Turning apathy into activeness in oral communication classes: Regular self- and peer-assessment in a TBLT programme

One problem common to many Oral Communication (OC) classrooms in universities in Japan and other countries is that English major students often lack the impetus to proactively develop their oral language proficiency. In this paper, we present our investigation into whether regular self-, peer-, and teacher-assessment would promote the use of spoken English in the classroom as well as a greater degree of engagement with English language learning. The investigation was conducted in a Japanese university and involved students on an OC course that employed a task-based approach. Utilizing Guilloteaux and Dörnyei (2008) Student Motivational State Questionnaire, we developed a framework to assess the students' willingness to speak in class, attitudes to the course, linguistic self-confidence, activeness, as well as their beliefs regarding their autonomy. Pre- and post-surveys were used to evaluate change over the period of one term. Limitations notwithstanding, our results revealed that regular assessments conducted by the students and peers in addition to those of the teacher led to significant increases in their frequency of spoken English in the class and a higher level of engagement with English learning outside the classroom. The paper closes with directions for future research.