Abstract

This study tries to scrutinize the potential problems student-teachers encounter during their practicum studies and suggest
ways to cope with them. In order to get valid and reliable data, these intern-teachers (n=59 in the public primary
schools: n=39 and secondary schools: n=12 for Public High School and n=8 for Public Anatolian High School), at the end of
their intern-teachers’ practicum studies), were administered a questionnaire adapted from Ersen YanÕk (2008:131),
modified by the researcher, and edited and approved by a team of experts in the field. The survey mainly questions (a) lack
of support in terms of materials andequipments, (b) problems resulting from the course book, (c) problems resulting from the
students, (d) problems resulting from the curriculum, and (e) problems resulting from the classroom environment. It is
hypothesized that most of the problems take place due to the lack of mainly audio-visual materials, other supplementary
materials needed, pronunciation, translation, reading,speaking, writing activities. Lastly, it is agreed that overcrowded
classrooms and sitting arrangement impede the effectiveness of foreign language instruction. At the end of the study,
some recommendations are made for foreign language educators, researchers, and teachers to cope with these
problematic situations.

Literature Review

Speaking can be perceived as an interactive process of constructing meaning that involves producing, receiving, and processing
information (Burns & Joyce, 1997; Lindsay & Knight, 2006; Richards & Renandya, 2002). Although the desirable goal of learning
a foreign language is to communicate effectively in that language, scholars have observed that EFL learners have formidable
challenges in communicating in English. Numerous researchers have investigated the complexity of oral communication in
second language (L2) (see Skehan, 1998; Bygate, 1998, 2001; Ellis, 2003; McCarthy, 1998). House (2003) maintains that scholars
studied oral communication problems employing two different approaches: the linguistic approach and the interactional
approach. On the one hand, the linguistic approach comprises language-based problems, in which the linguistic differences
play key role. The interactional approach, on the other hand, refers essentially to the social factors such as socio-cultural
differences (as cited in Jamshidnejad, 2010). A number of previous empirical studies examined English as a second language
(ESL)

university students‟

oral communication problems while studying in English speaking countries (Ferris, 1998; Kim, 2006). Ferris (1998), for example,
investigated the perception of ESL international students about their listening and speaking problem at three American tertiary
institutions, and revealed that the students faced challenges in oral presentations and whole class discussions. Apparently, the i

nability to communicate one‟s emotions and ideas can lead, in

some cases, to a feeling of frustration and

apprehension

However, EFL learners in departments of English in the Arab world face oral communication problems due to various reasons.
Rababah (2005) points out that English language departments admit high-school-student graduates without taking into
consideration their level of language proficiency and ability to continue in a program of English studies. In crowded classes,
teachers naturally may not be able to pay close attention to every individual student and create adequate opportunities for
language use and interaction.

Further, Rababah (2005) argues that lack of enough exposure to the target language can be one of the problems facing Arab
learners of English; hence, the teaching context may not be conducive to developing oral communication skills, and learners
face challenges in their speaking output. To the best of my knowledge, there is scarcity in literature that examines

Palestinian English major students‟ oral communication problems in university context. The present study bridges the gap in
literature through exploring Palestinian English major students‟

problems in developing oral communication in order to highlight these complexities and

challenges from learners‟ and teachers‟ perspectives.

Conclusion

Within the context of globalization and growing need for intercultural communication, foreign language educators are in

vited to place more emphasis on developing students‟ oral

communication skills. The purpose of the study was to investigate Palestinian English major

students‟ oral communication problems. The study used qualitative content analysis to analyze

participants

‟ interviews. The participants were 20 students from different levels and 6 teachers

from a reputable university in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. The study revealed that incorrect pronunciation, limited vocabulary,
lack of exposure to the target language, lack of self-confidence, and L1 interference were amongst the main oral
communication problems. The study also unveiled that the students had not developed the habit of extensive listening and
reading in the target language, and they were unable to organize their ideas and meanings in a coherent and cohesive way. It
can be concluded from the study that oral communication has been considered as a highly demanding and complex cognitive
skill that involves different competences and mechanisms (Levelt & Roelofs & Meyer, 2000). Besides the linguistic competence,
the perception of the

self

and other affective factors have been highlighted.

Interestingly, the study explored and compared students and teachers‟ perceptions about oral

communication problems, hoping that each side becomes more aware of his responsibility towards easing oral communication
problems.

3.1.1 Hypotheses

1.It is hypothesized that (2005/2006) student-teacher relationship quality in first or second grade can be modestly estimated
from previous (2004/2005) kindergarten or first grade student–teacher relationship quality. 2.Overall, student behaviors as
well as teacher behaviors will be associated withstudent-teacher relationship quality. a.It is hypothesized that students
who have higher levels of current(2005/2006) externalizing, acting out behavior will have poorer quality student-
teacher relationships, as reported by the teacher. b.It is hypothesized that teachers rated higher in negativity and lower
in social connections will report poorer quality student-teacher relationships. c.It is hypothesized that teachers rated higher
in warmth and emotional sensitivity will report positive student-teacher relationships.

4.0 METHODS

4.1 PARTICIPANTS

The sample for this investigation consists of 24 first and second graders attending an urban elementary school
serving almost exclusively low-income families (99.3% free/discounted school lunches). Enrollment by
race/ethnicity is 69% Black, non-Hispanic and 31% White, non-Hispanic. For this investigation, there were 14 boys
and 10 girls; 13 students were Black, 11 students were White. This investigation involved the collection of follow-up (Year 2)
information on the 24 children and their primary caregivers, who participated in a previous study (Year 1) on home-
school connections (Postol, Hoge, Wolfson, Battista, & Vondra, 2006). Children and parents were recruited for the original
study, which involved a small-scale intervention to improve teacher-parent communication, through a
combination of teacher and project staff selection processes. Kindergarten (and one 1stgrade) teachers who agreed to
participate in the intervention (involving phone calls and a face-to-face meeting with the primary caregiver, and brief,
weekly skill-building activities by Project staff with the child in school) were asked to provide a list of 10 students
from their class, which excluded both the highest performing, and severest problem students. Six students who
represented as balanced a distribution as possiblewithin each classroom of boys and girls, White and Black students, were
initially targeted for recruitment. One of the six was then randomly selected to serve as a “waiting list” control. If
parents refused (n=6) or moved (n=1), the waiting list child was recruited. In most cases, replacements for the waiting list child
were then recruited from the remainder of children on the class list (in two classrooms, no additional waiting list child
wasrecruited). Baseline (end of fall) data and teacher follow-up data (end of school year) were collected on all
children for whom written consent could be obtained (28 of 35 children, or 80%). Parent follow-up data from home
visits over the summer were collected on 25 of the 28 children. To recruit participants for the current study, a follow-up
investigation during the subsequent school year, a recruitment letter was sent home with the student from school to parents
of the 28 students, and the final sample consists of those students (N=24) whose parent and teacher consented to
participate in the follow-up data collection. Two of the four students who did not participate in the follow-up moved
and the other two children had challenging circumstances at home making it difficult to obtain parental consent to
participate in the follow-up investigation.

. 4.2 DESIGN

The proposed investigation uses a longitudinal design relying upon previously collected data from the 2004/2005 school
year during two time points (Fall, 2004 and the Spring, 2005), and follow-up data collection from the 2005/2006 school
year (Spring, 2006). Previous data were gathered on a number of parent, teacher, and child variables relevantto children’s
performance and adjustment in school, with an emphasis on student-teacher relationship quality. Much of the same
information, described in detail in the Measures section, was gathered during the current school year.

4.5 DATA ANALYSIS

Cluster analysis is the main statistical technique used in this study. The term cluster analysis encompasses a number of
different methods for grouping cases of a similar kind into respective categories (Hair & Black, 1998). Cluster analysis
techniques attempt to identify relatively homogeneous subgroups of cases based on selected characteristics or traits.
“The resulting clusters of objects should then exhibit high internal (within-cluster) homogeneity and high external (between-
cluster) heterogeneity. Thus, if the classificationis successful, the objects with the clusters will be close together
when plotted geometrically and different clusters will be farther apart” (Hair & Black, 1998, p.147). Overall, cluster
analysis is a descriptive, noninferential technique that is mostly exploratory in nature. For the current investigation,
hierarchical cluster analysis appeared to be the most appropriate method for exploring student-teacher relationship quality.
In order to create clusters, a cluster variate(s) must be selected and for this investigation, the STRS total raw scores taken
from Spring, Year 2 were chosen as the cluster variate. An initial cluster analysis suggested that three clusters captured
the sample variation adequately. Given the small sample size, it was decided to set that three clusters as a given in the
cluster analysis. The resulting cluster memberships consisted of positive student-teacherrelationships characterized
by high levels of closeness and low levels of conflict as reported by the teachers (n=11), average student-teacher
relationships characterized by low levels of conflict and average levels of closeness as reported by the teachers (n=11), and
student-teacher relationships characterized by high levels of conflict and low levels of closeness as reported by the
teacher (n=2).