Developing the ability to speak in a foreign language is an arduous task. This is because it involves the mastery of different language subsystems, simultaneous focus on comprehension and production, and the impact of a range of social factors. This challenge is further compounded in situations in which learners have limited access to the target language. Thus, there is a need to explore issues related to teaching, learning and testing speaking with a view to translating the guidelines based on theoretical positions and research findings into feasible and context-specific pedagogical recommendations. This is the rationale behind this book, which considers speaking from leading theoretical perspectives, investigates individual variables which affect its development, and reports the results of studies focusing on different aspects of its instructed acquisition.
Mirosław Pawlak is Professor of English at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, State University of Applied Sciences, Konin, Poland, and the Faculty of Pedagogy and Fine Arts in Kalisz, Adam Mickiewicz University, Kalisz, Poland. His research interests include form-focused instruction, corrective feedback, classroom discourse, learner autonomy, learning strategies, motivation, willingness to communicate, pronunciation teaching, and study abroad.
Ewa Waniek-Klimczak is Professor of English linguistics and the Director of Studies in the Institute of English at the University of Łódź. She teaches courses in phonetics, phonology, accents of English and spoken discourse. Her main research interests are the acquisition and usage of the SL sound system, cross-linguistic phonetics and phonology and pronunciation teaching.
Jan Majer is Professor of English and head of the Department of Psycholinguistics and ELT, Institute of English Studies, Faculty of Philology, University of Lodz, Poland. His main areas of interest are bilingualism, second language acquisition theory and research, analysis of classroom communication, and English as an International Language.