Kenneth Lloyd Tano

The usage of TELL to address the English conversational skills of the Grade 5 De Los Santos Students KENNETH LLOYD GOZO TANO TEACHER I KABACAN ELEMNTARY SCHOOL Statement of the Problem One of the most prevalent issues in my classroom that affects the learning of my students is their English Speaking ability. The purpose of learning English is for the students to be able to use it as a means of communication either by speech or written. Hence, mastering English language is a priority for English as a Second Language (ESL) learners. Ricard (2010) mentioned that mastery of speaking skills in English is a must for many ESL learners. Learners consequently often evaluate their success in language learning as well as the effectiveness of English course on the basis of how much they feel have improved in their spoken language proficiency. However, what makes speaking very difficult to build in the classroom is that the activities conducted also do not give students chances to speak. Mostly, the teacher only explains over and over again rather than giving students opportunity to practice the target language. The speaking activities done by the students are commonly dialogue practices, which are not interesting and challenging. The students only have to memorize their turns in the dialogue. There is no real communication in the activity, so the ultimate goal of learning English is not reached. Besides, in learning English, the students have to use the language as if they are communicating in real life situation. The teaching and learning process should be meaningful. Thornbury (2005) emphasized that speaking activities in the classroom should engage students to get involved in group works and to let the students experience how to use the target language. While in the actual implementation in the classroom, the activities do not really help the students to speak up. The activities are monotonous and not communicative. The students often find themselves lost and bored when learning English because of this. With this, every language learner desires to acquire correct communicative skills and fluency in speaking, while teachers aim to give the necessary education in speaking, as well. In this problem, the researcher seeks to improve the conversational English ability of the students. Most students don’t even know the meaning of “Where do you live?” They can’t even answer in complete sentences. This problem is prevalent in my classroom. 95% of the students can’t even respond to the question “How are you?”. Indeed, their conversational English ability is poor. With this, the researcher seeks to introduce simple English conversational phrases and sentences that are relevant to real life situations. Review of Related Literature Speaking is an interactive process of constructing meaning that involves producing, receiving and processing information (Burns & Joyce, 1997). Cotter (2007) argues that as students learn to use English in the classroom setting, they should also be involved in learning about how language works. They should be asked to reflect on various aspects of language, to develop a common language for talking about language, and to use this knowledge to evaluate texts critically in terms of effectiveness, meaning and accuracy. ‘Someone who speaks well would similarly understand when to use different grammar points. Backlund, (1990) assigns three areas of knowledge that influence oral communication effectiveness: social knowledge, self-knowledge, and content knowledge. If any one of these is weak oral communication will be somewhat impaired. Other problems that hinder oral communication are: dominating the conversation, using inappropriate volume and pitch, using excessive small talk ignoring someone and constantly interrupting people. Bashiruddin, (2003) conducted a study to improve student's Oral Communication Skills (OCSs) in lower secondary public. The usage of the vernacular language is common in the school. With this the communication skills of the students is weak since the English language teachers (ELTs) are not proficient in speaking English. Urrutia, & Vega (2006) did a research on improving the speaking skills of the student using games and fun filled activities. The results of the study are that most of the students considered that speaking English is difficult to work out. In addition, the researchers have identified that students sometimes spoke English, but the majority of them use their vernacular language during their English class. Rama, Ying, lee & Luei (2007) conducted an action research study on the usage of language games to address the speaking problems of elementary students. Having a total of 78 participants the researchers used two different methods for two different groups; they divided students into experimental group in which the intervention is being implemented while the other control group was focused on the traditional method in which the teacher used real-life activities that includes essential vocabulary words to perform a conversation. Hamzah & Ting, (2009) conducted a qualitative and action research study on success of using group work in teaching speaking in English. The researchers conducted three oral activities where students were observed then they received questionnaires and three experienced teachers where observed as well. Questionnaires, observations and interviews were used as data collection instruments. The researchers carried out a series of questionnaires in Malay language were students could provide their opinions about the group work activities to improve speech skills and their consciousness of participation in those activities. The results of the study expressed enthusiasm in group work activities and proficiency in spoken language, because they were secure of expressing themselves in small groups which avoided anxiety to speak in another language. Intervention Technology can stimulate the playfulness of learners and immerse them in a variety of scenarios (Bahadorfar et.al, 2014). In addition, technology gives learners a chance to engage in self-directed actions, opportunities for self-paced interactions, privacy, and a safe environment in which errors get corrected and specific feedback is given. With this, the researcher will use Technology Enhanced Language Learning (TELL) to address the English conversational skills of the Grade V De Los Santos students. (TELL) or Technology-enhanced language learning deals with the impact of technology on teaching and learning a second language also called the L2. TELL refers to the use of computer as a technological innovation to display multimedia as a means of complementing a teaching method language teacher. TELL is not a teaching method but rather an approach that can be used alongside a teaching method to help in the learning process (Kranthi, 2017). Using TELL the researcher conducted series of activities during English class with the use of multimedia. Students were exposed to conversational videos that enable them to imitate the conversation. After which, students were given the chance to perform the conversation in the class with a partner or in a group. Everyday there is a “CONVO OF THE DAY” in which students will watch a certain conversation for the day and then they will perform that in front of the teacher. It will also serve as their exit ticket before going home. Students are also encouraged to contextualize their conversation in their own locality. Findings Based on the intervention being conducted, the summary of findings was provided: 1. The level of English Conversational skills of the Grade 5 De Los Santos students before intervention can be observed as low. Approximately 95% of the students cannot even respond to the question “How are you?” . 2. The level of English Conversational skills of the Grade 5 De Los Santos students after intervention can be observed as high. Approximately 80% of the students can now converse to simple English conversation questions. 3. There is a significant difference before and after intervention was implemented. Students can also respond using complete sentences. Recommendations The following recommendations were offered: 1. 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