Browsing by Author "Guerrero Flores, Ana Cristina"

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    “Linguistic and Non-linguistic Difficulties that undergraduate students present in order to develop their English Speaking Skills”
    (Ecuador : Pujilí : Universidad Técnica de Cotopaxi (UTC), 2025-02) Guerrero Flores, Ana Cristina; González Ortiz, Olga Lorena
    Oral proficiency in English is one of the most important skills to acquire during the learning process of this language, as it allows effective communication in everyday life, academic and professional contexts, representing a great advantage in a globalized world. However, some students face barriers that hinder the correct development of this skill. Although teachers implement pedagogical strategies and different technics in their teaching procedures in order to encourage oral production, language learners are inhibited and unwilling to participate. The main objective of this research is to analyze the linguistic and non-linguistic difficulties that influence the development of English speaking skills in undergraduate students of the 3rd and 4th cycle of the Technical University of Cotopaxi during the academic period October 2024 - March 2025. The research had a qualitative approach and had a total population of 36 students. Data collection techniques such as observation through a checklist, semi-structured interviews applied to 6 students, and closed surveys forwarded to 30 students from both cycles were used. Thus, the results showed that the main linguistic difficulties were: poor pronunciation, lack of vocabulary, fluency and lack of grammar knowledge. On the other hand, non-linguistic difficulties, such as lack of self-confidence, anxiety, shyness, fear of making mistakes, fear of being judged and interference from the mother tongue, which are very common among all the students from the 3rd cycle and that mainly affected them. Consequently, it was concluded that non-linguistic difficulties have a greater impact on the development of oral skills in students.