In today's schools many pupils in grades 4-6 do not want to or dare to speak English in English lessons. For various reasons, they find it embarrassing not being able to answer in the target language, not knowing what to say or how to pronounce a word. The purpose of this study is to find out how Swedish teachers work to motivate pupils to speak English in English lessons at school. The research questions were the following: How much time is spent practicing oral ability? What oral activities do teachers use to get pupils to speak English during lessons? How do teachers act to encourage pupils to speak English? The study is based on a qualitative method: open observation. Five teachers were observed on two occasions each. By using this method, it was possible to observe what the teachers were doing and not what they would tell the interviewer that they do. The results were analyzed using theories such as Willingness to communicate (WTC), and concepts such as scaffolding and motivation. The results showed that the teachers spoke English to the pupils to a different extent, between 8-25 minutes. This was interpreted as the teachers adapting their teaching and speaking time in the target language to the particular class that they taught in. The tasks and the size of the groups in which the pupils worked varied, from working in full class to working in pairs. By having different group sizes, the teachers created a safe environment for the pupils which motivated the them to speak English. The teachers also motivated the pupils to want to and dare to speak English through verbal and non-verbal feedback, such as body language, gestures, smiles, and encouraging nods. They also said, “good job” and “I know you can do this”. Through these actions, the teachers encouraged pupils to speak in the target language, in particular, those who are perceived as introverted and those who may have low self-esteem and motivation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:sh-39677 |
| Date | January 2019 |
| Creators | Sjödin, Maria |
| Publisher | Södertörns högskola, Institutionen för kultur och lärande |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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