Research on teaching listening and speaking skills has been conducted at many levels. The purpose of this study was to analyze the current implementation of classroom and extracurricular activities, as well as the use of educational resources for teaching both skills in public senior high schools in the Amazon region of Ecuador, particularly in the towns of Zamora and Yantzaza. The participants included 188 students between the ages of 15 and 18 years, and 10 English teachers in the area. This study was conducted using a mixed-method (quantitative and qualitative) approach. The instruments to collect information were students' and teachers' questionnaires, teacher's interviews, and observation sheets. In addition, the Cambridge English Unlimited Placement Test was applied in order to determine the students' English proficiency level of listening and speaking skills. The findings revealed that the completion of exercises based on a listening passage and dialogues were the most frequent activities used by students to practice listening in the classroom; meanwhile, dialogues and repetition drills were the most frequent activities applied to develop speaking. With respect to extracurricular activities, listening to English music with lyrics, watching videos, discussions, and conversations with native speakers were most frequently suggested for enhancing listening and speaking. Among the resources, audio CDs and textbooks were the most frequent aids to prompt listening and speaking activities.

This study was conducted to identify teachers' and students' perceptions regarding the internal factors that influence English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learning in the southern region of Ecuador. The participants were 257 children, who answered a questionnaire about motivation, anxiety, willingness, self-efficacy and memorization when learning English skills. The English classes that these students took were observed during a three-month period. In addition, eight teachers were interviewed in order to know their views about the students' internal factors in EFL learning. After analyzing the data quantitatively and qualitatively, the results evidenced that, according to the participants' perceptions, motivation decreases depending on the students' age and the type of skills. Furthermore, anxiety when speaking in front of the class and doing listening activities increases as the students get older. Students are also self-efficient in the classroom, and they recall what they have learned. All the implications that can be derived from these factors should be carefully analyzed by educational stakeholders in order to help students succeed in the learning process.

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This study examined the effectiveness of using the Visual Vocabulary app as a metacognitive strategy for learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) vocabulary. The participants included 42 EFL pre-service teachers aged 18 -25 years old, who had an A1+ Common European Framework of References (CEFR) proficiency level and were enrolled in the second semester of an English program at a private university in Loja, Ecuador. These students were divided into experimental (20) and control group (22) by using purposeful sampling. Additionally, two teachers, who were in charge of planning and applying the activities in the classroom, participated in this study. A quasi-experimental approach was used, in which pre and post-tests, questionnaires and teacher's interviews were applied to the participants. In the experimental group, students employed the Visual Vocabulary app as a didactic resource twice a week to increase their lexical knowledge, which allowed them to have control over their own thinking and decisions related to the development of learning activities. As for the control group, they received the same time of instruction but they did not use the app in their classes; instead, they worked on regular classroom activities. The results indicate that the Visual Vocabulary app was effective as a metacognitive strategy to enhance EFL vocabulary learning, and students showed a positive attitude towards the use of this tool. Furthermore, this app was a motivating tool for vocabulary learning, being useful for providing immediate feedback and helping students build their confidence to develop their language skills.