USING GROUP WORK STRATEGY TO FOSTER BEGINNER LEARNERS’ SPEAKING PERFORMANCE IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS EFL CLASSROOMS IN BENIN

Abstract

This paper is designed to examine productive and tenable ways to solve the problem of learners’ failure to speak English as a foreign language. This study adopted quantitative and qualitative approach and is an attempt to explore the significance of group work on EFL beginner

speaking performance in Beninese classrooms. A review of literary sources on group work has uncovered the potentials of group work to improve learners’ speaking abilities. As such, a study population of 18 EFL teachers and 250 students in beginner classes randomly selected helped collect data for the questionnaire administered and the class observation in the second semester of the school year 2023-2024. The results indicate that group work is hardly used in classrooms, in general, before we even talk about using it to improve learners’ communicative skills. The current    research suggests that EFL teachers should be trained on the productive use of group work in creating a safe, relaxed and engaging classroom atmosphere that promotes interactions. Such solutions seem to be crucial to fight learners’ failure in speaking English as a foreign language and improve their speaking competence.