Investigating English-Majored Students’ Perceptions of Learning Small Talk Skills through a Workshop in Taiwan

• Main Authors: CHENG, YU, 鄭諭
• Other Authors: LEE, MEI-LING
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2019
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/h3h9k4

碩士 === 國立高雄科技大學 === 應用英語系 === 107 === Small talk is an important skill in English. In the process of globalization, Taiwanese college students could benefit from learning small talk skills. Through practicing small talk, they can enhance their English communication skills and achieve social success in the global workplace. The purpose of this study is therefore to investigate Taiwanese English-majored students’ perceptions of learning small talk skills through a workshop and explore their attitudes toward various small talk learning activities. A total of 21 junior students were recruited from the department of English at a technological university in Kaohsiung. The participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire about their perceptions and experiences of learning small talk skills in a workshop. Furthermore, an interview was conducted to investigate student’s viewpoints on the usefulness of workshop activities for their learning. The study revealed two major findings. First, the participants reported that it was a good idea for them to learn small talk skills in English through a workshop. The questionnaire results revealed that 61.9% of the students strongly agreed and 38.1% of the students agreed that the small talk workshop meets their learning needs in English. Second, the interview results further supported the positive findings from the questionnaire survey. Besides, the student interviewees suggested improvements for workshop activities, such as that the instructor should require students to speak English throughout the small talk party, and the Kahoot games should be made more competitive so that the participants can compare their performances. Important pedagogical implications are addressed. Keywords: small talk, learning needs, workshop, English-majored students, Taiwan