An action research study into the role of student negotiation in enhancing perceived student engagement during English speaking classes at university level in Turkey

Abstract

A major issue in English language teaching in Turkey and other monolingual countries is the teaching of spoken English. This article reports the initial and final stages of an action research study which used student negotiation to enhance student engagement in speaking classes. The research was conducted in the English Language Teaching Department of a university in Turkey and involved the provision of student-negotiated speaking classes for one term during which qualitative and quantitative data collected from students through questionnaires on a weekly basis informed the design of the speaking activities. The results of content analysis and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests showed that student negotiation promoted student engagement through providing speaking classes appropriate to students’ needs and interests, which resulted in more positive perceived speaking ability and greater willingness to communicate. This study demonstrates the significance of student negotiation in speaking classes and has implications for enhancing student engagement in speaking classroom activities.

Keywords:

• Student negotiation
• educational action research
• student engagement
• teaching speaking
• teaching English as a foreign language
• mixed-methods research

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the students and the research collaborator, Dr Mary Altay, who played an important role in the research process. We also thank Dr İsmail Hakkı Erten for offering his invaluable comments on an earlier draft.