The effects of drama-based instruction on English oral communication ability and motivation in learning English of eleventh grade students

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to examine the effects of drama-based instruction on eleventh grade students’ oral communication ability and motivation in learning English. The drama-based instruction included drama games, role-playing, improvisation and simulation. The participants of this study were thirty five eleventh grade students at Demonstration School, Prince of Songkla University. The paired sample t-test was applied to investigate the differences between the mean scores from the pre and post oral communication ability test and student motivation questionnaire.

The results of the analyses revealed that (1) there was a significant difference between the mean scores from the pre and post oral communication ability test at the significant level of .05 (2) there was a significant difference between the mean scores from the pre and post student motivation questionnaire at the significant level of .05 and (3) students reported the positive attitudes towards learning through drama-based instruction. It can be implied that eleventh grade students improved their oral communication ability as well as their motivation in learning English after the implementation of drama-based instruction.