CLT activities and their potential to improve oral communication and reduce anxiety: teacher's and students' perceptions and attitudes

Abstract

Communicative language teaching activities have been proven to impact the EFL students’ abilities to perform better in English. An ample number of studies have been conducted to identify the effects CLT activities on learners’ oral communication skills. Meanwhile, only a few studies have been conducted within the Armenian context. Additionally, very little is known about how the students from the regions might benefit from the implementation of CLT activities in their classrooms. As Armenia was part of the Soviet Union, most of the teaching methods and approaches used nowadays, have the effect of the previously used techniques. The use of such traditional methods, however, does not leave positive marks on the learners’ language development process. Moreover, such methods make learners feel anxious about speaking in L2. Therefore, the current study employed action research to investigate the perceived potential of CLT activities to improve Armenian EFL learners’ speaking and reduce their oral communication anxiety. It also aspired to determine the attitudes both the teacher and students had in relation to the method. The CLT activities were implemented in the Shirak region with an EFL teacher and her 6th grade students. The data were collected through observations, interviews, and surveys and analyzed using the triangulation technique. The findings of the study revealed the positive and negative sides of CLT implementation. The results also showed the teacher’s and students positive attitudes toward the method and activities.