Exploring the Benefits and Barriers of Online English-Speaking Club for EFL Learners' Speaking Skill Development in Indonesia

Background/purpose. Despite its informal setting, it is astonishing that the members of online English-speaking club (ESC) are adept at speaking. Employing a mixed-methods approach, more specifically a descriptive case study, this study aimed to evaluate the ESC contribution to its members’ speaking competence development, to examine their speaking competence, and to identify the challenges they encountered in their endeavor to acquire English-speaking competence in Indonesia, where English is a foreign language.

Materials/methods. A number of 15 members of the online ESC were recruited as the research participants. Interviews were conducted to unpack the contributions of the club with respect to its members’ spoken English skill and the challenges facing them. An oral test was administered to assess the club members’ speaking competence. Interview data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Data obtained from the test were analyzed using descriptive statistics.

Results. The results indicated the online ESC considerable contribution to its members’ speaking competence attainment attributed to the potentials it offers: language development support, psychological benefit, and collaborative learning opportunities. The club members’ speaking proficiency level belonged to category “good,” with an average score of 8.0. Additionally, the challenges facing the club members included linguistic and psychological obstacles.

Conclusion. The online ESC offers benefits to its members in regard with speaking competence development. Therefore, suggestions for the parties within and beyond this research are provided.

Keywords: Benefits, barriers, online, speaking club, speaking skill, development

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