ENHANCING STUDENTS’ CONFIDENCE AND MOTIVATION TO SPEAK

ENGLISH THROUGH A 10-MINUTE GROUP NEWS DISCUSSION

Abel Cadias, Mahidol University International Demonstration School, May 18, 2018

The production of the speaking process includes two major categories of abilities:

accuracy and fluency. Oftentimes, many teachers are so focused in teaching accuracy and

fluency to their students that they tend to forget the ‘affective factor’ that greatly influences

ESL students’ behavior and motivation to speak English. Derekshanan et al. (2016) noted that

encouraging students to be brave to talk without worrying too much in committing errors is

essential to language learning. The motivation of these learners has a huge effect to their

willingness to take part in any activities. When they are highly motivated, their favorable

attitude toward the tasks are shown by their own initiative to decide over the process of

engaging in the speaking task. Thus, it is important to facilitate an activity where ESL students

can gradually increase their confidence in speaking English without the teacher’s restrictions

(Othman & Shuqair, 2013). These restrictions are those teacher-centered decisions in choosing

the topic and material for them, designating roles, and monitoring grammar errors.

Furthermore, it is important to note that students’ level of confidence is a predictor of their own

increased ability. Almost always ESL learners increase their confidence to speak in English

when they are familiar with the features of the language, and the topic of what they will talk

about. Developing students’ speaking skills follows myriads of strategies and it takes time in

enhancing their confidence and motivation to speak English in the classroom.

Background

It is expected that ESL learners of the same nationality prefer using their first language

to talk to each other. Oftentimes, they only speak English when foreigners talk to them or when

there is a need to do so. However, Boonkit (2010) divulged that the majority of Thai

undergraduate students are unable to speak English confidently in real-life situations with

foreigners; thus, there is a need to ensure that our graduates at Mahidol University International
1
Demonstration School (MUIDS) are articulate enough to handle any form of speaking

engagements. The situation at MUIDS is that no matter what teachers do in encouraging all

students to speak English in and outside the classroom, many still speak in Thai whenever they

can. Our students’ speaking Thai is inevitable for the fact that 98% of them are Thai nationals

who are all ESL learners with different range of English proficiency. Nevertheless, it is

observed that the majority of our students have the fundamental English speaking skills, and

they can easily carry any casual conversations in English. However, our students need to work

on the transactional function of using the English language which means that they should be

able to use the target language in expressing their ideas and sharing information in an academic

setting. Alhabbash (2012) observed that EFL learners needed more training time to use English

for academic purposes as they will be using the language to acquire technical and vocational

knowledge and skills.

One of the challenges that the Modern Languages Department has to deal with is

encouraging students to speak English in the classroom whenever they can. As an ESL teacher,

I encourage my students to speak English in the classroom by giving them some rewards. Early

in the school year, I observed three things after giving points to anyone who speak English in

the classroom: either all or only a few speak English; some students speak English just to earn

points; and the majority still speak Thai from time to time. The other concern that I had was

that there was no good balance between students speaking English meaningfully and the

amount of points that I gave as a reward.

Statement of the Problem

The focus of this action research is on describing students’ progress after implementing

a regular 10-minute group news discussion at the beginning of the class period. It also includes

a survey on how students perceive the short group activity. This action research aims to answer

the following questions:

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 1. How does the 10-minute group news discussion enhance my students’ confidence

and motivation to speak English in the classroom?

2. What are the changes in my students’ behavior after implementing a regular 10-

minute group news discussion?

3. What do my students think about the 10-minute group news discussion in terms of

increasing their confidence and motivation to speak English in the classroom?

Methodology: Pre-Action Plan

In August until November 2017, I enforced the “English only” speaking rule in the

classroom. The condition was simple: bonus points will be awarded to each group of students

that speaks English rather than Thai in the entire class period. However, I did not find such

strategy meaningful. Many students took advantage of the reward system, and there was no

meaningful exchange of ideas. I knew that I had to create an activity that would help me enforce

the reward system and at the same time challenges my students to speak English purposefully.

Floriasti (2013) emphasized that speaking is a skill that should be routinely developed. He

noted that students’ activities and materials should provide an opportunity to practice their

speaking skills. One way of achieving this is to come up with various communicative activities

which include discussions, problem-solving, role-playing, and more. Many ESL teachers

developed different strategies and activities to help their students improve their speaking skills:

using debate techniques, digital storytelling through websites, discussions, games, guided

individual activities, storytelling and reading; using different materials like audios, videos,

passages, notes, and the like; and using different groups of mixed-level, individual, pair and

group tasks, inviting foreign guests, and immersion to an international community.

To gather data, I used teacher observation using a checklist, individual speaking

assessment, and survey questionnaires for the target group. The results of the speaking

assessment and the observation checklist allowed me to classify my students according to their

3
general speaking abilities. A survey using Likert scale was also administered to the target

group.

I teach English 10 to 10-03, 10-04, and 10-06 sections. There are nine males and 16

females in 10-03 class; 11 males and 13 females in 10-04 class; and seven males and 10 females

in 10-06 class for a total of 66 students. The 10-03 students are generally active and outspoken.

At the beginning of Q2, I identified eight students who need more exposure in improving their

speaking skills. The 10-04 students are generally responsive and motivated; however, there

are seven students who have issues on speaking accurately and fluently. Meanwhile, the 10-06

class is generally quiet and needs more supervision. Eleven students require more engagement

in any speaking tasks.

The chart below shows the total number of students in 10-03, 10-04, and 10-06

according to their general speaking abilities through teacher observation and individual

speaking assessment. A holistic rubric was used to identify the students’ general speaking

abilities in terms of their willingness and confidence to speak English in the classroom, skill to

ask and answer questions in English, demonstrate acceptable level of accuracy and fluency

while speaking English, and use English in different speaking purposes.

4
 General Speaking Abilities

15
26

25

Needs improvement (1) Fair (3) Exceptional (5)

Figure 1. The general speaking abilities of 66 Grade 10 students in Q2 (December 2017)

After doing cycles of observation and assessment, an intervention program was needed

for my 26 students who were identified for “needs improvement.” Considering these students’

level of speaking skills, I thought of working on improving their confidence and motivation by

using a student-centered speaking activity where they don’t feel intimidated.

Action Plan: Intervention Program

As an intervention program, I started implementing a 10-minute group news discussion

in December 2017 to all of my three classes. A small group discussion was chosen to make

the program interactive in a short given of time, and it also helps in making the students

comfortable talking to each other. Online news articles and broadcasts from local and

international newspapers and news centers were used as the focus of the speaking task. I

allocated 10-15 minutes for this activity depending on the number of small groups and the flow

of students’ discussions.

Argawati (2014) focused on using group discussion in improving her students’ speaking

skills by observing their behavior, participation and confidence. She found that small group

discussions are very effective to avoid students’ boredom, increase their confidence in speaking

5
English among themselves without feeling threatened, and improves the mastery of vocabulary.

She noted, however, that the topics given to students should be closely related to what they

already know and what they are interested to talk about.

Developing students’ skills through reading has been effective in facilitating students’

speaking skills. Wide reading helps in improving students’ vocabulary, and the amount of

words that they know determines their ability to use English in any speaking communication.

The integration of reading and speaking skills also depends on the materials that the teachers

uses. It is highly recommended that dialogues, plays, and drama are strong materials for early

language learners and any authentic texts are also preferable as they are used for real-life

communicative purposes (Mart, 2012).

One of the authentic materials that ESL teachers can use are news articles. Ahmmed

(2016) revealed that his students enjoyed reading news as they can use the vocabulary and story

that they read in daily conversations. Encouraging students to read news in English also helps

them become better learners (pp.68-74).

The preparation is necessary in this process as ESL learners need to be clear of what

they are required to do, about the process of doing things, and expectations that they need to

meet. In a way, this intervention program is also a reinforcement activity of the news reading

lesson. The table below shows the activities, strategies, performance indicators, and timeframe

that were followed from December 2017 to May 2018.

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 Table 1. The intervention program implemented from December 2017 to May 2018
in English 10 for 10-03, 10-04 and 10-06 students

Activities Strategies Performance Timeframe

indicators
1. Conduct mini- a. Mini-lesson on Students accurately December 2017
lesson and news reading and provide answers to (start of Q2)
activities on the 5WH 5WH questions (Two lessons:
reading local b. Use online news 60-minute
news articles (Bangkok period)
Post, The Nation,
etc.)
c. Individual activity:
Use the 5WH to
understand news
articles
Use context clues to
understand meanings of
unknown words

d. individual activity: Students write down (One lesson:

give personal opinions their opinions about 60-minute
about the issues the issues in 1-2 period)
presented from the sentences
news article

2. Group students, e. Group discussion: Students talk about the December 2017
talk about their stating facts news article by (last week:
roles, and use Use the 5WH as guide sharing information Mon/Tues/Wed:
local news as in talking about the 10 minutes)
reading news
material for
discussion

3. Observe Gather data: December

students Use a checklist 2017-May 2018

4. Continue with f. Group discussion: Students give opinion January 2018

the 10-minute stating facts and about the issues (three weeks)
group news giving personal concerned Mon/Tues/Wed:
discussion using opinion 10 minutes)
international Ensure that each
news member of the group
gives his or her opinion
Ask questions to guide
students and to keep
discussion flowing

7
 5. Continue with g. Group discussion: Students talk about the January –
the 10-minute stating facts, giving news article by March 018
group news personal opinion, sharing information, Mon/Tues/Wed:
discussion using and providing give opinion about the 10 minutes)
both local and meaning to issues concerned, and
international unknown words provide meaning to
news through context unknown words
clues through context clues
6. Continue with April –May
the 10-minute 2018
group news (once or twice a
discussion using week)
both local and
international
news

7. Do a survey on Gather data: May 2018

students Survey (first week)
perception

8. Write and Do research May 2018

present action Analyze and interpret (first week)
research findings

Findings and Discussion

The first part of the observation was focused on the entire group. Each group had four

to five members. A total of 66 students in 10-06, 10-04, and 10-03 were observed in four cycles.

The four cycles were a three –week interval where every week the intervention program was

implemented in two to three class lessons. The 10-minute news group discussion was

implemented three out of five school days starting from the month of December 2017 until

February 2018 while two days out of five school days were used in March up to the second

week of May 2018. Four observations were conducted on December 18, 2017, January 22,

2018, March 12, 2018 and April 25, 2018. The observation checklist focused on seven skills

and behaviors: taking turns in looking for a news item from local or international newspaper

or news broadcast; agreeing on the chosen news item to talk about in English; showing

initiative in either sharing factual information or personal opinions in English; speaking in

complete and clear utterances while discussing in English; managing their time well in

8
scanning for information and talking about the news details; using English to talk about the

news article without the teacher monitoring; and staying on task.

In all classes, it was found that only a few members take turns in looking for a news

item from local or international newspaper or news broadcast in the first two cycles. However,

there was a gradual improvement in the next two cycles. This was expected as students were

getting used to the roles and responsibilities that each had to partake. It was important for the

teacher to monitor the role distribution in the first two cycles as some same students did the

same task in looking for a news article.

Except for a few groups in all classes, the majority appeared in agreement on the chosen

news item; however, in the first cycle almost all members in all groups in all classes use Thai

or non-verbal gesture to agree on the chosen news item. While the expected language use is

not a determining factor to accomplish the task, it is a good practice for the teacher to ask each

group in English so they can answer back in English as well. One of the things that I observed

was that some groups changed the news article that they had initially chosen. It is necessary to

ask them the reason for doing so they can practice the skill of giving reasons in English. I was

told that they either find the news item complex with difficult vocabulary, they were not

familiar with the background information of the news, or they had difficulty comprehending

the information. While I allowed them to make changes in the first two cycles, I persuaded

them to tackle any news article that they first chose in the third and fourth cycle, and facilitated

the discussion with guide questions. There were many occasions when I find it necessary to

provide a brief background of the news and divert the discussion of the issue related to

Thailand’s context.

I found that three of the difficulties of some students who demonstrate low speaking

abilities in English was showing their initiative in either sharing factual information or personal

opinions in English, their skill in speaking in complete and clear utterances while discussing in

English, and using English to talk about the news article without the teacher monitoring. The
9
first two cycles was a bit of a challenge as these students needed to be regularly monitored.

While there was a huge improvement in this behavior and skill of giving factual information

and personal opinion in complete and clear utterances, there is a need to continuously support

and enhance these group of students. Some groups also take advantage of my absence. I noticed

that these groups quietly speak in Thai while I was away talking to some other groups. More

discussion on this factor is explained in the second part of the observation.

The last two skills of managing their time well in scanning for information and talking

about the news details, and staying on task drastically improved after the first cycle as they are

used to the routine of the activity, and constant reminders that I expected them to do. One way

of ensuring that students are on task is to give them an allotted time to search for a news item

and scan for the important details then at the same time direct them to put their laptops away.

In a group of four, I require only one member to use the laptop which is also effective in

managing the 10-minute time allotment.

Figure 2. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion in
Cycle 1 and Cycle 2 for 10-06 class

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Figure 3. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion in
Cycle 3 and Cycle 4 for 10-06 class

Figure 4. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion in
Cycle 1 and Cycle 2 for 10-04 class

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Figure 5. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion in
Cycle 3 and Cycle 4 for 10-04 class

Figure 6. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion in
Cycle 1 and Cycle 2 for 10-03 class

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Figure 7. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion in
Cycle 3 and Cycle 4 for 10-03 class

Figure 8. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group

Discussion for the target group in 10-06 class

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Figure 9. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group Discussion
for the target group in 10-03 class

Figure 10. The results of the observations of the 10-Minute News Group
Discussion for the target group in 10-04 class

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 The second part of the observation was looking at the individual participation of the

target group which can be generally described as students with “low speaking abilities.” This

target group is characterized by their low confidence and motivation to use English in the

classroom; some don’t oftentimes speak in the classroom and others participate but speak in

Thai in many occasions; they can hardly speak English in complete or clear utterances; and

they need their peers to explain the news to them in Thai or English when they struggle to

follow or comprehend the news details. Twenty five students from the three classes belong to

this group: eight in 10-03; seven in 10-04; and eleven in 10-06.

In the first two cycles, these students continue to exhibit the characteristics; however,

in the last two cycles, I observed that all students somewhat gained confidence and motivation

in actively participating in the group activity; the majority tried their best in speaking English

even with some errors in accuracy and fluency; and only a few continue to depend on their

peers to explain the news to them. Overall, the 10-minute news group discussion helped them

increase their confidence in speaking English in the classroom; increase their reading speed;

and increase their skills in scanning for information, sharing factual information and giving

personal opinions about issues. However, there is a need to provide them with different

speaking activities of different purposes in an academic setting so they can reach a higher level

of increased speaking abilities.

A survey was administered to a target group of 26 students. These students exhibited

low speaking abilities in terms of speaking English in the classroom. They showed lack of

confidence and motivation to speak English in the classroom, used a mix of English in Thai

when they were told to speak English, relied on their peers to coach them while speaking

English, and oftentimes used short and unclear utterances. Using the Likert scale, they were

asked to answer seven questions based on how they individually perceived them.

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 The first question asked if the intervention helped in increasing their confidence in

using English in the classroom. Fifteen students (57.7%) agreed, 6 students (23.1%) were

neutral, three students (11.5%) strongly agreed, and two students (7.7%) disagreed. The data

showed that 18 students perceived that the intervention helped them to use English in the

classroom, six students perceived that the intervention may or may not increase their

confidence while two students felt that it did not help them at all.

Figure 11. Confidence in using English in the classroom

Their motivation to use English in the classroom was asked next. Results showed that

13 students (50%) agreed that their motivation to use in English in the classroom increased,

four students (15.4%) strongly agreed, eight students (30.8%) were neutral, and one disagreed.

More than half of the target group perceived that the intervention program was successful in

helping them increase their motivation to use English in the classroom.

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 Figure 12. Motivation in using English in the classroom

Twenty three students (72.1%) believed that the intervention increased their reading

speed in reading news articles while seven students (26.9%) remained neutral. It is

recommended that an assessment to map out their reading speed in reading news should be

used to validate the findings.

Figure 13. Reading speed in reading news articles

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 The next question aimed to find out whether or not students increased their skill in

scanning for information from news articles. A total of 19 students (73.1%) believed that the

intervention increased their skill in scanning for information. Seven students (26.9%)

somewhat felt uncertain.

Figure 14. Scanning for information from news articles

When asked if the intervention increased their skill in presenting factual information

from news articles, only 14 students were certain while 11 students were uncertain. Only one

student disagreed. The findings implied that there is a need to focus on this particular skill by

going over the 5Ws and providing them with sentence starters and transitions on how to present

facts.

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 Figure 15. Presenting factual information from news article

One of the strengths of the intervention is that it enables students to give their personal

opinions about the issues that they read. A total of 22 students (84.6%) positively agreed that

they found the intervention helpful in this regard. Only four students (15.4%) remained neutral.

With effective teacher questioning techniques, the students can increase their skill in giving

personal opinions using news articles. It is recommended that the intervention using news

articles as material should be used in this purpose.

Figure 16. Giving personal opinions about the issues read

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 The final question asked whether or not the intervention increased the students’ general

English speaking skills. Seven students (26.9%) strongly agreed, 14 students (53.8%) agreed

while five students (19.2%) were uncertain. The majority of the students believed that the

intervention made a positive impact to their general English speaking skills. It suggests that

this intervention should continue on next school year.

Figure 17. The impact of the intervention to students’ general

English speaking skills

Overall, there were 17 to 21 students who either strongly agreed or simply agreed to all

six questions except for question 5 where only 14 students were certain that their skills in

presenting factual information from a news articles increased. Only one student felt that there

was no change in that particular skill; one student felt that her motivation to use English in the

classroom remained unchanged; and two students perceived that the intervention did not help

in increasing their confidence to use English in the classroom at all.

Reflection

After initiating the intervention program, I realized that facilitating a more relax yet

attentive atmosphere is an important factor in helping ESL learners enhance their confidence

and motivation in speaking English in the classroom. I used to make the speaking activities
20
highly academic, monitored and assessed that I overlooked the significance of the affective

factor. It is high time to balance the expectations that I throw in to my students. While giving

points to students who speak English in the classroom has its disadvantages, I will not resort to

punishing them; I would rather give them a short speaking activity where they can practice

their English purposefully and then get rewarded by it. Next school year, I will continue with

the intervention program with the same purpose. I will be using different authentic reading

materials besides news as springboard. I also find it necessary to allocate 15 minutes of class

time before starting the lesson. Depending on our lesson activities and assessment, the small

group discussion will be regularly carried out throughout the school year.

Conclusion and Recommendations

It is not enough to simply enforce the ‘speak English only’ policy through reward or

punishment. This research suggests that the focus of the school should be on providing various

and regular speaking opportunities where students can speak English in the classroom. The

intervention program in the form of a ’10-minute group news discussion’ implemented this

school year had significantly enhance majority of my students’ confidence and motivation to

speak English in the classroom. Furthermore, it was found that 21 out of 26 students were able

to improve their speaking skills in sharing their personal opinions. The majority had

acknowledged that their scanning skills were also improved. While the majority of students

acknowledged that their reading speed increased, it is recommended that a progress report using

an appropriate assessment tool should be conducted. Additionally, the following are

recommended to subject teachers who are teaching ESL students:

1. Foster a non-threatening learning atmosphere so that students can increase their

confidence in using English in the classroom.

2. Encourage students to speak English in the classroom by giving them some form of

reward.

21
3. Increase students’ motivation to speak English in the classroom by assisting them in

accomplishing the task, and

4. Do not focus on minimizing students’ use of Thai in the classroom instead focus on

providing different speaking activities where they can use English in the classroom.

5. Use authentic reading materials as a springboard in developing students’ speaking

skills.

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 Appendixes
Appendix A
10-Minute News Group Discussion Observation Checklist
Class Observed: Date:

Cycle: Time:

Observe a group of 4-5 students for 5-10 All Most Some Few
minutes members members members members
take turns in looking for a news item from
local or international newspaper or news
broadcast

agree on the chosen news item to talk about

in English

show initiative in either sharing factual

information or personal opinions in English

speak in complete and clear utterances while

discussing in English

manage their time well in scanning for

information and talking about the news
details

use English to talk about the news article

without the teacher monitoring

stay on task

25
 Appendix B
10-Minute News Group Discussion Observation Checklist for Target Group
Class Observed: Date:

Cycle: Time:

Observe students in 5-10 minutes Exceeds Meets Needs

Expectations Expectations Improvement
lead the discussion of the chosen news item
speak in English during the activity
present factual information in English
give personal opinion in English
do not depend on peers in understanding
news
engage in the activity without teacher
asking questions

26