L2 learners'oral performance on independent and integrated tasks

Abstract

The main objective of the present study is to investigate the impact two different types of tasks - independent tasks and integrated tasks - have upon 15 L2 learners´ oral performance, in terms of fluency, accuracy, and complexity. After the quantitative analysis, data was presented to 4 expert raters who judged participants´ oral performance. Results revealed that task 1, an independent task whose task topic is familiar to the participant and planning time of 1 minute is given, yielded more fluent and accurate speech. Integrated tasks, on the other hand, produce more complex speech if contextual support is provided and planning time of 5 minutes is given. Findings revealed the existence of two trade-offs operating in the participants´ speech samples. The first trade-off is that between accuracy and complexity, whereas the second trade-off is that between fluency and complexity. The results from the present study may call teachers´ attention to the value of the design of the oral task so that teachers can assess learners´ oral production successfully.