lsquo;Watchedrsquo; or lsquo;not watchedrsquo;: Investigating the effects of planning condition on speaking performance of ESL learners

Abstract

For ESL learners, processing time-pressure is one of the fundamental issues in speaking in English as the working memory capacity is regarded being limited in processing information. While Peter Skehan’s Limited Attentional Capacity Model (1996) argues that learners’ attention is limited, Peter Robinson’s Cognition Hypothesis (2001) claims that while performing tasks, learners can access various resource streams. Based on Rod Ellis’ (2005) framework, this study investigated the links between different stages of speech production i.e., Conceptualization, Formulation, and Articulation, and effective interventions regarding how time-pressure were handled by students of class VII with reference to complexity, accuracy, and fluency. Participants were asked to view two videos and narrate the story. The study compared the ‘Watched’ condition with a control condition. Findings of the study indicate that the ‘Watched’ condition had significantly increased fluency and complexity but had not affected accuracy of the performance of the sample.