The use of YouTube in developing the speaking skills of Jordanian EFL university students

Riyad F Hussein,Ahmad S Haider,Saleh Al-Salman,Hadeel A Saed

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07543

Riyad F Hussein, Ahmad S Haider + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07543

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Journal: Heliyon	Publication Date: Jul 1, 2021
Citations: 25	License type: cc-by

Affiliation: Applied Science Private University

Abstract

This study examines the effectiveness of using YouTube videos in teaching the speaking skills among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students in Jordan. The study sample comprised 80 students attending Oral Skills classes in the English Language and Literature Department at a private university in Jordan. The participants were equally divided into a control group and an experimental group of 40 students each. The experimental group was taught through the use of YouTube videos, while the control group was taught the speaking skills using the traditional approach. A pre-test and a post-test were administered to the two groups. Four TEFL experts were asked to rate the participants’ performance using the IELTS speaking band descriptors, which consist of four main categories: fluency & coherence, lexical resource, grammatical range & accuracy, and pronunciation. The findings showed that the performance of the two groups was improved. However, compared to the traditional group, the experimental group demonstrated a relatively better improvement. The results also showed significant progress in the speaking performance of the students subjected to the YouTube experiment. Of all the four constructs under investigation, pronunciation and fluency & coherence were the most noticeably advanced in the performance of the YouTube experimental group. The present study recommends that YouTube videos be embedded into the EFL classroom to improve students' speaking skills.

Highlights

Technology has invaded every aspect of our lives, the most vital of which is education, where the teaching-learning process is the prime target
The findings showed that the use of YouTube resulted in clear progress in the students' speaking skills, especially vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, and fluency
We first checked whether or not there is significant progress in the speaking performance of the students who were subjected to the two teaching methods, i.e., we compared the students' performance before and after taking the Oral Skills course

Summary

Introduction

Technology has invaded every aspect of our lives, the most vital of which is education, where the teaching-learning process is the prime target. We live in a world dominated by state-of-the-art digital technology featuring smartphones, iPads, and YouTube videos supported by highly sophisticated ICT applications in all walks of life, top among which is education To cope with this sweeping wave of change in educational technology, educators, curriculum designers, and experts in EFL pedagogy have been cognizant of the pressing need for a parallel shift in teaching and testing strategies at all levels of education. Proponents of this shift have become more affirmative in their demands in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and its huge challenges, forcing a global shift in the teaching-learning paradigm towards online learning (Almahasees et al, 2021; Haider and Al-Salman, 2020b). This emerging situation has brought about new realities that made education technology a necessity, which will perhaps set the stage for blended and/or full-fledged online learning much sooner than ever (Dhawan, 2020; Li and Lalani, 2020; Martin et al, 2020)

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