Use of Podcasts to Enhance Algerian Students' Speaking Skill: The Case of Third Year License Students of English at Hamma Lakhdar University of Eloued

Abstract

The development of ICT has brought into innovative ways in English language learning. The Podcasts are one of the ICT tools that have been widely used and have proved to be effective in teaching English, especially the speaking skill. Podcast is a digital recording which contains a recorded programmes from television, radio, and interviews. However, Algerian teachers are still not aware of this technology and its benefits. Thus, this study investigated the use of podcasts to develop Algerian students’ English speaking skill . This research aims at finding out if there is a significant improvement in students’ speaking skills when using Podcasts. 30 third year license students and four oral expression teachers of Eloued University were chosen as the sample of this study. A student questionnaire and a teacher interview were employed as research instruments to collect data . The study showed that both students and teachers had positive attitudes towards the use of podcasts as a tool to enhance students’ speaking skill. Although, there were some problems faced by students in using podcast. Most participants agreed that they liked Podcasts because they helped them in improving their speaking performance. To conclude, the present study attempted to reveal whether the use of Podcasts enhanced the students’ speaking skill .