Scaffolding techniques and oral communication skills

Abstract

This study investigated by applying 4 categories of techniques called Verbal Scaffolding techniques, which of them develop oral communication skills in students of English as a foreign language. The main objective of this research is to determine which of these aforementioned techniques develop the skills mentioned before. A non-experimental research was carried out in this study, where 39 8th-grade students from Fe y Alegría Basic Education School of Ambato participated. The data collected through a pre-test, activities in class or trials with the use of techniques and a post-test was computerized, tabulated and analyzed using a descriptive narrative. The objective of pre and post-test was to evaluate students’ understanding and use of basic phrases and expressions in English. Trials or activities were designed based on four verbal scaffolding techniques to develop students’ English fluency, due to the pandemic of Covid19 these trials were applied using synchronous technological tools like Zoom. Verbal scaffolding techniques like: the use of synonyms and antonyms, corrective feedback, cognates and familiar chunks and peer tutoring proved to be significant techniques in the development of oral communication skills in the area of fluency. These activities were developed during 12 weeks to the 39 students. Likewise, for the correct verification of the hypothesis, the Pearson chi-square statistical test was used, as well as the Student's T statistical test, which is used to determine if there is a significant difference between the means of two groups, in this case a significant difference between the pre-test and post-test means. These statistical techniques proved the hypothesis of the study. Therefore, the 4 categories of scaffolding techniques before mentioned develop independence working in students, they demonstrated to gradually help students to work independently also these study results show that the application of Scaffolding techniques develops oral communication skills in students in the area of fluency.