CASE STUDY 3: “Getting EFL students to speak: an action research approach”

1. INTRODUCTION

Speaking is one of the major and problematic issues in English teaching and learning. Some learners feel afraid of talking and they face some difficulties in reaching an appropriate fluency level. They have a negative view about it, and they reflect this in class. It is necessary to analyse learning factors such as age, personality, cognitive style, learning style, curriculum, outcomes, etc. to understand what aspects influence negative experiences.
So research on learning, particularly case studies, appears to give answers. These studies look for analysing complex problems in real world contexts. They are very useful in education, social sciences,
This will provide a quantitative and a descriptive analysis of information in this case study. Questions will include closed and multiple choice questions. These would include Likert scale and yes no questions. It is important to know what learners think before implementing any kind of activity. Besides, it is essential to understand how they feel in the English class. This type of questionnaires makes easier to process information and it is more suitable for learners (see Appendix 1). Also, questionnaires have some advantages:
They are practical, and allow to record large amounts of information in a short period of time. They can be carried out by the researcher or by any number of people with, and this does not affect much its validity and reliability. The results of the questionnaires can usually be quickly and easily quantified. They can be analysed more 'scientifically' and objectively than other forms of research. Finally, they can be used to compare and contrast other research and may be used to measure change. (Ackroyd and Hughes, 1981)

2) Observation
The main focus is to compare and search differences between the initial and final records. The data will be summarised and organised. Besides, a quantitative analysis of data will be done. The frequencies, tendencies, variability and media of answers will be rated. Data will be tabulated and calculated. Then, these will be compared and analysed. Interviews will be recorded and then the transcription of these will be done. Records on the log will also be analysed and summarised to give possible conclusions and recommendations for future use. This will provide new