Section I
1. Criteria involved in the teaching of speaking
Bygate (1987: vii) refers to speaking as an undervalued skill and he attributes
this to the fact that we can almost all speak, and so we take the skill for granted.
However, the teaching of speaking deserves some more attention as the way it is
learned in a foreign language classroom is very different to the way a first language is
acquired within its natural environment.
This section justifies the need for teaching speaking for a number of reasons.
Then it refers to the characteristics of spoken language which students should become
familiar with in order to become effective communicators. Finally, it provides a
methodology for teaching so that a speaking lesson can be as effective as possible.
1.1 Why teach speaking?
The teaching of speaking can be multiply beneficial to the students for
communicative, pedagogic and cognitive reasons. More specifically:
Speaking is the means of communication par excellence. Mercer (1994: 95)
stresses that: “Through talking-and listening- information gets shared,
explanations are offered, ideas may change, alternative perspectives become
available.” However, as according to West (2000, Unit 2) speaking in the
classroom is usually considered as a means to demonstrate learning rather
than a communicative activity, the teaching of speaking should move from
what Widdowson (1978: 3) calls usage (i.e. knowledge of the language
system) to what he calls use (i.e. the realization of language as meaningful
communicative behaviour).
Speaking is also an invaluable tool for learning as, according to Bygate (1987:
vii), it is the medium through which most language is learnt and a skill which
for many people is particularly conductive for learning. The contribution of
speaking to the learning process is also stressed in Follard and Robertson
(1978:282) who point out that speaking introduces and practices elements of
spoken language and brings passive knowledge into active use.
Finally, according to West (2000, U 1: 12) language development is related to
cognitive development. Vygotsky (1968: 48) stresses that: “Real concepts are
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