Author(s)

Rhonda Vail G. Leyaley

College of Education, Kalinga State University, Tabuk City, Philippines.

This study focused on the pre-service students’ passiveness in the classroom. Despite their chosen profession where speaking the English language is a requirement, they are not interactive in the classroom when English is used as the medium of communication. The objective of this study is to identify the causes of their passiveness and the strategies they employ to overcome it. The data for this study were collected using a questionnaire distributed through Google Forms. The respondents’ answers were further validated through small group discussions. The findings indicate the following: Technical factors: the respondents moderately agree that insufficient sentence organization and inaccurate pronunciation contribute to their passiveness in the classroom; Psychological factors: the respondents strongly agree that internal factors such as nervousness, lack of confidence, and fear of making mistakes lead to their passiveness. They also moderately agree that peer pressure is a contributing factor; and Environmental factors: the respondents strongly agree that motivation, or the lack thereof, influences their passiveness. They moderately agree that the frequency of using the language and the availability of practice opportunities impact their level of passiveness. Regarding the strategies used to overcome passiveness in the classroom, the findings are as follows: the respondents heavily rely on translation when answering questions, while they moderately use it when organizing ideas and writing responses; they frequently employ hand gestures and facial expressions to convey their ideas; extensively use English movies, reading English books, and watching English classes on social media platforms to develop their speaking skills; and they commonly engage in self-talk and conversations with peers, while rarely engage in conversations with English-speaking individuals and provide comments during class discussions.

Speaking Skills, Passiveness, Pronunciation, Speaking Strategies

Leyaley, R. (2023) Students’ Passiveness in Speaking English: The Culprit behind the Silence in the Classroom. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 11, 98-111. doi: 10.4236/jss.2023.118007.