The effects of differentiated speaking instruction using computer-mediated communication and project work on Thai undergraduate students' English speaking proficiency and communication strategies

Abstract

This study investigates the effects of the Differentiated Speaking Instruction using Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) and Project Work (DCP) on Thai undergraduate students' English speaking proficiency. It also compares their perceived use of communication strategies before and after the intervention. The participants were 9 undergraduate students majoring in English. During the 10-week intervention, students design a multimedia project work using asynchronous (audioblogs) and synchronous (voice chats) CMC. The quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed in order to investigate the effectiveness of the intervention as well as the perceived use of students’ communication strategies. Students’ pre-test and post-test English Speaking Proficiency test scores were compared using the Wilcoxon Matched-Paired Signed Ranks Tests. Communication Strategy Inventory was designed to compare their perceived use of communication strategies. Conversation analysis was employed to examine students' use of communication strategies via CMC. Finally, a semi-structured interview was conducted to elicit their opinions about the intervention. The findings from the quantitative data show that students gain significantly higher scores after participating in this intervention (p < .05). However, there is no significant difference between their mean scores on the Communication Strategy Inventory before and after the intervention. The findings from the qualitative data reveal five major categories of CMC communication strategies. They are compensatory, time-gaining, emphasis, avoidance, and interactional strategies. Patterns of communication strategies emerging from the data are the use of multiple strategies for one target, multiple functions of one strategy, forms of message abandonment, and negotiated interaction. Students reflect in the semi-structured interview that DCP creates a positive learning environment that stimulates their participation and contributes to improvement in their English speaking ability.