Oral proficiency of Korean college students at Central Philippine University

Abstract

The study was conducted to determine the oral proficiency of Korean college students at Central Philippine University. Among the 20 Korean college students who were enrolled, only five (5) agreed to participate of this study. Specifically this study answered the following objectives (1) determine the demographic profile of the respondents according to sex, course and number of year/s in the Philippines and (2) evaluate their oral proficiency through an oral test which requires them to read a text, describe a picture and respond to questions. A validated researcher-made questionnaire was also used to collect data about the respondents. The results indicated that majority of the Korean College students are proficient in reading and describing a picture, and responding to questions in terms of Pronunciation, Intonation, Volume, Quality, Speed, Correctness, Clarity, Courtesy, Fluency, Completeness. Such results can be explained by the Korean’s longer exposure to English language which may have contributed to the improvement of their oral communication skills. It was concluded that (1) Koreans were proficient in terms of volume, quality and speed in the two areas of the oral proficiency test in English. (2) Almost all of the respondents are proficient in all categories such as: Pronunciation, Intonation, Volume, Quality, Speed, Correctness, Clarity, Courtesy, Fluency, Completeness. (3) The Korean’s longer exposure to English language has greatly contributed their oral communication skills. Through the years, they may developed their oral proficiency skills through reading and speaking.