Developing English-Speaking Skills through Cooperative Learning Techniques for Grade 9 Students in a Thai Small-School Context
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Abstract
This study investigated the effectiveness of Cooperative Learning (CL) techniques in developing English-speaking skills among Grade 9 students at Charoonkimleekitchatornanusorn School, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, Thailand. The study had three objectives: to identify students’ initial speaking problems, to examine the effectiveness of CL-based instruction, and to investigate students’ satisfaction with the instructional intervention. A pre-experimental one-group pretest-posttest design was employed. The participants were 12 Grade 9 students selected through total population sampling. The instructional treatment consisted of six English lesson plans implemented over 12 periods (600 minutes). The plans integrated CL techniques such as Think-Pair-Share, Pair Interview, STAD, Jigsaw, role-play, group discussion, storytelling, and information-gap activities. Research instruments included six lesson plans, an English-speaking skills test with five analytic components (grammar, pronunciation, vocabulary, interaction and communication, and fluency; total score = 100), and a 20-item satisfaction questionnaire using a five-point Likert scale. Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and paired-sample t-test. The findings showed that students initially experienced speaking difficulties in all components, especially interaction and communication (55.40%), fluency (57.50%), and vocabulary (59.15%). After the intervention, the mean score increased from 61.50 to 79.33, with a statistically significant gain of 17.83 points (t = 29.07, p < .001). Improvement occurred in all speaking components and among all 12 students. Students’ satisfaction was also high overall (M = 4.18, SD = 0.14). The findings suggest that CL techniques can effectively enhance English-speaking performance and create a supportive, low-anxiety learning environment for lower secondary students in small-school EFL settings.
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