Errata: An uncorrected proof of Dr. Jenifer Larson-Hall's article was inadvertently posted, but has been replaced with the corrected version.
Article appearing in Shiken 20.1 (June 2016) pp. 1-11.
Author: Jenifer Larson-Hall
Kitakyushu University
Abstract:
This study reports on using fluency awareness to develop speaking ability for Japanese students over a one-year course in communicative English. Past studies on fluency and speaking rate are reviewed and classroom practices designed to promote fluency are explained. A simple test with scores that are easily calculated and understood by students for generating fluency scores is described. This test can be used by speaking teachers for a rough estimate of fluency in low-stakes classroom assessments. The statistical analyses done for this study found that students showed substantial progress in their fluency in terms of words per minute over the course of a year.
Keywords: Fluency, fluency awareness, speaking ability, speaking rate