How to Develop Accuracy and Fluency in Speaking Skills in Second Language Classroom

刘曦

Abstract： This paper firstly defines the key concepts of accuracy and fluency in relation to the development of speaking skills. Then， consider the challenges presented to language teachers of ensuring that learners develop accuracy and complexity in their speaking， as well as fluency. Finally according to the teaching materials supplied， identify and evaluate the opportunities provided for the development of spoken accuracy and fluency， and explain how to exploit the materials to the fullest extent.

Key words： accuracy； fluency； speaking skills； second language classroom

[中图分类号]H319.3

[文献标识码]A

[文章编号]1006-2831（2013）05-0042-5 doi：10.3969/j.issn.1006-2831.2013.02.012

1. Accuracy and fluency in speaking skills

Speaking is a productive skill. It mainly focuses on communicating information and interacting with each other. When referring to speaking skills， accuracy and fluency are two vital aspects （Lindsay & Knight， 2006）.

1.1 Accuracy

“Accuracy includes the correct use of vocabulary， grammar and pronunciation”（Gower， Phillips & Walters， 2005）. It is possible that the rules of grammar structures， list of vocabulary， and intelligible pronunciation are the foundation of speaking skills （Lindsay & Knight， 2006）， because speakers are aiming to express their meanings by using exact words or phrases.

Some studies have already focused on the accuracy， concluding that the word order， the word endings and the pronunciation have great effect on it （Lindsay & Knight， 2006）. To be more specific， when speakers try to transfer their information， the more accurate while they use and pronounce the word， the easier listeners will understand. However， it does not mean that the speakers are requested to be always accurate， as mistakes are inevitable（Lindsay & Knight， 2006）.

1.2 Fluency

“Fluency is regarded as the ability to keep going when speaking spontaneously” （Gower， Phillips & Walters， 2005）. In other words， it can be considered as the natural language comprehension and production （Hunter， 2011）. Specifically， if a speaker can get or transfer the message correctly， regardless what mistakes they make， it is suggested that the speaker has fluent speaking ability to some extent.

According to the researches from different perspectives， the factors such as the characteristics of fluent speeches， the placing of pauses and the process of planning can account for the perception of fluency （Derwing， Munro & Thomson， 2007）， which means that these indicators of fluency are of great importance， and should be paid more attention to while in learning language.

1.3 The importance of accuracy and fluency

Accuracy and fluency both play important parts in speaking skills of second language acquisition. As in authentic communication， if the speakers have the ability to accurately use a range of grammar， vocabulary， and produce naturally sounding or intelligible utterance， the listeners may be easier to catch their meanings （Lindsay & Knight， 2006）. Moreover， the speakers are required to make sure that what they tend to say is of no excessive hesitation or they can use indirectly strategies to show their ideas， which is aimed to follow the conversation. Therefore， accuracy and fluency are both crucial in successful communication.

1.4 The relationship between accuracy and fluency

In purposeful communication situation， it is not possible that speak a language without considering the accuracy and fluency. Therefore， in classroom， which is the safe situation for students （Scrivener， 2011）， they are encouraged to practice the target language as much as possible. As mentioned above， speaking skills are based on correct use of grammar， vocabulary， and pronunciation（Lindsay & Knight， 2006）， which results in that teachers often focus on the language accuracy in classroom. However， sometimes， students can probably express their own opinions without adequate words， phrases， or structures in alternate ways to fit the flow of the conversation， which is related to language fluency （Lindsay & Knight， 2006）. The main purpose of learning a second language is to use it as a natural language （Hunter， 2011）； if speakers are able to use the language to join in a social conversation， make the listeners know what they intend to express， even some errors exist， or use the language directly to explain， it also could be a successful communication， for the reason that it achieves the goals of transferring information. Therefore， if the learners could consider combining accuracy with fluency together while using the language， their speaking skills may be promoted.

2. Challenges and problems

Nowadays， teachers play an important role in language learning； however， they are facing many difficulties which may affect the studentsspeaking skills.

2.1 How to keep the balance of accuracy and complexity， as well as fluency in speaking skills

From teachers perspective， how to develop accuracy and complexity， as well as fluency in speaking skills has been a long-term topic of debate （Hunter， 2011）. The complexity of speaking in second language is a reaction to the second language production （Hinkel， 2006）. These factors are all significant in speaking skills. However， most teachers prefer to focus on one aspect， which would always leads to the ignorance of others.

2.1.1 Teachers feedback in accuracy activities

When referring to accuracy and fluency activities， teachers feedback is in a central position. In teacher-fronted activities， teachers need to not only control or guide activities， but also focus on students performances about using the target language （Hunter， 2011）.

If the teachers only care about one question “Did the student get the language right？” and give ongoing correction， such as interrupting students （Gower， Phillips & Walters， 2005）. On the one hand， it may stimulate students memory about the accurate and complex use of language， which could help them realize the gap they need to improve. On the other hand， however， it would interrupt students fluent communication and reduce students interests in speaking the language.

2.1.2 Teachers feedback in fluency activities

In free or learner-centred activities， the main purpose is to provide authentic communication situation for students to practice language （Hunter， 2011）. Therefore， teachers often focus on the content what the students said； additionally， they give feedback to the students until the end of the activities.

In this situation， the students are more likely to express their meanings， while paying less attention to forming accuracy and complexity （Hunter， 2011）. For instance， students may have the thoughts that “since others can understand what I mean， I do not need to learn.” As a result， it is possible that students have no motivation for learning target language.

One feasible solution is that teachers are required to observe both the form and content of students language used in classroom activities， which is a great challenge for teachers.

2.2 How to improve students willingness to use target language

Some teachers are always confused that even they set up plenty of activities for students to do some language practice； however， the students are not willing to speak （Derwing， Munro & Thomson， 2007）.

2.2.1 Students factors

The reason why some students are not interested in communication can be divided into two parts. One aspect is from students individual factors. Some students may have less outgoing personalities （Derwing， Munro & Thomson， 2007）. For example， some students are too shy to express their opinions， or they intend to be listeners in communication， which leads to their reticence.

Another possible explanation is that some students do not have enough background knowledge or language to express their meaning （Derwing， Munro & Thomson， 2007）. For instance， if the activity is about sports， which most girls are not familiar with， therefore they tend to produce less； additionally， if some students are only at a beginner level of the target language， in order to avoid making some accuracy and fluency problems， they may become lacking confidence of using the target language.

2.2.2 Teachers factors

Referring to teachers aspects， one possible reason is that the materials what teachers choose are difficult for students to understand. Hughes suggested that“complexities of the speaking skills mean that materials should not be too ambitious in their aims” （Hughes， 2010）. If it is hard to make the material clear or the material is too esoteric， teachers should account for negative backwash on students language comprehensibility（Derwing， Munro & Thomson， 2007）； meanwhile， limit their using of target language.

Another possibility is that the teacherspedagogies are concentrating on the genuine and accurate language use in the classroom. It is too difficult for students to focus on the formal accuracy and communicative fluency at the same time when they engaging in the activities（Hunter， 2011）. Therefore， they become silent to get away from this challenge.

In these situations， teachers cannot find out what is the problem existing in studentstarget language using， which causes them cannot possibly help students to improve their language.

3. Analysis of the teaching material

The topic of this teaching material is a study trip， which is designed for intermediate students， including reading， listening， writing and speaking activities.

Setting up a reading task initially and providing a topic for students to think about in pre-teach activity are an effective pedagogy for students to generate interest and predict the aim of the lesson. In addition， it can ascertain intermediate students language， because they already have some knowledge about the target language. An essential factor is that the teacher is likely to give enough time for students to consider before they answer， for the reason that they may reduce the mistakes in their language performance （Harmer， 2008）， as intermediate students might have the ability to self-correct and it is a good situation for them to practice （Hunter， 2011）. For keeping fluency of this activity， the teacher may give corrective feedback to students to delay to the end of their utterances， instead of interrupting their talking. It is vital that the feedback might focus on both fluency and accuracy of students language using （Hunter， 2011）.

The next activity is “In small group， discuss the questions， and compare your answer with another group”. Discussion is a good opportunity to get learners to interact with each other （Paran， 2012）， as well as to promote intermediate students fluent language use （Harmer， 2008）， therefore the teacher does not need to give feedback when students are discussing. One important thing for teacher is that give appropriate time for studentsdiscussion. On the one hand， students need some time to prepare their language production and show their opinions to convince others（Harmer， 2008）. On the other hand， for the classroom management （Scrivener， 2011）， if some students are interested in this topic and tend to talk about something spontaneously， they may spend too much time on this activity， which may hinder the process of the whole class.

In the following， “listening for details and filling the gaps”， is not only a listening activity； meanwhile， it could be a vocabulary exercise for students to improve their speaking skills. When they listen to the recording， they need to take notes for specific details. “The more students listen， the better they get， not only understand the speech， but also at speaking themselves”（Harmer， 2008）. In other words， the learning materials are good pronunciation models， which intermediate students can follow from to self-correct their pronunciation problems. Furthermore， the key language in these gaps are about describing the advantages and disadvantages， or making some suggestions. Although this activity is focusing on accuracy， the teacher needs to check answers with the students. Afterwards， the teacher can analyze and make full use of the key language， such as how to use these vocabularies to express their opinions in daily life， which is relevant to their experiences. Moreover， it has a positive effect on using target language in authentic communicative interaction （Hunter， 2011）.

In addition， the vocabulary students have learnt in the listening activity can lay foundation for the next speaking activity “show their opinions about giving young people a lot of free time is appropriate or not”. This topic is communicative and possibly suitable for intermediate students to do group discussion to practice their language. Additionally， it can improve students negotiation ability， such as making yourselves understood by others and interruption appropriately in conversation（Hedge， 2000）. One problem is that some students may not be able to use the key language they have learnt to express their meaning. Therefore， teachers may need to write down some useful vocabularies and phrases on the blackboard to encourage students to use when they speak. What is more， perhaps the teacher can monitor the discussion， offering some suggestions to each group， which is related to their accurate and fluent use of language （Scrivener， 2011）.

The final part of a class is usually an extension activity for students to do some further practice. “Write down some suggestions for organizing a successful study trip” would be a good choice for students. However， this activity might be students individual work， for the reason that it could review what students have known about the topic； additionally， check whether their language using is accurate or not through their writing （Scrivener， 2011）. It requires students to write some solutions instead of a whole essay； thus， it will not put too much pressure on intermediate students. The teacher can ask some students to exchange their ideas after they have written down， and give some advice. This activity concentrates on their language production， aiming to develop both accuracy and fluency. Controlling the time for writing and providing some useful language on the blackboard to encourage them to use（Paran， 2012） are both of great importance in this activity.

References：

Derwing， Tracey M.， Munro， Murray J. & Thomson， RonI. A longitudinal study of ESL learners fluency and comprehensibility development[J]. Applied Linguistics， 2007（3）： 359-380.

Gower， Roger， Phillips， Diane & Walters， Steve. Teaching Practice Handbook[M]. Oxford： Macmillan Education， 2005： 99-103.

Harmer， Jeremy. How to Teach Speaking[M]. Oxford， Pearson Education， 2008： 123-133.

Hedge， Tricia. Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom[M]. Oxford： Oxford University， 2000： 259-295.

Hinkel， Eli. Current perspectives on teaching the four skills[J]. TESOL Quarterly， 2006（1）： 109-131.

Hunter， James. Small talk： developing fluency， accuracy， and complexity in speaking[J]. ELT Journal， 2011（1）： 30-41.

Lindsay， Cora & Knight， Paul. Learning and Teaching English[M]. Oxford： Oxford University， 2006： 57-61.

Paran， Amos. Language skills： questions for teaching and learning[J]. ELT Journal， 2012（4）： 450-458.

Scrivener， Jim. Learning Teaching[M]. Oxford： Macmillan Education， 2011： 211-228.