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English Language Journal 2011

64

The Benefits of ESL Community Service Project on ESL

Student Tutors

By:

Noriah Ismail, Intan Safinas Mohd Ariff Albakri

and Suhaidi Elias @Alias

The study analyses ESL students facilitators perception

regarding their involvement in a special community serviceproject called Project Tutor which is carried out in order

to help some primary students from a rural school to be

more interested in learning English. The project is regarded

as a win-win situation as the student facilitators themselves

are able to improve their English speaking confidence aswell as motivate them to be more involved in future

community service projects.

Introduction

Many ESL students even at tertiary level are fearful or reluctant to speak in English .

Kaufman and Lionel (2000) conclude that reluctance to communicate in English is

common place among ESL learners. Many students become literally speechless when

they are placed to speak in public. One of the reasons is they lack the skill and confidence

to do so and become apprehensive. Higher rate of communication apprehension can

impact on a persons behavior, relationships, the perception of others, occupational

choice and employment opportunities and education. Therefore ESL students should be

given the opportunities to participate in English-based activities that provide them a

chance to practice speaking in the language, especially in authentic situations.

The Benefits of Community Service Tutoring Projects

Involving university students in a community service project such as one which

provides a cross-age tutoring service to some primary school students is a good move

which can bring some positive outcomes not just to the tutees (the primary school




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students) but to the tutors (the university students) involved as well, especially in terms of

their communication skills in English.

Evidently cross-age tutoring brings a lot of benefits not just to the tutees but to the

tutors as well. Greenwood et.al (1988) emphasized three commonly cited benefits which

are the learning of academic skills including language communication, the development

of social behavior and classroom discipline.

One of the reasons cross-age tutoring works may be that tutors and tutees speak a

more similar language than do adult teachers and students. According to Hedin (1987) the

tutees who are being taught by a peer or someone closer in age to them feel freer to

express opinions, ask questions and risk untested solutions. The interaction between

instructor and pupils is more balanced and lively; therefore, this then stimulates the tutors

to communicate well with the tutees. The feeling of being accepted by their tutees

encouraged the tutors to speak using the target language and this will significantly

improve their speaking performance.

Researchers have discovered significant beneficial effects on the English

language skills achievement of tutors (Rekrut, 1992). The language areas being examined

include English speaking skills with a marked improvement in terms of grammar,

comprehension (task fulfillment), acquisition of vocabulary and fluency (communicative

ability). The positive results were found for both short and long term tutoring involving

secondary and elementary school students.

Being able to practice using the target language such as English in an authentic

classroom situation helps to further improve the tutors language skill, particularly their

speaking performance. Therefore, the act of tutoring, particularly cross-age tutoring

among ESL students should be looked upon as a valuable alternative to language

teaching and as one of the means in enhancing ESL students English performance,

especially in terms of their speaking skill.




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A study on the benefits of community service was carried out on some university

students (Astin and Vogelgesang :2001). The students who work on the community

service are found to produce better academic performance especially in social studies

including English communication. The subjects are also found to be very motivated to be

involved in future projects on community service as they have experience a marked

improvement in their social and communication skill.

Eyler and Giles (2000) suggests that students involved in community service are

more likely to be intrinsically motivated to increase their level of involvement in the

community which helps to enhance their communication skills. Therefore, community

service projects such provide students with an opportunity to learn beyond the bounds of

the traditional classrooms and give them ample chance to increase their skill.

Overall, extensive research in the area of English speaking performance relating

to cross-age tutoring is still few and far between, particularly in ESL context. Therefore

the study hopes to gain further insights into this particular area.

Noriah et al (2006) conducted a study which assessed the impact of community

service on tertiary students ESL speaking performance. The study was in the form of pre

and post-test research in which a group of student facilitators from UiTM Johor were pre-

tested on their speaking skills. The samples were evaluated based on MUET (Malaysian

University English Test) speaking components. The subjects were then involved in the

universitys community service project on cross-age tutoring that required them to

provide English lessons for some selected primary school students. After the project, the

subjects were asked to sit for a post-test. The results revealed a significant improvement

in terms of the student facilitators task fulfillment, communicative ability as well as the

overall speaking performance of the students.




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The Research

The objectives of the study is to analyze ESL student facilitators perceptions of

cross-age tutoring (a community service project) and to discover how it benefits

them. The project was organized by UiTM Johors. The students facilitators were 22

undergraduate students from the university who volunteered for the cross-age tutoring

project. The project requires the student facilitators provide English lessons for some

selected primary school students from Sek Keb Melayu Raya, Johor for two hours

once a week for a duration of four months. After the project the subjects were asked

to answer a set of questionnaires and some interview questions to analyze their

feelings regarding their involvement in the community service project and how it

benefits them in terms of their ESL speaking and communication skills and their

attitude towards the language. The students were also asked to record their thoughts

and feelings in an essay form which was analyzed qualitatively.

Findings and Discussion

The major findings from the questionnaires reveal that:

1. 95.5% of the students agree that the community service project was useful as itgave them a chance to speak English in an authentic situation.

2.

The majority of the students (72.2%) claim that after the project, they have more

confidence to speak in English.

3.

The Tutoring Project also makes them (91%) feel more motivated to improve

their spoken English.

4.

With the success of the project, the students (77.4%) feel more interested to join

in a similar project in future.




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Analysis of the data from the interview revealed that most of the students feel that the

community service project is beneficial to them.

1.

In terms of the benefits of the community service projects, the students reveal that

the project gives them a chance to speak English in an authentic situation:

The project gave me a chance to practice speaking in front of real students, real

audience.

After the project I feel my spoken English is so much better. It gave me a chance

to improve my speaking skill when I taught the students.

It is one way that we can practice our English speaking skill.

2. The students mentioned that the project makes them feel less afraid and more

confident to speak English:

Before the project I was not confident to speak. After teaching the students for

more than a month I feel that I can manage to say a lot of things in English

without being afraid to be laughed at.

I need to face more than 20 students every time I teach English. Their level is

lower so I feel more confident. It helps to boost my confidence to speak English

with others now.

Even though I still speak broken English but I no longer afraid to talk in English

now.




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3.

The students feel that by facilitating the students, they are able to improve their

speaking skill:

It is a win-win situation for the students as well as to us. I think I also improve

my English when I do a lot of revising and planning for the class I need to teach.

I feel that being the facilitator and tutor in the project has help me become more

competent in the speaking skill.

Yes, I think it has helped me improve my public speaking skill. I was a poor

public speaker before.

4. The student tutors also claimed that they become more motivated to speak in

English and improve themselves after the project:

Most of all, I feel more motivated to speak and try to improve myself after the

project.

The good thing about the project is I become more interested to speak and my

speaking has become more better.

Its great the way it encourages me to speak more.

5.

In addition to speaking skill the student facilitators also mentioned that being the

tutors for the project helps them to improve their overall communication skill:

During the project we were given a lot of guidance and tips on how to

communicate well with the students.

Being the tutor can training us to improve our overall communication skill.




70

It helped me to improve my interpersonal and communication skill with others.

6. The students claimed that their attitude towards speaking has improved after the

project:

The project helps to change my attitude towards speaking. Before I think it as not

so important compared to writing skill. Now I understand.

Before I am lazy to speak and feel I no need to improve until after I graduate, noe

I know it is very important to be good English speaker.

After the project I feel more motivated and interested to speak more and improve

myself.

Conclusion

Every ESL tertiary students should be given a chance to enhance their English

speaking skills through authentic speaking activities that will help them to be

more fluent and also confident to face the public once they graduated. Speaking

practice within the classroom context is insufficient, whats more if it is meant

only for exam purposes. Therefore, getting ESL students to be involved in a

community service projects that can encourage them to communicate well is a

very good move as the study as proven. Whats more if it stimulates the students

desire to contribute to the society and turn them into more responsible and caring

future generation.




71

References:

Astin, A. & Vogelgesang, L. 2001. How Service Learning Affects Students : An

Executive Summary U.S.A : Higher Education Research Inst. Inc.

Astin, A & Sax, L. 2001. How Undergraduates are Affected by Service

Participation.Journal of Student Development, 39, 251-263.

Eyler, J. & Giles, D.2000. Wheres the Learning in Service Learning? San

Francisco C A: Inc.

Greenwood, C.R. ; Dcarta, J. J. ; and Hall, v. The Use of Peer-Tutoring Strategies

in Classroom Management and Educational Instruction. School PsychologyReview. 17 , 258-275.

Hedin, D. 1987. Students as Teachers: A Tool for Improving School. SocialPolicy.17, 42-47.

Kaufman, B and lionel, M (2000). Accelerating Communicative Competence in

English Through Peer Tutoring. English Department. Online.

Noriah Ismail, Kamalanathan Ramakrishnan, Zaira Md.Nor and Intan SafinasAriff Albakri.Enhancing English speaking performance of student facilitatorsthrough cross-age tutoring: A community service project. The Sixth Malaysia

International Conference on English Language Teaching (MICELT).Universiti Putra Malaysia. Hotel Equatorial Melaka. May 8-10 May, 2006.

http://[email protected].

Rekrut, M.D. 1992. Teaching To Learn: Cross-Age Tutoring To Enhance strategyAcquisition. San Francisco, CA.

Biodata:

1.Noriah Ismail is a lecturer at the Academy of Language Studies UiTM

Johor Branch.

Expertise and research area: ESL Writing and Research on ESL

Contact:

No 2 Taman Sulir Pekan Jabi 85000, Segamat Johor.




72

Tel : 019-7151412 (H/P)

: 07-9352179 (O)

e-mail :[email protected]

2. Intan Safinas Mohd Ariff Albakri is a TESL lecturer at UPSI

Expertise and research area : ESL research and material development.

Contact:

Tel : 605 4506506 (O)

e-mail :[email protected]

3. Suhaidi Elias @Alias is a lecturer at the Faculty of Business and

Management UiTM Johor.

Expertise and research area : Research on education and learning.

Contact:

No 2 Taman Sulir Pekan Jabi 85000, Segamat Johor.

Tel: 03 7494600 (H/P)

07 9352141 (O)

e-mail ;[email protected]
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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