Impacts of Tree-maps and Bubble-maps Integrated Storytelling Task-based Learning Module on English Speaking Skills among Chinese Undergraduates

Abstract

Poor English speaking skills have long plagued students at China's higher vocational colleges, as seen by their inability to explain what they say when speaking and their lack of accuracy and fluency. This study designed and developed a tree-maps and bubble-maps integrated storytelling task-based speaking learning module for Chinese higher vocational college students and made an intervention among students at two public higher vocational colleges in northwest China to see how this speaking learning module affects their English speaking skills. Twenty sophomore non-English major students were chosen as the experimental group, and another twenty counterparts were compared as the control group. This study used a mixed methodology, integrating quantitative and qualitative methods. The students' English speaking skills were tested before and after the intervention and scores collected from College English Test-Spoken English Test which held twice per year in Chinese colleges administrated by the Ministry of Education in China. Six students in the experimental group attended in the semi-structured interview and the qualitative data were semantically analyzed. The results demonstrate that the tree maps and bubble maps integrated storytelling task-based speaking learning module can help Chinese HVC students enhance their English speaking skills to a certain degree.