How to Improve the Ability of Speaking

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Abstract: This paper shows the importance of listening, speaking during learning English. Many students grasp well in reading and writing, but disregard listening and speaking. This paper elaborates the reason of causing the problems and gives the conclusion that using English is the final aim of learning English.

Key words: listening;speaking bottom-up processes; top-down processes;free discussion

1.Introduction

In the course of learning English, middle school students do well in reading and writing, but sometimes they neglect the importance of listening and speaking. So we must take this phenomenon seriously. This paper resolves this question from different perspective.

2. Speaking

2.1Talking about speaking English Teachers have a choice of two basic approaches, which Richards(1990) has called direct and indirect. The direct approach applies a systematic analysis to the elements of speaking competence and tasks students through a programmed of awareness-raising and practice. The indirect approach simply involves students in conversation through free discussion and gives them opportunities to practice these things in classroom activities.

2.2 How to practice speaking in the classroom There could be several answers. One is that for many students, learning to speak competently in English is priority. They may need this skill for a variety of reasons, for example to keep up rapport in relationships, influence people, and win or lose negotiations. It is a skill by which they are judged while first impressions are being formed. But learning to speak competently is a complex task. Course book writers often use the term 'fluency' to describe the aim of the speaking activities they provide.

In order to speak fluently in the daily life, we should pay attention to the following points.

(1) The language chosen for a particular, message will depend on the setting, the relative status of the participants, and their role relationship. For example, one friend might to say to another, 'I'm opening the window, OK?' whereas a stranger might say to another, 'Do you mind if I open the window?' Fluency means responding coherently within the turns of the conversation, linking words and phrases, using intelligible pronunciation and appropriate intonation, and doing all of this without undue hesitation. This implies that speakers can interpret and assess the meaning of what they hear and formulate appropriate responses.

(2)As communicative approaches have developed, teachers have been concerned to ensure that students not only practice speaking in a controlled way in order to produce features of pronunciation, vocabulary and structure accurately, but also practice using these features more freely in purposeful communication.

(3) Studies of the native speaker conversation have provided us with insights into what it involves in terms of managing interaction. For example, there are skills relating to opening and closing conversation, to the sharing of time, to taking turns and contributing both shorter and longer turns as appropriate, to attending to and responding to one's interlocutor, and to interrupting, If any of these are lacking or poorly performed, then communication can break down. And the reasons for the breakdown may be lack of language to under these skills effectively or difference in the cultural conventions associated with them.

(4)Speakers need to use communication strategies of various kinds when they lack of words, phrases, or structures in English.

2.3Free discussion Free discussion can provide important opportunities for developing fluency. Ideally, over a period of time, free discussion activities will involve students in taking about a range of topics that engage in their interests, opinions, histories and experience.

Free discussion can also encourage students to use the language needed to sustain conversation over a period of time by drawing other speakers. In fact, the greatest advantage of free discussion has different types of activity. This is the opportunity that provides for students to practice the strategies required in interpersonal communication, for example, talking, introducing a topic or shifting to a new topic, and encouraging responses and other contributions.

Teachers often worry about less fluency activities because there are problems to overcome; for example, students' anxiety in formulating opinions or ideas about topics, which may be unfamiliar and which they never discussed in their first language; the possibility of a few more confident, extrovert, or proficient students dominating, or the possibility of the teacher dominating in his or her efforts to stimulate a quiet group. Free discussion, even it takes place in small groups, does not ensure participation from all members. For these reasons, discussion usually needs support.

One kind of support comes from the amount of information given by the teacher or materials. For example, uses a picture and quotations which focus the discussion and provide content and linguistic resources.

Another kind of support comes from phasing the activity with careful instructions. The students prepare for their discussion by writing down some ideas. If phases are not included in the materials, teachers can add their own. For example, many teachers add a quiet time as a first stage for individual brainstorming of a topic. This respects the differences among learners, for example that some people need to think before giving opinions. The teachers will also need to decide whether or not there is to be a reporting stage when students hear about the decisions and ideas of other groups. This can be done by re-forming groups, which members drawn from each of the earlier groups to report on discussion they had. This has the advantage of making it necessary for students to follow the arguments of their group in order to report these accurately and may encourage strategies for negotiation of meaning. It also provides practice in the 'reporting' style of monologue.

A third kind of support comes from structuring interactions with suggestions for group roles, such as chair or secretary, though the teacher will need to monitor the choice of spokesperson from one activity to another to ensure equality of opportunity for public monologue. The questions of roles, in fact, needs careful thought as, ideally, students need to have control over as many aspects of the interaction as possible, freedom to interrupt, choose topics and change topics. Teachers need to realize what is gained and what is lost if they suggest the appointment of rules.

2.4. Conclusion

In order to learn English well, we must pay attention to using it. In a word, master four skills listening, speaking, reading and writing wholly. In this paper I quote several more restraints, which hinders the middle school students from correct listening and speaking. However, my intention here is not to make an overall description of the known facts, but take several examples to illustrate how to improve speaking and listening. To make students be good at speaking and listening, we must practice according to illustration, for example, master the words efficiently, pay attention to the environments the speaker live and learn about the history of English country and knowledge and so on. What's more, to improve listening and speaking, the important is confidence.

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