are exposed

to the daily real situations such as in a store, in a park, in a hospital,

among others.

5. Stickies Everywhere

In this technique, we write the new words on pieces of cardboard and

put the inside some plastic envelopes so that they don´t get dirty or

wet and we can stick them everywhere.

6. Study Linguistics

This technique is based on becoming familiar with the origin of the

words since we must consider the word formation starting with the

word roots and then we can make up new words by adding either

prefixes or suffixes.

Vocabulary must help students learn new words to be better readers in

such a way that they become meaningful to students.

Tips for developing Basic English Vocabulary

Another good technique for the learning of new words is by using

different games in which these new words must be put into practice,

besides these words in the games are useful in everyday

communication.

Some advantages of using games in our classes are:

 They can be used as icebreakers.

 Students feel motivated.

 Classes are more challenging.

 They make the learning of new words much more meaningful.

 The students can use the four skills which are listening, speaking,

reading and writing.

 Students feel encouraged to participate in class.

The correct use of vocabulary is important in everybody´s life since

without good use of words communication wouldn´t be effective

enough. Some teachers think that vocabulary doesn´t take an

important role in the student´s learning process but they are totally

mistaken. We as teachers must think of easy but fun ways to teach

vocabulary so that students do not feel stressed out at the end of our

classes.

The learning of new words is only significant when students realize

how useful these words are in their daily communication. It´s not only

how many words they learn every class but how meaningful they are

for the students throughout their learning process.

The purpose of learning new words should be to use them in the right

moment at the right time and consider them as tools for developing

good communication.

We need to compare the words we already know with the words we

are going to learn so that we identify which words are meaningful for

us and which are not.

The behaviorist theory establishes that learning occurs through the

stimuli of the environment and the response of the learner to that

stimuli, the constructivism holds that learning occurs through the

interaction of the individual with the environment. The context provides

information to the individual and this relates this information to his

background or previous experiences and this is how a new

understanding is created (Herrera & Murry Kevin, Mastering Esl/efl

Methods, 2014, pág. 198)

The Interaction is fundamental in the acquisition of a language.

According to Vygotsky the interpersonal interaction leads to language

and cognitive development; that’s why all learning is constructed.

(Herrera & Murry Kevin, Mastering Esl/efl Methods, 2014, pág. 198)

In short, the environmental exposure to a foreign language and the

social interaction in that language allow students to develop their

innate ability to understand and produce the L2. It is essential that

teachers guide the learners in this process and create opportunities

for the development of the L2, exposing them to situations where the

use of a foreign language is necessary, the teachers should plan

activities that motivate learners to participate and encourage them all

the time to produce a foreign language, in this case English.

In English, the students use the textbooks elaborated by the Ministry

of Education of Ecuador (MINEDUC), whose contents are according to

the standards established by the Common European Framework of

References for Languages (CEFR). The students take English as a

subject from the first year of basic education (EGB) up to high school

(BGU). The students from second grade to seventh grade receive

two hours of English per week. The students from eighth grade to

second grade of High School receive four hours of English per week.

The students of third grade of high school receive three hours of

English per week.

In the area of English, the participation of students is encouraged

through the development of activities such as artistic presentations,

open house and spelling bee.

In Ecuador, the education is a right of all citizens; education is

considered a responsibility of the state and the society. The

Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador in its article 26 determines that

“the education is a fundamental right of people throughout their

lives and an inescapable duty, inexcusable of the State, which

constitutes a priority area of public policy and a State Investment,

guarantee of equality and social inclusion and indispensable condition

for the good living” (LOEI, 2012)

The right to education was consolidated with the reform of the

Ecuadorian Constitution; through this reform an important legal

framework was created to guarantee the provision of human talents,

economic and material resources, under the govern promise of high

quality in educational services to all the population. (NATIONAL

PLANNING COUNCIL, 2013)

The Ministry of Education is the body responsible for basic education

and high school (bachillerato) in Ecuador. This organism establishes

the basic curriculum applied in public and private educational

institutions of the country. The Organic Law of Intercultural Education

(LOEI) and the Code of Childhood and Adolescence regulate the

primary and secondary education in Ecuador.

The public education system in Ecuador is compulsory in primary and

secondary level, for students between 5 and 17 years old. In

accordance with the MINEDUC Spanish is the official language of

education. At present, this regulation covers from 2

. Grade to high

school (Ministerio de Educación, 2016)

The teaching of the English language in Ecuador is aligned with the

standards established by the Common European Framework of

Reference (CEFR), an internationally recognized body in the

establishment of methodological guidelines for the development of the

curriculum corresponding to each level of learning. The CEFR

determines the skills and knowledge that students must develop at

each of the established levels to communicate effectively in L2.

According to the information provided by the MINEDUC these are the

CEFR reference levels in the Ecuadorian Educational System:

Source: MINEDUC

The objective of the curriculum is that the students who graduate from

the third year of Bachillerato in Ecuador reach level B that means that

they have an effective and independent communication in English.

(Ministerio de Educación, 2016)

In conclusion, most of the decisions on the content of the curriculum,

the program and the forms of evaluation are dictated by members of

the Ministry of Education or district entities taking into account the

reality of the Ecuadorian students and their background; within this

context, teachers should not forget their mission, which is to educate

and provide students with the tools that allow them to be competitive

in a second language, achieving a better standard of living for

themselves and their families.

METHODOLOGY

Improving speaking skill is important because it helps students to have

a better level of interaction. To a certain extent, learning a second

language is complex, for that reason, teachers need to have the

necessary tools, in this way, when applying new strategies and

innovating the way of teaching, they are providing the students with

that confidence required when talking.

This chapter addresses different strategies to certify this proposal. In

addition, it explains how strategies can change the classroom

atmosphere, it is evident, and they are included in the instruments of

data collection, data collection procedures, and methods of data

analysis, while explaining the processes involved in the study.

Exploratory and descriptive researches are part of the methodological

design proposed for this thesis. This general design will help to give us

a better idea of how different oral activates prepared previously will

affect the oral production among students, which has not been

addressed before in the EFL Ecuadorian context. Moreover,

researchers will be able to describe, analyze and define the features

or characteristics of this phenomenon of interest implementing surveys

to students and teachers.

Types of Investigation

Research can be classified according to the purposes of study.

Correspondingly, research is often classified as exploratory,

descriptive and explanatory (Saunders, Lewis, & Thornhill, 2009). As

previously mentioned, this project is based on exploratory and

descriptive types of research. Thus, these two types of research will

be correctly tested below.

Exploratory Research

Exploratory research is denominated as a useful research which looks

for clarifying problems not determined previously. It is handle to

have an improved comprehension of the current problem, but it will not

contribute precise overcome. For this kind of research, a researcher

begins with a global idea and uses this investigated information as a

medium to diagnose troubles that can be the way for research in the

future. With the above-mentioned ideas, by conducting the present

project, it is attempted to reach a consolidated understanding of the

research topic along with the discovering the origin of problem using

the appropriate way for the correct interpretation of the data.

This kind of research is conducted in order to figure out the nature of

the trouble, exploratory research is not expected to show decisive

confirmation, but aids us to get a better perspective of the issue. When

conducting exploratory research, the researcher should be eager to

change the direction as an outcome of announcement of new input

and new viewpoints.

Descriptive research

It is said that a descriptive research is considered as a research

method which describes the main features of a group of people or

phenomenon that is being investigated. This methodology is based

more on the question “what, who, how, when and where” of the

research subject in place of the question “why” of the research subject.

Description research is implemented to observe, recognize, examine

and describe a research subject or issue without controlling or

manipulating the variables in any way.

Furthermore, descriptive research is useful to interpret statistical

calculations and also variables and averages are included;

consequently, a survey is often needed in writing the characterization

of the research and before doing previous experimentation.

Explanatory research

Even if explanatory research will not be required in this project, it

will be come up with discussion so that a complete comprehension of

research types can be achieved.

Explanatory Research takes an issue which was not well investigated

previously, demands preferences, brings about operational

explanations and affords a better-researched exemplary. It is currently

a type of research design which concentrates on clarifying the

conditions of your research in a precise way. The researcher begins

with a global concept and uses investigation as a tool which the

subject is leaded that would be carried out in the following years. Its

most important role is to contribute facts where a small quantity of

knowledge exists for a certain profit in mind of that analyst. For

opening your analysis, it is important to create a research scheme or

speech scheme because it is necessary to show your research idea

while designing a research proposition to your educator or a boss or in

a board meeting.

Sometimes explanatory research is known as analytical study, too. Its

fundamental objective is to diagnose the causal links between the

components or elements that have an adjacent relationship with the

research issue. The priority here is on examining a situation or a

problem to define the relationship between elements.

Types of Methods

It is absolutely necessary to define what kind of method should be

used. Defining the method which it will be used is significant because

it help us to build the road of our research and define where it is

expected to arrive.

Deductive method

The deductive method begins using a stockpile of an indubitable

domain of insight and tries to summarize all meaningful index terms

about it. It can be completed sooner than identifying the main problem.

Figure 1 DEDUCTIVE APPROACH (DEDUCTIVE REASONING)

Using the deductive research approach, this hypothesis was

developed:

helping students improve their Speaking through the

implementation of activities within the specific context, using the

appropriate contents for the proper development of their oral

production in their second language. Then a visit to the high school

should be programmed to gather information through a survey and a

diagnostic speaking test. And then the information gathered was

evaluated, the evaluation of the data allow us to urge the design and

implementation of a booklet addressed to teachers who want to

implement exercises or activities with students. Consequently,

teachers will have a wide range of exercises which will be used with

students during class to achieve the level A1.2 of the Common

European Framework of Reference (CEFR).

Most students think that learning using strategies is the correct way

to enhance the oral production. Being aware of this situation,

some of them believe that English language is an excellent tool to

succeed in the professional life, despite of the difficulty of the oral

practice development, students acquire fluidity in the practice process.

Teachers show themselves as motivators in order to encourage

students to speak in English. However, the lack of confidence in

English language learning limits sometimes students in the

communicative process. As mentioned above, there are strategies that

should be applied to improve oral production, working in group is a

good one, because it allows students to practice continuously.

English teachers should always use a wide variety of strategies that

permit students with different learning styles to be engaged in the

language. Using the same materials or supplies most of the time could

be not so interesting according to some students, when its lay out is

not attractive; furthermore, when learning a foreign language its

auditory exposure is very important to be enable students to practice

the oral production in order to get fluidity.

Additionally, these activities should include innovated strategies which

facilitate the correct development of the speaking. This is very

important to keep in mind, manage a language in all the skills is

essential to be able to communicate effectively.

It is imperative to include students in their learning process and make

them aware of their role, giving them the opportunities to talk, express

and share their own ideas. Only with that, they will be more reliable on

their skills.

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Freddy Manuel Chávez Zamora

Licenciado en Ciencias de la Educación Mención Lengua y Literatura

Francesa.

Licenciado en Ciencias de la Educación Mención Lengua y

Lingüística Inglesa.

Magister en Planicación, Evaluación y Acreditación de la Educación Superior.

Catedrático de Francés

Docente de inglés en Módulos de la Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias.

Tutor de Prácticas Comunitarias de Vinculacion con la Sociedad Carrera de Agronomía

de la Universidad de Guayaquil.

Shirley Elena Reeves Arboleda

Economista

Licenciada en Ciencias de la Educación Mención Lengua y

Lingüística Inglesa.

Máster en Alta Dirección

Miembro del Comité Interno de Evaluación y Acreditación de la Carrera de Pedagogía

de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros de la Universidad de Guayaquil.

Catedrática en la Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros de la

Universidad de Guayaquil.

Henry John Carrascal Chiquito

Abogado de los Tribunales y Juzgados de la República.

Periodista

Magíster en Ciencias Internacionales y Diplomacia

Catedrático de Producción Televisiva, Política y Organismos Internacionales, Derecho a

la Comunicación, Derecho a la Comunicación Publicitaria, en la Facultad Comunicación

Social en la Universidad de Guayaquil.

Catedrático de maestría en Derecho Diplomático y Consular, Derecho Internacional

Privado, Derecho Internacional Público y Política Internacional en el Instituto Superior

de Postgrado en Ciencias Internacionales “Dr. Antonio Parra Velasco” de la Universidad

de Guayaquil.

Michel Ildefonso Mogollón Claudett

Economista

Tecnólogo en Idiomas extranjeros.

Magíster en Administración de Empresas. Certicaciones TKT de la Universidad de

Cambridge y de nivel C2 del Common European Framework of Reference.

Ha sido Catedrático de Idiomas Extranjeros y Administración de Empresas en las

Universidades Católica Santiago de Guayaquil, Blue Hill College, Escuela Superior

Politécnica del Litoral y la Universidad de Guayaquil.

Director de tesis de posgrado, Sub-Director del Departamento de Idiomas Extranjeros,

Vice-Decano y Decano.

Profesor investigador titular y director de Proyecto de Fondo Competitivo de

Investigación en la Universidad de Guayaquil.

Savez

editorial