Authentic English Communication for Young Adults

Abstract

The purpose of this portfolio is to provide a communicative textbook for young adults who want to improve their speaking skills. Most Korean students have studied English in school or private English institutes for almost 10 years but they are not able to communicate in English. When they find themselves in a situation in which they must communicate with native speakers, many Korean students are unable to communicate with confidence. Although they have learned English for a long time, their oral communication proficiency is very low. Since the Korean English education system tends to focus on grades and testing, students have mostly focused on listening and reading for standardized tests. They have not had enough opportunities to practice for real language use. Choi (2008) notes that most EFL learners (young and old) have only been trained to take multiple-choice exams, and thus have not had the chance to acquire genuine communicative competence. Therefore, they do not have the ability to communicate with confidence in actual speaking situations. The target students are six male and female university students. The students’ goal is to improve their English communicative competence. Their English level is A2 according to the Common European Framework. Their reading proficiency is B1, which is slightly higher than other areas. They can communicate in simple, routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar topics but they are generally not confident in speaking English. However, they are motivated to learn English as they have been exposed to English speaking cultures through movies, TV-shows and the SNS. The aim of this book is to help students to develop their English proficiency as well as to build their confidence in communication. This textbook will provide abundant opportunities to practice the target language through meaningful and communicative activities and tasks which related to interests.