Developing Saudi EFL Students’ Oral Skills: An Integrative Approach

This study investigates the problems of EFL/ESL university students’ unwillingness to speak and take part in class discussions. Saudi students find it inappropriate to speak in class because of their fear to be seen as verbally challenging their teachers' views openly and publicly. Even when they do, they speak a little. This leads to frustration on the side of the teacher, in addition to the absence of any clear feedback from the students- whether they have/have not under­stood the lecture. The study proposes an integrative approach addressing this problem by integrating all the four communication skills, in addition to the sociolinguistic factor. It has been conducted at the English Department, Qassim University, KSA. The results show that the students have exhibited a considerable improvement in the oral skills. In short, the integrative approach procedure has been generally useful in overcoming those hurdles of students' reticence to communicate, participate, and interact with one another in class discussions.