Preparing EFL Learners for Oral Presentations

Jane King

ABSTRACT
                                              
The communicative approach to English teaching has been very popular in many EFL college conversation classes. Having students give oral presentations in front of the class is one of learner-centered activities that has been widely included in teachers’ lesson plans to improve students’ oral proficiency.  However, students’ oral presentation problems sometimes defeat the purpose of developing language skills.  Thus, the purpose of this paper is first to discuss the appropriateness of this activity in EFL educational and cultural contexts.  Second, oral presentation problems such as speech anxiety, group boredom and the lack of presentation skills are discussed.  Third, the teacher’s role in teaching the pre-requisite skills and as facilitator in guiding students through the process is defined.  Finally, a step-by-step procedure of how to prepare students for successful oral presentations is presented. 

Key words: oral presentation, speech anxiety, the communicative approach, and public speaking