Investigating the Perceptions of EFL Instructors in Improving the Oral Proficiency of Saudi EFL Learners—A Case Study of Majmaah University

Abstract

This study aims to explore and investigate University English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instructors’ perceptions of enhancing and improving EFL learners’ oral proficiency in English classrooms in Saudi Arabia and real-life communication. The researcher used a mixed-method approach to achieve the aim of the study. The quantitative method involves the construction of a structured questionnaire based on the EFL instructors’ views to enhance the students’ oral proficiency and was distributed among 30 EFL teachers from Majmaah University. In the quantitative phase, in-depth interviews were conducted with a subset of 6 EFL instructors to gain deeper insights into EFL instructors’ perceptions of improving EFL learners’ oral proficiency. The findings of the study explored that, EFL instructors at Majmaah University agreed that oral proficiency is the most important aspect of overall language proficiency, and they used various strategies to improve the students’ oral proficiency with a clear preference for role-playing, presentations, group discussions, and debates. The findings also stated some problems and challenges such as limited class time, large class sizes, and low student motivation faced by EFL instructors to improve learners’ oral proficiency. The study finally, recommends including the incorporation of more communicative activities, the integration of technology, and the provision of professional development workshops. The findings of the study can give a path to provide some new strategies to overcome the problems and challenges faced by EFL instructors for enhancing EFL learners’ oral proficiency.