TASK-BASED ORAL COMMUNICATION TEACHING

Abstract

Oral communication fulfills a number of general and discipline-specific academic functions. It is vital to learn to speak, since it provides students a set of skills they can use all through their lives. Speaking is the mode of communication used very often to express opinions, make arguments, offer explanations, transmit information, and make impressions upon others. Students need to speak well in their personal lives, future workplaces, social interactions, and political endeavors. They will have to attend meetings, make presentations, participate in discussions and arguments, and work with groups. If necessary instruction and opportunities to practice speaking are available, students place themselves to achieve a wide range of goals and be useful members of their communities. This paper describes the applications of the task-based approach to teach oral communication skills in an academic setting. A course “Oral Communication Skills” was taught to the post- graduate students studyi...