DOI: 10.14457/tu.the.2018.790
title: The effects of task-based instruction using a digital game in a flipped learning environment (TGF) on English oral communication ability of Thai undergraduate nursing students

description: The growth of Thailand’s medical tourism industry has inevitably made English oral communication skills increasingly important to Thai medical personnel, especially to nurses that have to act as medical mediators between doctors and patients. Thus, in order to prepare nursing students for their future career, it is necessary that English language teachers find a way to help students improve their English oral communication ability.Therefore, in the present study, a model for teaching English oral communication skills, called the task-based instruction using a digital game in a flipped learning environment (TGF), was developed by integrating three language learning approaches, namely task-based language teaching, digital game-based language learning, and flipped learning. Then, the effects of the TGF on English oral communication ability of Thai undergraduate nursing students were investigated. Further, the students’ opinions after receiving the TGF were also explored. Regarding the effects of the TGF on English oral communication ability, an experimental study, using a one-group pretest posttest design, was conducted with 23 second-year nursing students at a private university in Thailand during a period of 13 weeks. The participants’ scores on the pre- and post-oral communication test were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and SD) and inferential statistics (paired-samples t-test). In addition, the video-recordings of the participants’ performance on the pre- and post-test were transcribed and analyzed qualitatively. The quantitative findings revealed that the participants’ post-test mean scores on all components of oral communication, namely task achievement and language resources, listening comprehension, pronunciation, and fluency, were statistically significantly higher than their pre-test mean scores (p &lt; 0.05). However, the qualitative findings indicated that although most of the students made improvements in their oral communication ability, some of them, especially the mid-scoring and low-scoring students, still had problems with listening comprehension and pronunciation. Regarding the students’ opinions of the TGF, the data were collected through the opinion questionnaire and the semi-structured interviews. Descriptive statistics (mean and SD) were used to analyze the quantitative data gained from the closed-ended questions in the opinion questionnaire, while the qualitative data from the open-ended questions in the opinion questionnaire as well as those from the semi-structured interviews were analyzed qualitatively through coding methods. The quantitative findings indicated that the participants had positive overall opinions of the TGF, as shown by their mean opinion score of 4.32 out of 5. Likewise, the qualitative findings revealed that the students perceived the usefulness of the TGF in developing their English oral communication ability.Based on the findings, the factors contributing to the success of the TGF in improving the students’ overall oral communication ability, as well as its drawbacks in improving the students’ listening comprehension and pronunciation, were discussed. Lastly, the pedagogical implications of the study were provided.