The Impact of Teaching Chunks on Speaking Fluency of Iranian EFL Learners

Abstract

Research on multiword clusters (chunks) is based on the assumption that native speakers use plenty of chunks in their everyday language and they are considered as fluent speakers of language. Therefore the present study was an attempt to investigate the impact of using chunks on speaking fluency of Iranian EFL learners. In the first phase of the study, the students of two intermediate classes sat for a general proficiency test and then were interviewed for their speaking ability. Next, the two groups were statistically compared in terms of their general proficiency and speaking fluency which indicated that they belonged to the same population. The 18-session instruction of the control and experimental groups included the same content and skills, but the experimental group received training on how to use chunks. At the end of the instruction period, the participants were interviewed once again in a posttest to track possible differences in their speaking improvement with respect to the frequency of chunks. The findings showed that the treatment had significantly improved speaking fluency of the experimental group and that there was a direct correspondence between the number of the chunks used and the listeners' perception of the participants` speaking fluency.