Understanding Oral Fluency in English from Students' Perspectives

Öz

In recent years, research on how to promote students’ oral fluency has proliferated due to its central role in effective communication. However, given its complex nature, oral fluency remains a contested concept among educators, learners, and assessors. Notably, in-depth research from learners’ perspectives is limited, although such perspectives can offer valuable pedagogical insights. This phenomenological qualitative study aimed to address this gap by exploring undergraduate students’ experiences and conceptualizations of oral fluency and the factors shaping its development. Data were collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews with ten undergraduate civil aviation students enrolled in an English speaking skills course. Thematic analysis revealed that students’ prior experiences with oral fluency were highly limited and that most held predominantly transactional conceptions, associating fluency with rapid, uninterrupted speech based on linguistic resources. The findings further indicated that cognitive, social, and affective constraints jointly shape oral fluency development. In response, learners expressed a preference for classroom environments that combine sustained L2-mediated interaction with individualized pedagogical support. By foregrounding learners’ voices, the study contributes to a more holistic understanding of oral fluency as a psychologically mediated, socially situated, and emotionally regulated construct, with implications for designing more learner-responsive approaches to fluency development in higher education.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• oral fluency in English
• learners' perspectives
• oral fluency conceptualization
• oral fluency development

Destekleyen Kurum

No financial support was received for this study.

Etik Beyan

This study was conducted in accordance with research and publication ethics and ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of Kırklareli University on 10 October 2024 with no. E-35523585-199-137826.

Teşekkür

The author would like to thank all the experts, reviewers and the participants for their contribution to the study.

Öğrencilerin Bakış Açısından Akıcı İngilizce Konuşmayı Anlamak

Öz

Son yıllarda, etkili iletişimi sağlamadaki rolü nedeniyle akıcı konuşmanın sınıf ortamında nasıl geliştirilebileceği üzerine yapılan araştırmalar artmaktadır. Ancak karmaşık doğasından ötürü akıcı konuşma; eğitimci, öğrenci, ölçme ve değerlendiriciler için hâlâ tartışılan bir kavram olmayı sürdürmektedir. Özellikle de akıcı konuşmayı öğrencilerin bakış açısından derinlemesine ele alarak, akıcılığın sınıf ortamında daha etkili şekilde geliştirilmesini sağlayabilecek araştırmaların sınırlı kaldığı görülmektedir. Olgubilim desenindeki bu nitel çalışma, üniversite öğrencilerinin akıcı İngilizce konuşma kavramı hakkındaki deneyimlerini, kavramlaştırmalarını ve akıcı konuşmanın gelişimini etkileyen faktörleri inceleyerek, bu boşluğu doldurmayı amaçlamıştır. Bu amaçla, İngilizce konuşma becerileri dersini alan on sivil havacılık programı öğrencisi ile yüz yüze görüşmeler gerçekleştirilmiştir. Görüşmelerden elde edilen verilerin tematik analiz sonuçları, öğrencilerin akıcı İngilizce konuşma ile ilgili deneyimlerinin oldukça sınırlı olduğunu ve akıcı konuşmanın öğrenciler tarafından başta hızlı ve kesintisiz konuşma ile ilişkili ve dilbilgisel unsurlara dayalı, aktarımsal bir kavram olarak algılandığını ortaya koymuştur. Dahası, sonuçlar hem bilişsel hem de sosyal ve duyuşsal faktörlerin, akıcı konuşmanın gelişiminde rol oynadığını göstermiştir. Buna bağlı olarak, öğrenciler akıcı konuşmanın sınıf ortamında geliştirilebilmesi için bireyselleştirilmiş öğretimle desteklenmiş bir hedef dil topluluğu oluşturulmasına ihtiyaç olduğunu vurgulamışlardır. Çalışma, öğrencilerin bakış açılarını ve akıcı konuşmanın bilişsel, sosyal ve duyuşsal boyutlarını vurgulayarak, akıcı konuşmanın daha bütüncül bir şekilde anlaşılması ve geliştirilmesine katkı sağlamaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• akıcı İngilizce konuşma
• öğrenci bakış açısı
• akıcı konuşmanın kavramlaştırılması
• akıcı konuşmanın gelişimi

Destekleyen Kurum

Bu çalışma için herhangi bir kurumdan finansal bir destek alınmamıştır.

Etik Beyan

Bu çalışma, araştırma ve yayın etiği ilkeleri uyarınca, Kırklareli Üniversitesi Rektörlüğü Bilimsel Araştırmalar ve Yayın Etiği Kurulu'nun 10 Ekim 2024 tarih ve E-35523585-199-137826 sayılı etik kurul izni ile gerçekleştirilmiştir.

Teşekkür

Çalışmaya önerileri ile katkı sağlayan tüm uzman, değerlendiriciler ve çalışmanın katılımcılarına teşekkürlerimi sunarım.

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