g. Tolerance of ambiguity. The learner is not disturbed or frustrated by
situations involving a temporary lack of understanding or confusion; he or she can live with these patiently, in the confidence that understanding will
come later.
21
B. Speaking
1. Definition of Speaking
Speaking is very important in our life because we, as a human being, have a need to use it to communicate each others. McDonough and Shaw defined that
“speaking is desire and purpose-driven, in other words we genuinely want to communicate something to achieve a particular end. This may involve expressing
ideas and opinions; expressing a wish or a desire to do something; negotiating andor solving a particular problem; or establishing and maintaining social
relationship and friendship. ”
22
From this definition, the writer infers that speaking is the activity to express something we want and we need.
According to Tarigan “…….. Speaking is a skill of conveying words or
sounds of articulation to express or to deliver ideas, opinions, and feelings. ”
23
From this definition, speaking is being able to use a language expressing ideas, opinion and feelings in words of speech.
Cameron gave a brief definition of speaking that is, “speaking is the active use of language to express meanings so that other people can make sense of
them.”
24
It means that speaking is what the people want to express something meaningful by using language.
Referring definition above, the writer conclude that speaking is the way to express someone feeling, ideas and opinion by using language which is the
combination of word and sound articulation.
21
Penny Ur, A Course in Language Teaching: Practice and Theory, p. 275
22
Jo McDonough and Christopher Shaw, Materials and Methods in ELT, 2
nd
Edition Teacher’s Guide Cambridge: Blackwell, 2003, p. 134
23
Henry Guntur Tarigan, Berbicara Sebagai Suatu Keterampilan Berbahasa Bandung: Angkasa, 1985, p. 16
24
Lynne Cameron, Teaching Language to Young Learners Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001, p. 40
2. The Goal of Speaking
The goal of a speaking component in language class is to encourage the acquisition of communication skills and to foster real communication in and out
of the classroom. Burkhart suggests that “to help students develop communicative
efficiency in speaking, instructors can use a balanced activities approach that combines language input, structured output, an
d communicative output.”
25
It follows then that the objectives for developing oral fluency will address this goal
by setting for specific content, activities, and methods which foster communication.
Moreover, the goal of teaching speaking skills is communicative efficiency. Learners should be able to make themselves understood, using their
current proficiency to the fullest. They should try to avoid confusion in the message due to faulty pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, and to observe the
social and cultural rules that apply in each communication situation.
3. Activities to Promote Speaking
According to McDonough and Shaw, there are some activities which are used in the classroom to promote the development of speaking skills in the
learner, they are:
26
a. Communication game
Speaking activities based on games are often a useful way of giving students valuable practice. Game-based activities can involve practice oral
strategies such as describing, predicting, simplifying, asking for feedback, through activities such as filling in questionnaires and guessing unknown information.
b. Information gap
Many speaking skills materials start from the premise that a communicative purpose can be established in the classroom by means of the
25
Grace Stovall Burkhart, Spoken Language: What It Is and How to Teach It Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics, 1998
http:www.nclrc.orgessentialsspeaking spindex.htm
26
McDonough and Shaw, Materials and Methods in ELT, p. 143
