Awareness of hesitation devices helps university EFL students manage discourse

Abstract

This study aims at raising EFL learner’s awareness to use hesitation devices to manage discourse by providing them with a strategy for filling pauses and allowing them to gain time to think during speaking production. The innovation was carried out during 26 class hours. A total of 12 university students participated in the study. They had a CEFR B1 level but found it hard to express themselves orally. The objective of the innovation was to improve the learners’ discourse management. Five communication activities were presented and practiced aiming at specific training on hesitation devices. Pre and post-test procedures demonstrated the effect of specific strategy training on students’ discourse. Field notes and interviews provided students’ perception of their speaking progress after instruction. The findings reveal that the intervention was highly significant, Cohen’s d = 0,89. The findings of the present study have implications for language teachers and curriculum designers. Teaching students to develop an awareness of communication strategies would help them overcome language difficulties, as well as maintain and develop the interaction. Likewise, incorporating communication strategies into the EFL program would spell out that communicative competence should not be separated from language usage.