DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14483/22487085.19266Published:
2024-07-02Issue:
Vol. 26 No. 1 (2024): January-JuneSection:
Pedagogical InnovationsThe Contribution of the Tandem App on Tourism Undergraduates’ Speaking Fluency in English
La contribución de la aplicación Tandem en la fluidez oral en inglés de estudiantes de turismo
Keywords:
aplicación Tandem, conciencia de fluidez, conciencia de fluidez, fluidez hablada, pausas, rango del habla, aplicación Tandem, pausas, rango del habla (es).Keywords:
fluency awareness, pauses, speaking fluency, speech rate, Tandem app (en).Downloads
Abstract (en)
Speaking English fluently in social and professional settings has become a major requirement in the Tourism industry. With this in mind, this action research study explores how the Tandem application supports the speaking fluency of Tourism students in English. The study’s sample was comprised of seven participants from a Chilean professional institute who took part in four weekly online intervention sessions. Participants used the Tandem app to communicate with native and non-native speakers of English through voice messages during and after the intervention sessions. Their oral fluency was assessed by contrasting their speech rate and use of long pauses during a pre-and a post-session English fluency interview. Additionally, participants´ perceptions were collected through a semi-structured interview conducted in Spanish. Findings revealed that there was a slight, but nonetheless statistically significant in accordance with the Wilcoxon test, improvement in the fluency of their speaking. Participants agreed that the use of the application as a tool was beneficial and helped them to increase their speaking fluency and confidence by interacting with native and non-native speakers of English.
Abstract (es)
Hablar en inglés de manera fluida en contextos sociales y profesionales se ha convertido en un requisito importante en la industria del turismo. Este estudio de investigación-acción explora cómo la aplicación Tandem contribuye a que los estudiantes de Turismo desarrollen fluidez oral en inglés. La muestra de este estudio estuvo compuesta por siete integrantes de un instituto profesional chileno, quienes participaron en una intervención semanal de cuatro sesiones online. Los participantes utilizaron la aplicación Tandem para comunicarse con hablantes nativos y no nativos de inglés, a través de mensajes de voz, durante y después de cada sesión. Su fluidez oral se evaluó contrastando su ritmo de habla y el uso de pausas durante entrevistas en inglés previas y posteriores a la intervención. Las percepciones de los participantes se recogieron mediante una entrevista semiestructurada realizada en español. Los resultados revelaron una ligera mejora en fluidez, estadísticamente significativa según la prueba de Wilcoxon. Los alumnos concordaron en que el uso de la aplicación Tandem fue beneficioso, pues les ayudó a aumentar su fluidez oral y su confianza al interactuar con hablantes nativos y no nativos de inglés.
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