THE EFFECT OF STRUCTURED YOUTUBE-BASED PRACTICE ON VIETNAMESE EFL UNDERGRADUATES’ SPEAKING PERFORMANCE

Nguyen Tran Nhu Hao, Kim Thanh Tuyen

Abstract


This study examined the effect of structured YouTube-based speaking practice on the speaking performance of second-year non-English-major undergraduates at Tay Do University, Vietnam. A randomized pre-test/post-test control-group design was employed. Seventy students from one General English Speaking 2 class were individually and randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 35) or a control group (n = 35). Over 12 weeks, the experimental group completed a sequence of video viewing, shadowing, self-recording, and guided spoken response, while the control group undertook time-matched conventional speaking practice. Two curriculum-aligned speaking-test forms assessed grammar and vocabulary, pronunciation, fluency, and interactive communication. Independent- and paired-samples t-tests were used, with non-parametric robustness checks. No statistically significant between-group differences were found at pre-test. At post-test, the experimental group achieved a higher total speaking score (M = 13.69, SD = 1.41) than the control group (M = 12.09, SD = 1.44), t(68) = 4.69, p < .001, d = 1.12. Significant advantages were also found for grammar and vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency, but not for interactive communication. Both groups improved over time. The findings support the use of the integrated YouTube-based protocol as supplementary speaking practice, particularly for linguistic resources and speech delivery. They do not establish the independent effect of video viewing or the long-term maintenance of gains. Additional reciprocal interaction is recommended when interactive communication is an instructional priority.

Keywords


YouTube; EFL speaking performance; shadowing; non-English-major undergraduates; randomized experiment

Full Text:

PDF

References


Brown, H. D. (2004). Language assessment: Principles and classroom practices. Pearson Longman. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Language_Assessment.html?id=NqglAQAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y

Bygate, M. (1987). Speaking. Oxford University Press. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Speaking.html?id=XozCwaqSJFIC&redir_esc=y

Canale, M., & Swain, M. (1980). Theoretical bases of communicative approaches to second language teaching and testing. Applied Linguistics, 1(1), 1–47. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/I.1.1

Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203771587

Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2018). Research methods in education (8th ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315456539

DeKeyser, R. (2007). Skill acquisition theory. In B. VanPatten & J. Williams (Eds.), Theories in second language acquisition: An introduction (pp. 97–113). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2006-20180-006

Dinh, T. H. T., & Phung, V. D. (2023). The effects of using videos in English speaking lessons on high school students’ speaking performance, Kien Giang Province, Vietnam. European Journal of English Language Teaching, 8(4), 129–157. https://doi.org/10.46827/ejel.v8i4.5011

Dörnyei, Z. (2007). Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative and mixed methodologies. Oxford University Press.

Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics (5th ed.). SAGE Publications. Gilmore, A. (2007). Authentic materials and authenticity in foreign language learning. Language Teaching, 40(2), 97–118. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444807004144

Galaczi, E. D. (2014). Interactional competence across proficiency levels: How do learners manage interaction in paired speaking tests? Applied Linguistics, 35(5), 553–574. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amt017

Galaczi, E., & Taylor, L. (2018). Interactional competence: Conceptualisations, operationalisations, and outstanding questions. Language Assessment Quarterly, 15(3), 219–236. https://doi.org/10.1080/15434303.2018.1453816

Guariento, W., & Morley, J. (2001). Text and task authenticity in the EFL classroom. ELT Journal, 55(4), 347–353. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/55.4.347

Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. The Modern Language Journal, 70(2), 125–132. Retrieved from https://www.ling.ohio-state.edu/research/groups/lacqueys/readings/horowitz.pdf

Krashen, S. D. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Pergamon Press. Retrieved from https://www.sdkrashen.com/content/books/principles_and_practice.pdf

Littlewood, W. (2007). Communicative and task-based language teaching in East Asian classrooms. Language Teaching, 40(3), 243–249. Retrieved from https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/language-teaching/article/abs/communicative-and-taskbased-language-teaching-in-east-asian-classrooms/42FAB897C9A7255F9843C090649E1987

Long, M. H. (1996). The role of the linguistic environment in second language acquisition. In W. C. Ritchie & T. K. Bhatia (Eds.), Handbook of second language acquisition (pp. 413–468). Academic Press. Retrieved from https://www.library.brawnblog.com/Long1996-Ling%20Env%20L2%20Acq.pdf

Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia learning (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.

Montero-Perez, M., Van Den Noortgate, W., & Desmet, P. (2013). Captioned video for L2 listening and vocabulary learning: A meta-analysis. System, 41(3), 720–739. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2013.07.013

Muslem, A., Fata, I. A., & Saputri, W. I. (2022). The effect of English authentic YouTube videos on students’ speaking skills in a rural school. Journal of Education Technology, 6(3), 423–430. https://doi.org/10.23887/jet.v6i3.45412

Nguyen, T. N. H. (2026). The effect of YouTube videos on EFL learners’ speaking skills [Master’s thesis, Can Tho University].

Nhat, T. T. M. (2018). Thực trạng kỹ năng nói tiếng Anh và đề xuất một số hoạt động tự rèn luyện nói tiếng Anh ngoài lớp học cho sinh viên chuyên ngành kỹ thuật Trường Đại học Công nghiệp Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh. Tạp chí Giáo dục, 435(1), 54–59.

Oanh, H. T. K., & Van, N. T. H. (2020). Steps to improve English speaking skills for students of Electric Power University through vlog-based practice. Journal of Science, Hanoi Open University, 67, 21–30.

Plonsky, L., & Oswald, F. L. (2014). How big is “big”? Interpreting effect sizes in L2 research. Language Learning, 64(4), 878–912. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12079

Purnamasari, A. (2018). What EFL learners say about YouTube use to improve pronunciation in a blended learning environment. Lingua Cultura, 12(3), 233–238.

Saed, H. A., Haider, A. S., Al-Salman, S., & Hussein, R. F. (2021). The use of YouTube in developing the speaking skills of Jordanian EFL university students. Heliyon, 7(7), Article e07543. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07543

Shadish, W. R., Cook, T. D., & Campbell, D. T. (2002). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for generalized causal inference. Houghton Mifflin. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2002-17373-000

Sundqvist, P., & Sylvén, L. K. (2016). Extramural English in teaching and learning: From theory and research to practice. Palgrave Macmillan. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/book/10.1057/978-1-137-46048-6

Swain, M. (1985). Communicative competence: Some roles of comprehensible input and comprehensible output in its development. In S. Gass & C. Madden (Eds.), Input in second language acquisition (pp. 235–253). Newbury House. Retrieved from https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/mono/10.4324/9781315835877-13/communicative-competence-roles-comprehensible-input-comprehensible-output-development-jim-cummins-merrill-swain

Thornbury, S. (2005). How to teach speaking. Longman.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvjf9vz4

Whitworth, B., & Rose, H. (2025). A systematic review of research on the use of shadowing for second language pronunciation teaching. Research Synthesis in Applied Linguistics, 1(2), 239–269. https://doi.org/10.1080/29984475.2025.2546827




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejfl.v10i3.7061

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright © 2015 - 2026. European Journal of Foreign Language Teaching (ISSN 2537-1754) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library (Biblioteca Nationala a Romaniei). All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms.

All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).