Mobile apps and speaking skill

Abstract

This research project entitled "Mobile applications and speaking skill" has useful information about the Busuu app and its influence on speaking ability and subskills. The study aims to analyze how mobile applications influence students' speaking ability. The population consisted of 31 students, 22 women and 9 men, in the third semester of "Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros" at Universidad Tecnica de Ambato. This study had a duration of seven weeks of virtual and face to face interventions. Face to face interventions were 5, virtual interventions were 3 due to the national strike that occurred in the country and asynchronous interventions were 3. The research was qualitative and quantitative, so a mixed approach was used with an experimental approach and the analysis of the two variables. For data collection it was necessary to apply a test. A pre-test was created according to the Cambridge Preliminary English Exam in order to assess oral skills. Then, with the data obtained in the pre-test, the interventions were developed with the Busuu app, and they had the opportunity to practice and learn new vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. Finally, a post-test from the same Cambridge university was applied to measure the relationship between the Busuu app and its improvement in speaking skills. For the evaluation of the pre-test and post-test, a standardized 5-point rubric was used, and the categories were: grammar and vocabulary, discourse management, pronunciation, and interactive communication. it was determined that there is a great influence of Busuu application on speaking skills because the students showed good progress in the results and put the learned pronunciation into practice.