Exploring EFL Learners’ Attitudes towards Using Chat Room Conversation for Improving their Speaking Skill

Abstract

V Dedication 3 All the Praise is due to God alone, Thanks to Allah, first and foremost for the great grace that he has bestowed upon me, I dedicate this research to those who are not matched by anyone in the universe, to whom God has commanded us to honor them, to those who have made a great deal and have given what cannot be returned, to my dear mother and father who have been my best support throughout my academic career, also I dedicate this work to my family my brothers “Oussama, Mustapha and Rafik” and my sisters “ Nawal and Selma”, and all my friends, also to my supervisor Dr, Mohammed Laoubi, who has been guiding light throughout this process, your expertise, patience, and encouragement have been invaluable. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from you as a part of my academic journey. In addition, I dedicate these words to all my teachers, May Allah reward you well and accept your efforts in your good deeds; finally, I dedicate this work for participants of this study, who generously gave their time and insights. Your contribution has been instrumental in shaping this research. I am honored to have worked with you. By Aymen BoutalbiV Abstract The present work is concerned with exploring EFL students’ challenges in speaking, and their attitudes towards using online chat rooms conversation for improving their speaking skills. It attempts to highlight the role of using online chat rooms conversation. These learners have been selected from the English department at Mohamed El Bachir El Ibrahimi University in Bourj_Bou_Arreridj. The present study aimed to explore master one learners’ perspectives and attitudes towards using online chat rooms conversation to improve their speaking skills and to shed light on the significance and effectiveness of using chat rooms in improving EFL students’ oral performance. The research instruments employed were based on a pre-questionnaire gathered from 65 students who were selected randomly. We selected out 20 students from among the 65 students for observation through an online treatment, at the end of which we administrated a postquestionnaire that was designed for them. After collecting the relevant data and analyzing it qualitatively, the results showed that the students face many linguistic and psychological difficulties in their speaking performance. In addition, the results obtained suggest that the use of online chat room conversation is effective in developing students speaking abilities and helpful in improving their speaking skills.