An investigation of prospective english language teachers’ spoken communication skills: A case from Turkey

Abstract

This study aims to investigate and promote pre-service English language teachers' competence in basic elements of spoken communication. In the study a group of 64 non-native pre-service teachers of English in the Oral Communication Skills course in a pre-service English Language Teaching department at the tertiary level in Turkey specifically practised the segmental and prosodic features of English, connected speech, and spoken language conventions through a number of spoken communication activities and tasks. With the purpose of evaluating participants' English pronunciation prior to the course and also after the course, a student questionnaire was administered and focused on students' self-assessment in word pronunciation, word stress, sentence stress, accuracy, intonation, word linking, assimilation, elision, and contraction before and after the course as well as the effect of course activities. The data findings indicated poor or average competence in various components of spoken communication prior to the study; whereas, the participants reported significant improvement in all these components as they improved basic components of spoken communication through various interactive course activities.